Ever heard the quote, “Some days I amaze myself. Other days I look for my phone, while I am talking on it”? Well, today is one of those days, I am amazed with myself. You must be thinking, “Gee golly, why are you so amazed with yourself? Please tell me!” Well say no more, I am getting there, just hold on a bit longer! I’m a wordy person, it takes me a couple of sentences (or paragraphs) to get to the point.
Lately, I have been obsessed with cauliflower anything. So last night for dinner, I decided to throw together a stir fry dish with riced cauliflower. Three spices that gave this dish the perfect kick (amongst a couple others) were: smoked paprika, veg manchurian masala and cumin. Oh, the delicious smell of these three over simmering veggies, is just delightful! This dish has all the flavors of manchurian, with out all the calories!
The dish was simple & easy to make! Not to mention for a low carb dinner, it was quite flavorful! From prep to finish, total time came in at ~25 minutes. You can serve this as a side dish or a main dish, you can top with grilled chicken, you can even use as a meal prep for the week… the possibilities are endless with riced cauliflower!
Anyways, I digress, the reason, I am amazed with myself is: I was able to concoct a recipe, have dinner, wake up early the next day, snap pixels, edit the recipe and post it, all within 24 hours!! All of this in conjunction with my day job. I seriously feel like the god of efficiency right now (an undertone of sarcasm there). Well a long hard day, calls for some relaxation now.
PS. I prefer my food extra spicy (however, to me extra spicy = moderately spicy), therefore I’ve toned down the spice measurements in this recipe. If you prefer extra spice, adjust recipe as needed.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did! Don’t forget to garnish with green onions, and top with extra soy sauce.
Manchurian Fried Cauliflower Rice
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil in total, see directions
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 3 fresh green chillies finely chopped, or more depending on preference
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 cup white onions diced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 10 oz package sliced white mushrooms
- 2 tbsp soy sauce +more for garnish
- 1 tsp Ching’s Secret Manchurian Seasoning available on amazon, or Indian grocery stores
- 1 16 oz Trader Joe's Riced Cauliflower bag available at Trade Joe’s in the freezer aisle
- 2-3 tbsp General Tsao Sauce available at Trade Joe’s
- salt & pepper to taste
Garnish:
- Green onions chopped
- Siracha sauce
- Red pepper flakes
Instructions
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Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large wok skillet and add in minced garlic, green chilies, smoked paprika, cumin and garlic powder. Let simmer until fragrant, then add in onions, bell pepper and mushrooms. Cook on high/medium heat until veggies begin to soften. (About 5 minutes, if you feel you need more oil for the veggies to simmer, try adding in 1 tbsp of water at a time - it is less in calories, and veggies will cook perfectly!)
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Reduce heat, stir in soy sauce & manchurian seasoning, let simmer for 1 minute.
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Add in riced cauliflower and drizzle additional 1 tbsp olive oil on top. Cook stirring frequently for about 7- 9 minutes. (For a well done rice, cook for 10-12 minutes).
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Once rice is almost done cooking, add in general tsao sauce (I like extra sauce, so I used 3 tbsp of the General Tsao sauce, which gives the rice a sweet/spicy tang, if you prefer less start with 1 tbsp at a time) stirring frequently. At this point, if you desire, drizzle additional soy sauce on top and salt & pepper to taste. Mix well.
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Serve with green onions, siracha sauce and red pepper flakes for an extra kick!
Recipe Notes
- I recommend using Indian green chilies, that you find at an Indian store. These are different, than regular green chilies. Indian green chilies, are small 2-3 inches in length, and packed with heat. I love the distinct flavor they add to any dish. If you do not have any on hand, substitute with Serrano green chilies, or jalapeños!
- I toned down the spices in this recipe (just a tad). It is still moderately spicy, but for those of you that prefer extra heat, just taste test along the way & add extra as desired!
