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Healthy Fried Rice is protein and veggie packed, low calorie, low carb, full of flavor and so delicious! Make your own healthier takeout at home with this healthy fried rice dinner recipe! Low Calorie + Gluten Free + Low Carb + Paleo
This Healthy Fried Rice is a staple dinner on repeat in my house along with Egg Roll In a Bowl. We love Asian style recipes, but they are higher in calories and lower in high quality ingredients when you get takeout.
The good news is making fried rice at home is super easy and you'll feel good about making a healthy, nourishing recipe for yourself and your family!
Healthy Fried Rice Recipe
This healthy version of fried rice is filling, delicious and packed with so much flavor. It's packed with veggies and protein for a balanced meal. It's also made gluten free, low carb and Paleo! Here's more reasons why it's better for you.
- Low Calorie - 338 calories for one fourth of the recipe. The calories are lower in this recipe from using cauliflower rice instead of regular rice. But the high amount of protein, fiber and moderate amount of healthy fat will keep you fuller than other recipes missing this balance.
- High Protein - 26 grams of protein per serving - this is a good amount of protein in a meal!
- High Fiber - 5 grams of fiber per serving. We always want high fiber in recipes. I explain the importance of this in my free weight loss class.
- Healthy Fat - 19 grams of total fat, 4 of which are coming from less optimal (saturated) fat.
- Gluten Free - All ingredients are gluten free in this recipe.
- Paleo - All ingredients are Paleo friendly.
- Low Carb - The carbs are lower in this recipe using cauliflower rice. You can always add some rice if you want.
Ingredients For Healthy Fried Rice
Here's what you need to make healthy fried rice that's gluten free and low carb! You will also need a large skillet to cook this recipe in. See the section on substitutions on suggestions and additions.
- Ground Chicken Breast
- Eggs
- Cauliflower Rice, frozen
- Carrots
- Bell Pepper
- Garlic
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Coconut Aminos
- Rice Wine Vinegar
- Ground Ginger
- Green Onions
How To Make Healthy Fried Rice
Making healthy fried rice is very easy. It's one of my favorite weeknight meals because it comes together quickly and it's super filling. It's also easy to make fried rice gluten free and Paleo.
To start, add the olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat with the carrots and bell pepper. After 2-3 minutes, add the ground chicken, garlic, ground ginger and black pepper. Break up the meat with a spatula as it cooks.
As the meat cooks, whisk the eggs together and place them in a separate pan over medium heat. Fry the eggs 3-4 minutes then flip and cook another 2 minutes until it looks like an egg pancake. Remove the fried eggs from the skillet and transfer to a cutting board. Chop into 1/4-inch to 1/2-inch pieces.
To the chicken skillet, add the coconut aminos, vinegar and cauliflower rice. I always buy frozen cauliflower rice then thaw it before cooking. The taste is much better than fresh cauliflower rice and it takes less time to cook.
Add the chopped eggs then stir the ingredients together then cook another 5 minutes until the cauliflower rice is cooked. Top with sliced green onions and serve!
How To Store Fried Rice and Reheat Fried Rice
Homemade fried rice can be stored in the refrigerator up to 5 days in an airtight container. You can reheat fried rice on the skillet or in the microwave. If reheating using the skillet, then place the food in a skillet and bring to medium heat. Cook 12-15 minutes. If reheating in the microwave, heat on high 2-3 minutes.
Can You Freeze Fried Rice
You can freeze this fried rice recipe up to 60 days. Since this recipe uses cauliflower rice, it actually freezes nicely. I would not recommend adding the sliced green onions until ready to eat though. To eat, thaw it in the refrigerator overnight then cook according to reheat instructions above.
Substitutions For Healthy Fried Rice
Here are the substitutions and additions you can make for healthy fried rice. This fried rice recipe is made gluten free and Paleo friendly. If you are not gluten free or Paleo, you can easily swap things. Remember any time you change or add something to a recipe, it does change the nutrition values you see in the recipe card below.
- Ground Chicken - Ground turkey, ground pork, shrimp or lean ground beef can be substituted.
- Vegetarian - Tofu or peas would could be substituted to make vegetarian fried rice.
- Eggs - You can use egg whites or omit the eggs for vegan / vegetarian. The eggs do add calories to this recipe so if you omit them the meal may not be as filling. You may want to add cooked rice in place of the eggs to keep the calories higher.
- Coconut Aminos - Gluten free soy sauce, low sodium soy sauce, or Tamari sauce can be used instead of coconut aminos.
- Rice Wine Vinegar - Apple cider vinegar can be used instead or you can omit the vinegar.
- Bell Pepper - Zucchini or Bok choy could be used to replace the bell pepper.
- Additions - Rice, peas, cabbage, broccoli slaw, corn would all be great additions. This recipe is really so versatile that you could add any vegetables and it would still taste great!
Healthy Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground chicken breast
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 2 eggs whisked in a bowl
- 4 cups cauliflower rice
- 1/4 cup coconut aminos
- 2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
- 1/2 tablespoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 4 tablespoons green onions sliced
- green peas optional
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat with the carrots and bell pepper. After 2-3 minutes, add the ground chicken, garlic, ground ginger and black pepper. Break up the meat with a spatula as it cooks.
- As the meat cooks, whisk the eggs together and place them in a separate pan over medium heat. Fry the eggs 3-4 minutes then flip and cook another 2 minutes until it looks like an egg pancake.
- Remove the fried eggs from the skillet and transfer to a cutting board. Chop into 1/4-inch to 1/2-inch pieces.
- To the chicken skillet, add the coconut aminos, vinegar, cauliflower rice and eggs then stir the ingredients together then cook another 5 minutes until the cauliflower rice is cooked. Top with sliced green onions and serve!
Video
Notes
- 1/4 of the recipe equals 1 serving.
- My Amazon shop has more products similar to those used for this recipe and that I recommend to my nutrition clients.
- See the substitutions section for substitutes and additions.
Nutrition
This was great & so fast to make. My husband was skeptical & made his own dinner…then he tasted mine! I stirred the eggs with a whisk while cooking them & was able to skip the chopping step there. Otherwise, I had all the ingredients already & was theilled with this healthy Fried Rice!!