It is so easy to make cauliflower rice in the air fryer! Not only is air fryer cauliflower fried rice delicious, it's super versatile, so you can use what you have on hand.
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What I love about air fryer cauliflower rice is that it's a very forgiving recipe. You can use the veggies that I've included here or finely chop whatever you have on hand, like bell peppers or mushrooms, and use them instead.
No matter what you put into the mix, this is just a super easy dish that works as either a side or as an entree. It serves six people as a side and three as a main dish.
Love using your air fryer? Me too! Don't miss my other vegan air fryer vegetable recipes, like air fryer frozen cauliflower, crispy air fryer okra, and air fryer Brussels sprouts.
And if you like fried rice, try my pineapple fried rice and kimchi fried rice recipes!
✓ Ingredients and substitutions
- tofu - Eggy tofu makes this air fryer cauliflower rice recipe so satisfying! You'll just crumble up a block of extra firm tofu and season it. No need to press or marinate.
- soy sauce - Use reduced-sodium soy sauce, so your tofu won't turn out too salty. You're also using it to add moisture and umami to the cauliflower rice mixture.
- onion - You're going to air fryer some onion with the tofu to give the overall dish a great umami flavor!
- carrots - You want to cook up hard veggies, like carrots, with the tofu, so they'll cook all the way through.
- turmeric - Gives your tofu a vibrant, yellow color.
- black salt - Gives the tofu an eggy flavor. You can use regular salt instead, if you don't have access to black salt. It won't taste eggy, but it's still delicious!
- cauliflower rice - How you rice your cauliflower is totally up to you. You can grate it with a box grater, buy it pre-grated (even frozen!), use your food processor to pulse it, or chop it up by hand.
- broccoli - Chopped broccoli adds color and crunch!
- frozen peas - I love peas in my fried rice! Feel free to omit and use extra carrots, if you prefer.
- rice vinegar - For moisture and tang. You can use seasoned or unseasoned.
- ginger - Adds a lovely warming flavor!
- toasted sesame oil - For flavor and moisture. You can use more soy sauce, if you don't want to use oil.
- garlic - Infuses umami into the air fryer cauliflower rice!
🥣 How to make air fryer cauliflower rice
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 two to five minutes. Just shake and check in every couple of minutes until it's done to your liking.
💡 Helpful tips
- If you're using different veggies, add hard, slow-cooking veggies to the air fryer with the tofu, and add faster-cooking ones with the cauliflower rice mixture.
- When you're making the cauliflower rice mixture, no need for a fresh bowl! You can use the same bowl you used to make the tofu mixture, no need to even rinse in between uses.
- Shaking the air fryer basket is important in this recipe! It helps move things around, so your cauliflower rice cooks evenly.
🫙 Storage directions
Leftovers will keep for three to four days in the refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave or in the air fryer at 350° F for about 5 minutes.
💬 Frequently asked questions
You'd think so, since the holes in the bottom of an air fryer basket can be pretty large, but very little falls through. Don't worry about lining the basket!
It definitely does not. It tastes like its own, delicious thing!
🥦 More air fryer veggies
📖 Recipe
Air Fryer Cauliflower Rice
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.
Got a question? Tried this recipe? Leave a reply!