Easy Vegan Pineapple Fried Rice (2024)

October 16, 2018 By Melissa Huggins / 87 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Jump to Recipe

Vegan Pineapple Fried Rice ~ sweet, savory and spicy! So easy to make and takes 30 minutes on the stove.

Some of you may recognize this Vegan Pineapple Fried Rice recipe already. I originally published it in 2016 and it's been a popular recipe on my site ever since.

It's also very popular in our house and it's on heavy rotation along with my Potato Leek Soup andAvocado Black Bean Corn Salad.

Well, I've made some small changes to the recipe over the years, and I think it's time to share them. Along with fresh new photos, too!

Here are the changes I made to amp things up:

I wanted to make this more into a meal while still keeping the recipe simple. So, to make it more filling, I added frozen peas and roasted cashews. It adds extra protein and a variety of texture too.

To amp up the savory flavor, I added Curry Powder and increased the amount of Tamari. If you thought this meal was addictive before, wait until you try it now. Curry powder for the win!

I also amped up the ginger amount and added fresh-cut cilantro to the finished dish. It added a little more brightness and zest to the flavor profile. It's mouth-watering good!

I'm very happy with these subtle changes, and I hope you'll love them too!

How to Make Pineapple Fried Rice

It's so easy! Here's what you'll need to do:

STEP 1: Sauté the onions in oil until softened and slightly browned.
STEP 2: Add carrots, crushed red pepper, ginger, and garlic. Sauté until carrots are tender.

TIP: if food starts to stick to the pan, you can splash in a little vegetable broth to deglaze.

STEP 3: Add pineapple chunks and sauté until slightly browned.
STEP 4: Now add the rice, thawed peas, and green onion.

STEP 5: Pour the tamari and curry powder mixture over the rice. Combine well and cook for 3-5 minutes until heated throughout.
STEP 6: Taste for seasoning and add more if needed.
STEP 7: Serve and top with green onions, fresh-cut cilantro, and roasted cashews. You can also add Sriracha for an extra kick!

What's the best rice to use for Pineapple Fried Rice?

I like to use medium-long grain rice, but most will work fine. I'll just use whatever I have available and this time I usedMahatma White Rice and it worked perfectly!

This dish works best with cold, day-old rice because it’s drier than freshly cooked and it will keep a firmer texture. You can cook it the night before and refrigerate overnight (or at least 6-8 hours). It will still be tasty if you haven't chilled the rice, but the texture will be a lot softer than typical fried rice.

I found some great tips on prepping and storing rice in this article HERE.

So easy, right? Enjoy!!

Interested in more 30-minute meals? Here are my faves:

Instant Pot Mushroom Risotto
Portobello Vegan Fajitas

I’d love to hear from you

If you make this Vegan Pineapple Fried Rice, let me know what you think by★ star rating it and leaving a comment below. It would really make my day. You can also follow me onInstagramand share your creation with me. Just tag me@veganhuggsand hashtag#veganhuggsso I don’t miss it.

Recipe

Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate this Recipe

4.97 from 54 votes

Vegan Pineapple Fried Rice (Gluten-Free)

Vegan Pineapple Fried Rice ~ sweet, savory and spicy! So easy to make and takes 30 minutes on the stove. It's gluten-free too!

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time30 minutes mins

Course: Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine: Gluten-Free, Thai Cuisine, Vegan

Servings: 4 People

Calories: 452kcal

Author: Melissa Huggins

Ingredients

▢ 2 tablespoons coconut oil (or preferred cooking oil)
▢ 1 small red onion , diced
▢ 3 cloves garlic , minced
▢ 1 tablespoon fresh ginger , grated
▢ ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
▢ 1 cup carrots , peeled & diced (or matchstick)
▢ 1 ½ cups pineapple chunks , fresh or canned
▢ 3 cups cooked rice , chilled for 6-8 hours if possible
▢ ½ cup green onion , sliced + more for topping
▢ 3 tablespoons gluten-free tamari , low sodium (sub soy sauce)
▢ 1 ½ teaspoons curry powder
▢ ½ cup frozen peas , thawed

Optional toppings

▢ ½ cup roasted cashews
▢ ¼ cup cilantro , chopped

Instructions

Whisk the tamari and curry powder together. Set aside.
Heat coconut oil in a large pan or wok over medium heat. Add onions and sauté for 2-3 minutes, until softened.
Now add the garlic, ginger, red chili pepper flakes and carrots. Sauté 7-9 minutes or until carrots are tender. (* if veggies start to stick, you can add a splash of vegetable broth to deglaze)
Add the pineapple chunks and sauté until slightly browned, about 4-5 minutes
Add tamari, rice, peas and green onions. Stir frequently. Taste for seasoning and add more if needed.Cook about 4-5 minutes, until all ingredients are combined and heated through.
Remove from heat and serve with optionaltoppings. Enjoy!

Video

Notes

Nutrition

Tried this recipe?Follow me @veganhuggs and mention #veganhuggs!

More Entrées

Vegan Swedish Meatballs
Sticky Sesame Cauliflower
Sopa de Fideo (Mexican Noodle Soup)
Sesame Crusted Tofu

About Melissa

I’m Melissa Huggins – the creator of Vegan Huggs. I started this blog to share delicious vegan recipes that everyone will love. Yep, that includes carnivores, too! Read more...

Reader Interactions

Comments

4.97 from 54 votes (27 ratings without comment)

Kaylie Chamberlain
May 11, 2024 at 8:07 pm

My stepdaughters and I made this today for my niece’s college graduation party! It was SO GOOD! Everyone loved it and, despite their being a lot of other food there, they ate it all! And we were SO proud of ourselves that we made something so beautiful and delicious! Our family of 4 has 1 with celiac’s disease and 1 vegetarian, so this was perfect!!
My husband’s only slightly negative comment was that he’d like it to have more rice, so LoL! Big hit!
Reply
- Melissa Huggins
  June 01, 2024 at 5:36 pm
  
  Hi Kaylie, I'm so happy it was a hit with everyone! Great job on the group effort and thanks for taking the time to share feedback. 🙂
  Reply
Clare Guile
October 31, 2023 at 4:36 pm

Loved this dish! Delicious and so easy to make.
Reply
- Melissa Huggins
  November 09, 2023 at 1:27 pm
  
  Hi Clare, I'm so glad you loved it. Thank you for giving it a try and sharing your feedback 🙂
  Reply
Julia Pitcher
October 10, 2023 at 6:19 pm

My wife gave me a pineapple for my birthday. I Google- vegan pineapple recipe and your recipe was the first to pop up! I made it tonight and we LOVED it! Thank you... so full of flavor!
Reply
- Melissa Huggins
  December 03, 2023 at 12:27 pm
  
  Hi Julie, Happy belated birthday! A pineapple is a fabulous gift! I'm so glad you loved the recipe. Thank you for making it and sharing your feedback. 🙂
  Reply
Sherry
April 19, 2023 at 5:15 pm

Very good,
Not a huge fan of curry powder as the main flavor so will probably reduce or omit next time otherwise very yummy. I air fried my cashews until toasted and thew them on top. I might air fry the pineapple a little too next time.
Reply
- Melissa Huggins
  See Also
  Classic Eggs Benedict with Blender Hollandaise | Self Proclaimed Foodie
  April 21, 2023 at 8:21 am
  
  Hi Sherry, yes go ahead and tweak to your liking. That is the beauty of homecooked meals. 🙂 Thanks for trying the recipe.
  Reply
KD
January 21, 2023 at 10:42 am

Totally Yum E
Reply
- Melissa Huggins
  January 27, 2023 at 11:55 am
  
  Thank you , KD! 🙂
  Reply
Yvonne Vitosky
February 07, 2022 at 12:10 pm

Loved this recipe! It smells so good while cooking and tastes delicious.
Reply
- Melissa Huggins
  February 08, 2022 at 8:03 am
  
  Iy really is Yvonne. Glad you were able to try it. 🙂
  Reply
The Student-turned-Doctor @ Food for Dissertating
July 04, 2021 at 6:50 pm

I made this recently and it was delicious! I wasn't sure I would like the red pepper flakes in this but I'm glad I went ahead and added them. The flavors were so beautifully complex!
Reply
- Support @ Vegan Huggs
  July 09, 2021 at 8:18 am
  
  Hi! We are so happy to hear that you loved the recipe - thanks so much for giving it a try 🙂
  Reply
Konrad
June 10, 2021 at 9:37 am

I love this recipe! I’ve added some leek for variety and sunflower seeds for protein (I highly recommend it). It was delicious!
Reply
- Support @ Vegan Huggs
  June 11, 2021 at 6:47 am
  
  Hi Konrad! That sounds delicious - thanks so much for trying it out and we're happy you loved it!
  Reply
Cynthia
June 05, 2021 at 3:34 pm

I love it! I make it often. Its delicious. I need to find more vegan options that I like as much!
Reply
- Support @ Vegan Huggs
  June 18, 2021 at 7:57 am
  
  Hi Cynthia! We are so happy to hear that you love the recipe and make it frequently! Thanks so much for stopping by 🙂
  Reply
Leanne McGee
April 30, 2021 at 2:57 pm

Sooo satisfying after a long day at work.
Didn't have peas, used chopped broccoli florets. Skipped the curry, due to husband's taste and used fresh sweet pineapple chunks. Not canned. Very delicious! The toasted cashews made it 5 stars!!
Thank you!!
Reply
- Support @ Vegan Huggs
  May 07, 2021 at 8:54 am
  
  Hi Leanne! We are so happy to hear that you love the recipe! Thanks so much for giving it a try! 🙂
  Reply
Lauren Shapiro
April 18, 2021 at 10:48 am

LOVED it and made with a modified version of tofu stir fry (w/o noodles) it was one of my best vegan dinners! Thanks for the inspiration.
Reply
- Support @ Vegan Huggs
  April 23, 2021 at 7:59 am
  
  Hi Lauren! We are so happy that you loved it! Thank you for stopping by to leave a review 🙂
  Reply
Renee
January 29, 2021 at 9:32 am

I was skeptical. I like salt and this recipe didn’t call for any. And I don’t like curry. But I made exactly as specified and it was perfect! Thank you 😁
Reply
- Support @ Vegan Huggs
  February 05, 2021 at 11:02 am
  
  Hi Renee! We're so happy that you were pleasantly surprised! Thanks so much for giving it a try 🙂
  Reply
- Robin
  December 04, 2023 at 5:24 pm
  
  Have you tried to replace the tamari with coconut aminos? I have used coconut aminos in place of soy sauce before and was curious if it would work in this.
  Reply
  - Melissa Huggins
    December 07, 2023 at 5:11 pm
    
    Hi Robin, I haven't tried it with this recipe but I have used it in many other recipes instead of soy sauce. I would give it a shot. It'll probably taste delish!
Collette Turner
January 15, 2021 at 8:35 pm

OMG!!! this recipe is incrdable!!Love it!
Thanka!
Reply
- Support @ Vegan Huggs
  January 22, 2021 at 10:05 am
  
  Hi Collette! We are so happy to hear that you loved the recipe! Thanks so much for giving it a try 🙂
  Reply
Janet
September 22, 2020 at 8:00 pm

Melissa, OMG this is awesome!! It is my new favorite comfort food. This recipe is perfect as written IMHO. Thank you!
Reply
- Support @ Vegan Huggs
  October 05, 2020 at 10:07 am
  
  Hi Janet, thank you so much for the review! We're so happy to hear you loved the recipe, thank you for sharing 🙂
  Reply
Natasha
August 28, 2020 at 6:33 pm

Sounds great. Looks good. I've made this before. You can add tofu for the protein. I've been vegan 21 years so this is actually not new dish. Most people back in th e day used the same ingredients. Vegans weren't just popular back when I started. Good job!
Reply

« Older Comments