Published: · Modified: by Becky Striepe · This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Recipe Video Print
It is so easy to make air fried cauliflower rice in the air fryer! You can follow this recipe exactly or mix-and-match your own veggies to suit your tastes.
It might seem complicated to make air fried cauliflower rice, but it's really very simple. You might think that you need an inner dish, but in my experience, way fewercauliflower bits fall through the holes than you'd expect.
I make my cauliflower rice with no dish and no parchment paper to line the pan.
Mixing Up Your Air Fried Cauliflower Rice
I adapted this recipe from my Pineapple Fried Rice, and you can use the technique below to adapt your favorite fried rice recipe or use what you have in the fridge!
No matter what direction you go, you'll still do your cooking in two rounds, just like below. Here's what you do:
- Round 1: These are the veggies that need the most time to cook. Think hard veggies like carrots, celery, onions, and eggplant that would take a while tosoften on the stove.
- Round 2: This is where you add your cauliflower rice and your quicker-cooking veggies, like broccoli, kale, and mushrooms. Because veggie cooking times may vary, Round 2 might needup to 2-3additional minutes to complete. Check for doneness after 5 minutes, and if your veggies aren't cooked to your liking, cook for another 2-3. Easy peasy!
You can also omit the tofu or substitute other plant-based proteins like seitan or vegan chicken strips. Check out my Big Guide to Vegan Meat Alternatives for other substitution ideas.
Mix, match, and have fun with it! Don't be shy about raiding your fridge and freezer for ingredients.
Whether you follow my recipe to the letter of mix up your own, air fried cauliflower riceis a quick and easy weeknight dish that's ready in under 30 minutes.
More vegan fried rice
- Pineapple Fried Rice
- Kimchi Fried Rice
📖 Recipe
Air Fryer Cauliflower Rice
by Becky Striepe
It is so easy to make cauliflower rice in the air fryer! Not only is air fryer cauliflower rice delicious, it's super versatile, so you can use what you have on hand.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 20 minutes mins
Total Time 30 minutes mins
Servings: 5 servings
Ingredients
For the eggy tofu
- ½ block firm or extra firm tofu
- 1 tablespoon reduced sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon water
- ½ cup diced onion
- ½ cup diced carrot about 1 ½ to 2 carrots
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon black salt for an eggy flavor. You can use regular salt, if you can't find black salt.
For the cauliflower rice
- 3 cups riced cauliflower Cauliflower minced into pieces smaller than the size of a pea. You can do this by hand with a box-style cheese crater, use your food processor to pulse into pieces, or buy pre-riced, bagged cauliflower.
- ½ cup finely chopped broccoli
- ½ cup frozen peas
- 2 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- 1 ½ teaspoons toasted sesame oil optional, but recommended
- 2 cloves garlic minced
Instructions
In a large bowl, crumble the tofu (you're going for scrambled egg-size pieces, not ricotta here), then toss with the rest of the eggy tofu ingredients. Air fry at 370° F for 10 minutes, shaking once.
Meanwhile, toss together all of the cauliflower rice ingredients in a large bowl.
Add all the cauliflower rice mixture to your air fryer, shake gently, and cook at 370° F for 10 more minutes, shaking after 5 minutes. Riced cauliflower can vary quite a bit in size and different air fryer cook at different rates, so if you feel like yours doesn't look done enough at this point, you can cook for an additional 2 to 5 minutes. Just shake and check in every couple of minutes until it's done to your liking.
Video
📝 Notes
Nutritional information is for a side dish portion. Air fryer cauliflower rice serves 5 to 6 people as a side dish or 3 as an entree. I calculated for 5 servings.
Save a dish and toss the riced cauliflower mixture together in the same bowl you used to toss the tofu mixture together. No need to even rinse it out in between uses. You can even use your serving bowl for mixing, just rinse it out before you dish up the cooked cauliflower fried rice.
Leftovers will keep for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave or in the air fryer at 350° F for about 5 minutes.
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Air Fryer Cauliflower Rice
Amount per Serving
Calories
93
% Daily Value*
Fat
2
g
3
%
Saturated Fat
0.5
g
3
%
Polyunsaturated Fat
1
g
Monounsaturated Fat
1
g
Sodium
529
mg
Potassium
530
mg
15
%
Carbohydrates
12
g
4
%
Fiber
4
g
16
%
Sugar
5
g
6
%
Protein
7
g
14
%
Vitamin A
2305
IU
46
%
Vitamin C
62
mg
75
%
Calcium
55
mg
6
%
Iron
2
mg
11
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Keywords air fryer cauliflower rice
Tried this recipe?Tag @glueandglitter on Instagram and Threads!
About Becky Striepe
Hi there! I'm Becky Striepe (rhymes with sleepy), and I love using gadgets and shortcuts to create easy vegan comfort food recipes for busy people. Whether you love your Instant Pot, your air fryer, or just love delicious plant-based meals, stick around. You'll like it here.
Learn more about me >>>
Reader Interactions
Comments
Sarah Jackson
so happy to find this blog! I just ordered my first air fryer on a hunch it could be useful. Then got a little nervous about how useful it would be for vegetarian (well flex-itarians) like myself! Lots of great options here. Can't wait to get mine. Have you considered doing an air fryer ebook? I'll be your first customer :-)
Reply
Becky Striepe
Aw, thank you so much! Holler if there's anything I can do to help. No book in the works at the moment, but I appreciate the kind words!
Reply
Hannah
You make me want an air fryer, oy! I'm usually so anti-new appliances, but I feel like this thing is amazing.
Reply
Becky Striepe
Haha I know what you mean. O love gadgets, but finding the storage space for them can be a pain!
Reply
Ginny McMeans
Delicious and love the video too!
Reply
Becky Striepe
Thank you so much, Ginny!
Reply
Sina @Vegan Heaven
What a great dinner! I still need to get an air-fryer!! One of my best friends got one and she always tells me how great it is and that I really need to get one. I think it's about time now! :D
Reply
Becky Striepe
I am obsessed with mine!
Reply
Ceara @ Ceara's Kitchen
You make me want to get an air fryer sooooo bad!!! This rice looks amazing. :)
Reply
Becky Striepe
Thank you so much, Ceara!
Reply
Alisa Fleming
Well I don't have an air fryer but may have to make this recipe anyway! It's a flavor variation on cauli rice that I haven't tried yet.
Reply
Becky Striepe
Enjoy it, Alisa!
Reply
Melissa | Vegan Huggs
This is such a great idea! I love fried cauliflower rice, but I never thought about making it in an air fryer. I still have to get one of those. So neat!
Reply
Becky Striepe
Thank you, Melissa!
Reply
Sarah
Ooh, this looks so delicious! I don't have an air fryer, so I'd have to do mine on the stove top, but I love the idea of using cauliflower rice! And I love "Being Your Own Chef" in the kitchen, using what's on hand!
Reply
Becky Striepe
You can totally convert this to a stovetop recipe. Enjoy it, Sarah!
Reply
Greg @ Full of Beans
I'm thinking that we really need to try an air fryer. We love cauliflower dishes and now...THIS ONE! It looks delicious!
Reply
Becky Striepe
Thank you, Greg! I love our air fryer. We use it at least once a day!
Reply
Amy Katz from Veggies Save The Day
This is amazing, Becky! You have figured out how to make pretty much everything in the air fryer!
Reply
Becky Striepe
Aw, thank you, Amy! I was pretty sure this wouldn't work, so it was a pleasant surprise for sure!
Reply
Nicole Dawson
You must be working on an air-fryer cookbook with all the recipes you've been coming up. I just love them and can't wait to buy my own air fryer.
Reply
Becky Striepe
Aw, thank you, Nicole!
Reply
Mel | avirtualvegan.com
What an easy dinner. I would love a bowl of this with a rather large drizzle of hot sauce!
Reply
Becky Striepe
You get me, girl! I douse mine in sriracha.
Reply
Sophia | Veggies Don't Bite
I love cauliflower rice!! It's so inventive to do it in the air fryer!
Reply
Becky Striepe
Thank you, Sophia!
Reply
Cynthia
That looks delicious! I just bought my air fryer today, been meaning to make cauliflower fried rice since forever cause it's definitely one of the things I do miss on a keto woe, can't wait to try it, thanks!!!
Reply
Becky Striepe
Enjoy it, Cynthia!
Reply
Dianne
This is so clever, Becky! I can't wait to try it.
Reply
Mary Ellen @ VNutrition
Oooh, you always come up with great ideas, I don't know how you do it. This looks simply delicious!
Reply
Becky Striepe
Thank you so much, Mary Ellen!
Reply
Jenn
I wish I had an air fryer because I would totally make this for lunch today. It looks and sounds fabulous! Love all the veggies packed in there!
Reply
Becky Striepe
Aw, thank you, Jenn!
Reply
Linda @ Veganosity
I NEED an air-fryer so I can make this amazing looking fried rice. It sounds incredible, and I'm all for a healthier fried rice.
Reply
Becky Striepe
Thank you, Linda! You can convert it to a stovetop recipe pretty easily, I think. You might need more oil, since round 1 doesn't use any in the air fryer.
Reply
