Easy Mushroom Fried Rice (Vegan, Chinese Style)

Use that leftover rice to make this easy Mushroom Fried Rice and see it disappear in minutes. Here is how to cook it in Indian Chinese Style. Oh, and it’s vegan too.

Mushroom is one of my favourite ingredients to experiment in the kitchen.

From Indian to Continental, I like to make recipes using this versatile vegetable, as my family simply loves it and it is also filled with a lot of necessary nutrients.

This time when I had some leftover rice sitting in the fridge and also some mushrooms, I decided to make this super simple and quick Mushroom Fried Rice.

This Indo Chinese dish came out so delicious, that the plates were clean within minutes.

Also, it is so flavourful on its own, that you really don’t need a side dish along with it. 

A perfect fix for your busy days, right?

I even make this Fried Rice with mushroom when there is travel planned for the day.

Easy to pack and delicious to eat, even kids enjoy it while on the road. 

Here are some more rice recipes you can make using leftover rice – Schezwan Fried Rice, Thai Fried Rice, Thai Pineapple Fried Rice, Chinese Egg Fried Rice and Chicken Fried Rice. 

So, next time you have leftover rice, don’t forget to make this easy peasy Indo Chinese recipe.

What is Mushroom Fried Rice?

Mushrooms are a favourite among vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike and there is nothing like this quick and easy recipe to cook as a one-pot meal.

You really don’t need to plan an accompaniment for this fried rice, you could simply serve it with ketchup.

This fried rice has some simple flavours, a mix of popular Indian and Chinese ingredients which give this dish a unique character.

I use any short grain fragrant rice for this rice recipe because it gives the dish a beautiful flavour and superb aroma, but in case you don’t have any at home, you could also substitute it with any regular short-grain rice.

Ingredients

You need a very few ingredients to get this Indo Chinese dish ready.

Along with the rice, you will need garlic, celery, onion, capsicum, button mushrooms, soy sauce, vinegar, black pepper powder, MSG, salt and spring onions. 

MSG or Ajino moto is totally optional and if you don’t feel like using it, just skip adding it in the recipe.

You can even use the same recipe and make this fried rice recipe with other vegetables such as carrot, corn, capsicum etc. 

Pro Tips by Neha

It’s better to use rice that’s a few days old or use cold leftover rice, but you could also cook fresh rice, just ensure that it doesn’t overcook or become too sticky as that could spoil your whole fried rice.

Also, make sure to refrigerate the freshly cooked rice for a few hours before frying it.

I have added a pinch of MSG as a flavour enhancer, but you could skip it altogether.

You can make this rice with eggs and call it Mushroom Egg Fried Rice :). Just scramble 2 eggs before adding the onion and then follow the same process as mentioned.

You can also add chicken, beef, bacon, chorizo or shrimps to this rice.

Make sure to saute the mushroom until they are nicely browned. Do it on high heat so that most of the moisture is evaporated soon.

Try to use a wide pan to make this dish. By choosing a wide pan, the mushrooms will be spread out in a single layer and will brown fast.

You can increase the amount of sauces used if that suits your taste.

Add some Schezwan Sauce for a spicy kick.

Process

To make this rice in Chinese style, first sesame oil is heated in a wok, to this chopped garlic and a few sprigs of fresh celery are added, followed by the addition of chopped onions

Next, the peppers or capsicum and mushrooms are added and tossed in the wok.

All the moisture from the mushrooms is allowed to evaporate giving it a beautiful texture.

Now as a final step, the cooked and cooled rice, soy sauce, vinegar, pepper and MSG (optional) are added.

The fresh spring onion greens are mixed in towards the end.

Serving Suggestions

This super easy recipe can be served with any Chinese style curry like Chilli Garlic Chicken.

You can also serve it with an appetiser such as momo or any stir fry recipe.

Sometimes, I even have this for a light meal after a hearty bowl of soup. 

Variations

Schezwan – Add a few tsp of schezwan sauce to this rice to give it a spicy kick.

Thai – Add some chopped red chillies, chopped ginger, fish sauce and Thai basil to give it a Thai taste.

Cauliflower – Replace rice with cauliflower rice and make cauliflower mushroom rice.

Burnt Garlic – Fry lots of chopped garlic until it is nicely browned and then follow the remaining process as is.

Pineapple – Add chopped pineapple along with mushroom for a sweet and sour taste.

Veggies – You can add veggies like bell peppers, corn, asparagus, carrot, baby corn etc to this rice.

Meat – You can add beef, chicken, bacon, chorizo, shrimp etc to this rice.

Step by Step Recipe

Wash the rice and add it in a pan along with 2 cups of water and salt. Cook it on low heat until rice is cooked and all the water is absorbed. Let it cool down.

Heat sesame oil in a wok.

Add garlic and celery to the oil once hot.

Saute garlic for just few seconds. Quickly add onion and saute on high flame till transparent.

Add capsicum, mushrooms and fry on high flame.

Let the moisture of mushrooms evaporate. Add cooked rice, soy sauce, vinegar, pepper powder, MSG and salt if required. Toss the rice nicely and mix lightly. Mix in spring onion greens. Serve hot with any Chinese style curry.