This is one of those times where the word rice should actually be in quotes. Because there ain’t no grain of rice to be found here!
Heck yeah, grain free folk. I’m talking to you.
But before we get to the magical ingredient that transformed normal fried rice to protein fried “rice,” let me tell you just how much Mark loved this stuff.
He got home, and I was just finishing up this photo shoot. He was starving, so he took a couple of bites hanging over the oven.
“Do you like it?” I asked. “This is my Protein Fried Rice!”
He told me he liked it, helped himself to a little more, and we went on with our evening.
Later on, still amazed by this insane recipe, I was [humbly] telling him how impressed I was with myself, having made this recipe without any rice whatsoever.
Well that little truth bomb blew his mind.
“WHAT?! THERE’S NO RICE IN THIS?!”
It was adorable. He freaked out some more. And then we went and finished off the entire recipe.
It’s just SO good, guys.
You miiiight have already guessed the magical secret protein-packed ingredient in this recipe by the photos. But if not…it’s CHICKPEAS!
What?! Yes. And you’re going to love it.
Chickpeas really are one of my favorite sources of vegetarian and vegan protein, but I got the idea of making them into fried rice back when I made these Italian-Style Chickpea Burgers (which, omg yum). I was pulsing some chickpeas in the food processor, and I thought, “Self, this really looks like rice/riced cauliflower. I bet you could make a mean fried rice with this.”
And friends, that’s exactly what I did.
So we have our riced chickpeas, and to it we’ll add some garlic, sautéed carrots, and sautéed peppers. Now, you can use whatever kind of vegetation you so desire here. Corn and peas are traditional I think, but I forgot the corn (whoooops) and Mark hates peas. Mix and match to create your ultimate fried rice.
And the sauce. Ooooh the sauce. It’s a simple mix of soy sauce/gluten free tamari, honey/maple syrup, and dried ginger. Badaboom. That’s really it. It’s got that sweet ‘n’ savory thing going on, which is perfect for fried rice. And the fact that you’ll put a little bit of sweetness in there via the honey/maple syrup helps everything caramelize nicely over the hot veg. Amaze.Ing.
To say we loved this stuff is a complete and total understatement. We like, really loved it. Like, Tom-Cruise-jumping-up-and-down-on-a-couch-on-live-TV loved this stuff.
And the fact that it’s a mere 15 minute meal is like the icing on the cake sesame seeds on the fried rice.
Enjoy, friends!
PrintProtein Fried Rice
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 15 mins
- Yield: 3-4 servings
Ingredients
FOR THE SAUCE:
- 2 Tbsp. gluten free tamari or low sodium soy sauce if not gluten free
- 1 Tbsp. honey/maple syrup
- 1/8 tsp. dried ginger
FOR THE RICE:
- 1 15-oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil, plus more for cooking if needed
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
- 2 medium carrots, diced
- 1 bell pepper, diced
TO TOP:
- 2 radishes, cut into thin strips
- 3 green onions, roughly chopped
- black & white sesame seeds, optional
Instructions
- Make the sauce: Add soy sauce, honey/maple syrup, and ginger to a small mason jar or bowl, and mix well to combine. Set aside.
- Make the rice: Add chickpeas to a food processor and pulse until it looks like rice/riced cauliflower. Don’t over process it or you’ll have mashed chickpeas. Set aside.
- Add olive oil to a large sauce pan and heat over medium to medium-high heat. Add garlic and sauté until brown and fragrant. Add carrots and pepper and sauté until caramelized and tender. If the veggies are browning too much, be sure to reduce the heat a bit.
- Add riced chickpeas and sauté until warmed through. You can add a bit more olive oil here to help it “fry.”
- After a minute or so, add your sauce, and mix to coat completely. Allow to fry and caramelize a bit more, 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Remove from heat and scoop into bowls. Top with radishes, green onion, and sesame seeds.
Love this idea of healthier, high-protein fried rice!! Totally coming over to crash for dinner next time I’m in the area ;)
Ha! You’re more than welcome to crash dinner any time, Marina :)
ah this is so clever! I thought it was gonna be cauliflower which wasn’t very exciting…but you got me! I’m definitely gonna give this a try.
Thanks so much, Megan! It’s seriously so so good – I hope you give this non-cauliflower fried rice a try ;)
Oh my word this is such a great idea! My husband would definitely notice the beans (much to my chagrin he is a bean-hater) but I bet I could sneak them by my kids! And I love beans AND Asian food…so combining the two…brilliant.
A bean-hater?! You never know…he might just be surprised by this! Mark had no idea there wasn’t rice in here. :) Let me know if you do try it out!
Never thought to use chickpeas as “rice”! What an amazing idea, pinned :)
This looks amazing! Can’t wait to try it. Might do with peas, carrots and broccoli add-in’s (no corn here either.)
Thanks so much, Maria! I love your idea of adding broccoli – it’s one of my all-time favorite veggies :)
Nice work! Anytime you can ‘fool’ people with your recipes (i.e. what?! no rice?!) I consider that a big win! Or at least it is when my hubby is fooled! ;)
Haha! I totally agree. Fooling people to eat a wee bit healthier is always a “win” in my book ;)
This is genius!! Right up my alley. Can’t wait to try it!
Thanks, Sarah!! :) Let me know if you try it out! Seriously out new favorite dinner.
This sounds amazing!!! Yummy!
Thanks so much, Kayla!! We just love this recipe!
I made this tonight! It is absolutely delicious and I am so excited. You are very clever and my husband went back for thirds!!! This will now become part of my repertoire. I am so glad I doubled the recipe cause now I will be able to have some for lunch. Very Filling too. Thank you!
I’m SO happy you both liked it – it’s always great to hear that it’s “husband approved” ;) We love this one in our house too!
I made it and it was awesome! My husband loved it even though he doesn’t like food that’s not what it’s supposed to be.
I made it with beans, carrots and some cabbage
I totally understand; my boyfriend is the same way. But I’m so glad you guys both liked this recipe! It’s one of my all-time FAVES :)
Hi there, thanks for the idea! Sorry if this question sounds silly but, are the chickpeas cooked before they are chopped to “rice” form?
Not silly at all! Yep, they’re completely cooked before chopping. I used the canned variety, but you can totally make them from scratch so long as they’re cooked. Let me know if you try it!
I made this the other day and it was awesome! Great idea to use the chickpeas and really versatile. We used veggies we had on hand which included what you had plus mushrooms and a little cabbage. It was super filling! Thanks for the wonderful recipe idea. :)
I love the idea of throwing cabbage into this dish! It has quickly become one of my very favorite veggies :) So happy you enjoyed this, Andrea!
I love chickpeas! Thank you for another great way to use them. Your recipes are always easy to make and so yummy.
Thank you so much, Cathy! You made my night :) This is one of my favorite recipes!
When you say “dried ginger”, is that the same as those caramelized dry ginger pieces? I tried Googling it and got mixed results
Hey, Elizabeth! I used powdered ginger :)
I almost never comment on the recipes I make from blogs, BUT…this was so good I had to come here and tell you!!! My husband and I ate it all in one sitting and I’m already making it again tonight. Thanks for a great recipe!
I’m SO happy to hear you liked it, Kristin! It’s such an odd recipe, but it works SO well. :)
Genius recipe. We added a generous amount of shredded cabbage to the veggies, and a good tablespoon of chopped fresh ginger with the garlic. Also: less sweetening, and a bit of sesame oil and rice vinegar. Thank you so much.
Isn’t it such a cool recipe?! Totally hits the spot :)
Heard it all now, fried rice with no rice! What a great idea. I have become wary of my favourite brown rice cos of arsenic scares. So rationed and rinsed and soaked crazily. How good to be given an option so thank you.
Thanks for a great idea :)
Tried this with canned soy beans. Didn’t work at all. It all turned to mush when I tried to (gently) chop it in my food processor. Had whole beans still, but more than half was just a smooth paste… Will try with chickpeas next time!
Eek! Sorry the canned soy beans didn’t work. Definitely try it with chickpeas and report back! Just a few pulses is all it needs :)
This is my go to, quick, easy, budget friendly recipe. Thank you Alexa
Love hearing that, Bea!
That’s a great idea , thank you for sharing hope this would taste the way process looks like
Something new <3
This was so good! I adapted the sauce to my tastes, adding fresh ginger, mirin for sweetness instead of honey, as well as fish sauce and sesame oil. Also subbed out veg for what I had on hand. I also don’t own a food processor so just chopped by hand. But it still turned out so well! Going to add this to my regular meal rotation :)
So happy you liked it!
I used this recipe for a food and nutrition assignment towards studying sources of alternative proteins. Stoked on the turnout. Cheers.
So cool!! What a fun assignment :)
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Love this idea of healthier, high-protein fried rice!! Totally coming over to crash for dinner next time I’m in the area ;)
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