Cauliflower Fried Rice

Tanya Eisenwasser

Print Recipe

A low histamine cauliflower fried rice with eggs, carrot, green onions, garlic, and fresh ginger.

Prep 15 min

Cook 15 min

Serves 3

Gluten-freeDairy-free

Ingredients

• 1 medium head cauliflower, riced (about 6 cups), or 1 1/2 pounds pre-riced cauliflower
• 3 large eggs, beaten
• 3 tablespoons olive oil or coconut oil, divided
• 1 medium carrot, peeled and diced small
• 4 green onions, white and green parts sliced and kept separate
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely minced
• 2 tablespoons homemade chicken broth or vegetable broth (or water with a pinch of salt)
• 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided

Instructions

Rice the Cauliflower

1. Cut the head into florets and pat them completely dry. Pulse them in a food processor in two batches, about 8 short pulses each, until the pieces are the size of rice grains. The cauliflower rice method has more detail if you want it.
2. Spread the riced cauliflower on a clean kitchen towel while you prep everything else. Surface water is what keeps it from frying.

Scramble the Eggs

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium heat.
2. Pour in the beaten eggs with a pinch of the salt and stir slowly until they are just set, about 1 minute.
3. Tip the eggs onto a plate and break them up with a fork.

Fry It

1. Return the skillet to medium-high heat with the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil.
2. Add the carrot and the white parts of the green onions. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring, until the carrot softens at the edges.
3. Add the garlic and ginger and stir for 30 seconds.
4. Add the cauliflower and the remaining salt. Spread it flat and leave it for 2 minutes so the bottom browns, then stir. Repeat twice more, about 6 minutes total. It should look dry and toasted, not wet.
5. Splash in the broth and stir for 30 seconds, scraping the pan.
6. Fold the eggs back in with the green onion tops, cook for 1 more minute, and serve.

Tips & Substitutions

• There is no soy sauce in this. Soy sauce is brewed and aged, and it sits in the avoid column of most low histamine lists. Salt, a lot of fresh ginger, and a splash of homemade broth or vegetable broth do the same job of making the dish taste savory rather than plain.
• Dry cauliflower fries, wet cauliflower steams. Pat the florets dry before ricing, spread the rice out while you prep, and never cover the pan. Skipping this is the single most common reason cauliflower rice turns to mush.
• Frozen riced cauliflower works. Do not thaw it. Add it straight to a dry hot skillet for 4 to 5 minutes to cook off the ice, then move it to a plate. Scramble the eggs, then cook the carrot, green onion whites, garlic, and ginger exactly as written in Fry It, and bring the cauliflower back to the pan at step 4.
• Grate it by hand if you have no food processor. The large holes of a box grater give you the same texture, and you avoid the risk of overprocessing the florets into paste.
• Add protein. A cup of diced fresh chicken cooked in the pan first, or one additional scrambled egg, turns this into a full dinner. Cook the chicken through, set it aside with the eggs, and fold it back in at the end.
• Use real rice instead. If cauliflower is not your thing, the same seasoning works in egg fried rice or the fuller chicken fried rice.

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Why This Works

Cauliflower. Generally considered low histamine and commonly tolerated, which makes it a useful base when you want the shape of a takeout dish without the sauces that come with it. Buy heads that are firm and white, with no soft brown patches.

Eggs. Eggs are commonly tolerated when fresh; egg white is flagged on some lists, so start with a small portion if you are unsure. The dish still works if you leave them out and add more vegetables.

Fresh ginger and garlic. Both are generally considered low histamine when fresh, and together they carry most of the flavor that soy sauce would normally provide. Mince the ginger finely so it disappears into the rice.

Green onions. Commonly tolerated and worth splitting in two: the white parts cook down into the base, and the green tops go in at the end for a sharper bite.

Homemade broth. A small splash adds savor without the yeast extract found in most bouillon cubes. Long-simmered stock is flagged on most low histamine lists, which is why the linked broth recipes keep the simmer short and freeze it right away. Make it ahead and freeze it the same day in portions, or use water with extra salt.

Storage

Eat it the day it is made, while the grains are still dry and separate. Portion any extra and freeze it the same day, within an hour of cooking. Reheat from frozen in a covered pan until it is steaming hot all the way through, then uncover it for a minute so the surface dries out again. Freshly made is the version most people tolerate best, so cook a smaller batch if you would rather not freeze any.