Make this Frozen Vegetable Fried Rice for a quick nutritious dinner. Add frozen vegetables directly in with rice for a one-pan meal that takes only 10 minutes.
Frozen Vegetable Fried Rice is Quick and Nutritious
This is a really quick meal that takes less than 10 minutes to get on the table. I can't even count how many times I have eaten frozen vegetable fried rice. My parents used to make it for us growing up, and now I make it for my kids.
The good news? I never tire of it. It's delicious every time.
Jump to:
Ingredients for Frozen Vegetable Fried Rice
You don't need much to make frozen vegetable fried rice. Plus, it's easy to stock up on everything beforehand. As such, this recipe is ready to be made for a last minute meal.
- Frozen mixed vegetables
- Cooked rice (use leftover rice, or here is a shelf-stable cooked rice to keep on hand)
- Soy sauce
- Garlic salt
- Sesame oil
- Optional add-ins: scrambled eggs, tofu, cooked meat
- Optional toppings: furikake, Tuxedo sesame seeds, Kimchi seasoning powder
What type of frozen vegetable to use?
You can make this recipe with various types of frozen mix vegetables.
My favorite frozen mix vegetable blend to use contains: carrots, corn, green beans, and peas.
The particular frozen vegetable mix I used for the photos in this post contain carrots, corn, green beans and lima beans. As a kid, I hated this particular vegetable mix. I would leave all the lima beans in my bowl. But my own kids both like them, yay!
Other frozen vegetables that work well:
- Corn, carrots and asparagus
- Vegetable soup mix
- Fajita blend (chopped versions)
- Shelled edamame
- Chopped spinach (not too much)
- Sofrito blends
Frozen vegetables that don't work as well
It's best to avoid frozen vegetables that contain large vegetable pieces. For example, the following don't work as well in fried rice:
- Whole broccoli
- Whole leaf spinach
- Root blends
- Whole green beans
In a pinch, you can use frozen vegetables with large / whole pieces. However, you'll need to cook the vegetables longer before adding in the rice.
Adding in Protein to Frozen Vegetable Fried Rice
The beauty of this frozen vegetable fried rice is that it is literally just frozen mixed vegetables, rice, and some seasoning.
Moreover, you can easily add protein to this recipe too. We've tried and tested all of the suggestions in the list below. While it's not a comprehensive list, here are some examples of extra add-ins that work well:
- Rotisserie chicken (bones removed and chopped)
- Leftover fried chicken (bones removed and chopped)
- Hot dogs (diced)
- Breakfast sausages (pre-cooked and crumbled)
- Firm tofu (chopped)
- Marinated pressed tofu (chopped or sliced)
- Scrambled eggs
- Steak pieces
This frozen vegetable fried rice recipe is a great way to stretch small amounts of leftovers.
Using Pre-Cooked or Leftover Rice
This frozen vegetable recipe takes less than 10 minutes because the rice is pre-cooked. Whenever I make rice, I make extra. Leftover rice is perfect for Rotisserie Chicken Fried Rice and Italian Sausage Fried Rice.
But sometimes we want to make this recipe even if we don't have a Tupperware of leftover rice in the fridge. On those days, we use this pre-cooked rice. These pre-cooked rice packets are super convenient because they are shelf-stable. We use about 3 packs for the family.
How to Make Frozen Vegetable Fried Rice
Making fried rice using frozen vegetables is super easy. The full recipe is below. In addition, here's quick summary of the steps:
- Sauté the frozen vegetables directly from frozen
- Add in cooked rice
- Add in any pre-cooked optional protein
- Add in seasoning
And that's it!
Do you cook frozen vegetables directly in the pan?
Yes, I cook frozen mixed vegetables directly in the pan with a bit of oil. It takes about 5-7 minutes on medium to medium-high heat for the frozen vegetables to cook and become tender.
Do I need to add water when I cook frozen vegetables in a pan?
When cooking the frozen vegetables in a pan, there's usually no need to add additional water to the pan. The frozen vegetables generally release enough water as they defrost and cook.
Simply add a bit of oil to coat the pan, then sauté the frozen vegetables. However, if the vegetables burn before they finish cooking, add a bit of water as necessary.
Enjoy this Frozen Vegetable Fried Rice Recipe
I hope this Frozen Vegetable Fried Rice makes it onto your family dinner table. It's easy, delicious, and nutritious.
If you have a favorite frozen vegetable mix you use, I'd love to see your recommendations in the comments below. Any questions? Ask below and I'll try my best to answer.
More Family Favorite Meals
Love this quick family meal idea? Here are a few of our other favorites:
Frozen Vegetable Fried Rice
Equipment
- 1 large chefs pan
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 3 cups frozen mixed vegetables
- 1 cup cooked meat or tofu optional
- 4 cups cooked brown rice
- 2 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 1 dash garlic salt
- 1-2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large chef pan or wok on medium to medium-high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add in the frozen vegetables. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixed frozen vegetables are cooked through and any water that the vegetables released has been cooked away. It should take about 5-7 minutes.
- Add in any optional pre-cooked protein, such as scrambled eggs, tofu, rotisserie chicken, and mix. See post for additional add-in ideas.
- Add in the rice and sauté, breaking apart any rice clumps and mixing everything together with a turner. Cook until the rice is completely warmed up and hot. It should take about 3-5 minutes. If the rice starts to burn, turn the heat down to medium.
- Drizzle on the soy sauce and sprinkle on the garlic salt. Mix everything together. Remove from heat and drizzle on the sesame oil. Serve and enjoy.
Nutrition
Leave a Reply