This simple mushroom fried rice combines earthy mushrooms, savory garlic, rich butter, and also flavorful vegetable broth for a simple yet flavorful side dish. So if you find yourself buying boxed flavored rice mixes, you’ve got to try it from scratch at least once.
Page Contents
Mushroom Fried Rice
About Mushroom Fried Rice
Mushroom fried rice is a classic Indo-Chinese dish that I make often as a speedy weeknight meal. It has everything you want and needs in a complete dinner – comforting rice, earthy and delicious mushrooms, and flavorful seasonings – all stir-fried together and served in one bowl.
I always make this dish with button mushrooms. If these are not available then the next option is cremini mushrooms. For the rice, you can use any long-grained rice for the best texture and flavor.
In addition to the rice and mushrooms, I also always include chopped celery. It adds such a lovely crunch and mild yet noticeable flavor. This not-so-secret ingredient brings all of the other components of the dish together. Sure, you can sub with coriander (cilantro) in a pinch. However, it won’t have quite the same traditional fried rice taste you know and love but will taste good.
I also highly recommend that you use a naturally fermented soy sauce (like the Kikkoman soy sauce used here). This will infuse the most flavor into the rice and still let the mushrooms shine.
From start to finish this vegan mushroom fried rice recipe only takes about 30 minutes to prepare. It’s quickly cooked in a wok over high heat for restaurant-level taste in every bite. This is a fantastic dish that’s great to have in your weekly meal plan.
How to Make Mushroom Fried Rice
Ingredients
For Cooking Rice
- 1 cup basmati rice or long-grained rice – 190 grams
- 5 cups water for cooking rice
- Salt as required
- Few drops of oil
For Stir Frying
- 250 grams white button mushrooms – rinsed and chopped
- ½ teaspoon finely chopped garlic or 3 small to medium garlic cloves
- ½ cup finely chopped onions or 1 medium-sized or 2 to 3 small to medium spring onions
- ½ tablespoon chopped celery
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce – naturally brewed, add as required
- 3 tablespoon oil – any neutral oil or toasted sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon black pepper powder
- Salt as required
Instructions
Cooking Rice
- First, rinse the rice till the water runs clear of the starch
- Then in a pot or pan cook the rice in 5 cups of water with a few drops of oil and some salt as required
- The rice should be cooked al dente or just about cooked
- Don’t cook the rice till it becomes mushy or too soft. Drain the rice in a colander and keep it aside
- After the initial steam passes from the rice, cover the colander with a lid
- Let the rice cool completely before you add it to the mushrooms
Making Mushroom Fried Rice
- Heat oil in a wok or kadai. Add the garlic and onions first and stir fry for 2 minutes on medium to high heat stirring often
- Serve the mushroom fried rice hot garnished with celery or spring onion greens with a side Indo-Chinese vegetable dish like veg balls in hot garlic sauce, sweet and sour vegetables, and also veg Manchurian
- Then add the chopped mushrooms and stir fry for 5 to 6 minutes or more on a high flame till the mushrooms begin to get lightly browned from the edges
- First, the whole mixture will become watery as mushrooms will release water and slowly the water will evaporate and you will see oil in the mixture
- When the mushrooms start to become lightly browned or light golden, then add the celery and stir fry for a minute
- Add soy sauce, black pepper, and salt as required
- Stir and then add the rice. Stir gently but briskly. Stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes
Notes
- To give some heat to the dish, you can add a bit of red chili powder or cayenne pepper
- Substitute fresh coriander/cilantro leaves if you do not have celery
- For a gluten-free mushroom fried rice recipe you can use tamari instead of soy sauce
- I have used button mushrooms in this recipe. However, you can make it with fresh shiitake mushrooms or cremini mushrooms or use a combination of various varieties of edible mushrooms
- You can use any neutral-flavored oil. Even toasted sesame oil tastes very good
- Use good quality long-grained rice or aged basmati rice
- The recipe can be scaled to make a big batch
Fried Rice vs White Rice
Mushroom fried rice is simply the done-up version of white rice. Day-old white rice is lightly fried in a wok with soy sauce, vegetables and meat, and egg, and served as a meal in and of itself.
White rice is almost always used as a side dish, though you may also see very plain or simple versions of fried rice offered as a side-dish too.
One thing you can count on, white rice is always fresh, a couple of hours old at most. It needs to be hot and ready to serve each meal for customers.
In short, the difference between white rice and fried rice is so big they’re a bit hard to compare. Still, we’ve compiled a list of their key points and how they’re different from each other. Know that each of these rice versions is great in its way, so you shouldn’t discount one simply because it’s used differently.
White rice is just the thing. It absorbs the sauces very well, and it’s very easy to make in large batches to feed an entire table. It’s simple and it does not compete with the other flavors. You’ll rarely see rice cooked as anything but a simple steamed version.
Mushroom fried rice is not a recent invention, it’s a very old way of using up leftover white rice. It’s flavored in many ways, and each family or region, or country has its unique style of cooking fried rice. This results in a multitude of delicious options whenever you’re at a restaurant with a specific regional profile.
Fried Rice is an Easy to Make Comfort Food
A beautiful note we’ve noticed about fried rice: it’s comfort food. In the same way, stew and pizza simply know what you need and give it to you, and so does fried rice. It’s hot, it’s filling, it’s got all the right flavors, and it looks great too. It’s the kind of food that you can eat in bed white watchin’ your favorite show.
FAQs
Butter: This is my secret ingredient! This is what they use at hibachi restaurants for their fried rice and has been a game changer ever since I started using it. It adds a lot more flavor and helps to brown the rice.
This simple mushroom rice combines earthy mushrooms, savory garlic, rich butter, and flavorful vegetable broth for a simple yet flavorful side dish. So if you find yourself buying boxed flavored rice mixes, you’ve got to try it from scratch at least once.
The most important sauces to add are soy sauce, oyster sauce, and fish sauce to fried rice. All three add unique flavors to rice, but it can be easy to go overboard.
Store-bought and takeout varieties can become incredibly unhealthy with too much soy sauce, salt, and fat. But with the right homemade recipe, like the one below, you can eat a bowl of fried rice that’s nutritious, fibrous, and full of healthy nutrients.
Conclusion
This Chinese-inspired mushroom fried rice is an easy, delicious dish with umami flavors made with rice, mushrooms, soy sauce, onions, and black pepper. It’s a vegan recipe that’s quick to stir-fry and ready to enjoy in only 40 minutes. Here you’ll find step-by-step instructions with photos for how to prepare this classic mushroom and rice dish as a healthy, hearty, and also satisfying dinner.
This simple mushroom rice combines earthy mushrooms, savory garlic, rich butter, and flavorful vegetable broth for a simple yet flavorful side dish. So if you find yourself buying boxed flavored rice mixes, you’ve got to try it from scratch at least once.
This simple mushroom rice combines earthy mushrooms, savory garlic, rich butter, and flavorful vegetable broth for a simple yet flavorful side dish. So if you find yourself buying boxed flavored rice mixes, you’ve got to try it from scratch at least once.
Mushroom fried rice is a classic Indo-Chinese dish that I make often as a speedy weeknight meal. It has everything you want and needs in a complete dinner – comforting rice, earthy and delicious mushrooms, and flavorful seasonings – all stir-fried together and served in one bowl.
If you enjoyed this post you would also love to see more
- How to Make Easy Carbs in Cream of Mushroom Soup?
- Cream of Mushroom Soup Nutrition Value
- Mushroom Couscous and its Recipes
- Curry Fried Rice Recipes – You Would Love
- Crab-tivity in the Kitchen: A Juicy Crab Special Sauce Recipe