Clean out the fridge with this cauliflower ‘fried rice’

In the interest of full disclosure: cauliflower fried rice isn’t fried and has no rice.

So much for truth in advertising. However, once complete, this dish has the fluffy texture and flavor of the familiar take-out staple.

Five years ago, if you asked me to name a versatile vegetable I probably would have said potato. I may have also muttered something about potatoes being a starch and not a vegetable. But as I spend more of my time cooking nourishing food, I am discovering all vegetables are versatile, you just need to get the hang of their flavors and textures.

When it comes to preparing vegetables, the creative possibilities are endless. Give yourself permission to play. Try new recipes that use ingredients in ways you haven’t thought of using before. A combination that sounds wacky at first could become your most dog-eared recipe card.

In my kitchen the recipe for cauliflower “fried rice” would be on the road to becoming throughly food flecked except that it is so stinkin’ easy I haven’t needed to write it down.

I already have a standard method for turning leftover rice and vegetables into fried rice. To make this new version I swapped pulverized fresh cauliflower for my usual day-old rice. It took a few extra minutes to prep the cauliflower but nothing that should keep it from joining your weeknight menu rotation.

After I experimented with the technique a few times I assembled some tips to smooth out the learning curve.

Making the “rice”: This is one of the fun parts. Grab a head of cauliflower and cut it into chunks small enough to fit down the shoot of your food processor. I had the best luck making rice in small batches. Start the blade and feed about 1/4 of the chunks. Let the blade run a minute or so to completely pulverize the pieces. Empty the rice sized bits into a large bowl then repeat the process until finished. It’s messy but relax, it’s only cauliflower.

Spice it up: Fresh ginger is one of my favorite ways to add brightness to recipes. Ginger’s spicy and slightly acidic flavor blends harmoniously with soy’s salty sweetness. When preparing ginger for a recipe, use a spoon to easily remove the papery peel. For coarse pieces grate with a standard box grater; for a finer texture use a microplane. Store the remaining ginger root in the freezer, tightly wrapped with plastic wrap and tucked into a zip-top bag. Next time you need fresh ginger, grab the root from the freezer and grate it into your dish.

Clean out the fridge: Got some eggs? Scramble a couple. Need to use half a bell pepper or a stray green onion? Chop them up and toss them in. Leftover chicken, steak, chops, or roasts all work well in this dish, just dice whatever you have on hand.

Your kitchen means your rules. Trying new vegetables can seem intimidating at first but don’t worry they won’t bite. Once you have a handle on the basics of a new recipe you can change the ingredients and seasonings to make them even more versatile.

Cauliflower “fried rice”

1 head of cauliflower (1 1/2 to 2 pounds)

2 eggs

1 tablespoon sesame oil, divided

1 to 2 cups of assorted vegetables fresh or thawed from frozen and cut into small pieces

1/2 pound of grilled pork, cut into small pieces (can omit for vegetarian)

1 inch of fresh ginger root, grated

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1/2 teaspoon hot sauce (add more if you like)

A fun “out of the box” take on turning leftovers into fried rice. Most of the ingredients are up to you (suggestions: bell pepper, onion, peas, green beans, carrots). Use this recipe as a launch pad for your creativity, just make sure to gather and cut everything before beginning the cooking process.

Use a food processor to pulverize the cauliflower into rice-sized pieces. Pulse the blade and work in small batches to avoid making a paste. Empty the food processor bowl after each 1/4 of the cauliflower to avoid over crowding the bowl.

Heat a large sauté pan to medium heat and scramble the eggs (about 5 minutes). Once cooked remove the egg to a small dish and set aside. Gently scrape pan surface to remove any large bits of egg residue.

Add 1 teaspoon of oil to the pan and increase the heat to medium high. Sauté the vegetables for 4 to 5 minutes. They should be heated through and a little toasty, not mushy. Remove from pan and set aside.

Drizzle the remaining two teaspoons of oil into the pan and let it come to temperature then add the cauliflower. Toss and flip the cauliflower so that some of the moisture cooks out of it and all the bits get to make contact with the pan surface and get toasty (about 5 minutes).

Once the cauliflower has heated through add the meat and vegetables back into the pan with the cauliflower and toss to combine.

Add the grated ginger, soy sauce, fish sauce, and hot sauce and toss to combine. Reduce the heat as needed to keep the sauces from burning. Cook another 2 minutes then mix in the eggs and serve.

Preparation and cooking time: 30 minutes; Yields 4 to 6 servings.