Savory, sweet and sour fried rice topped with glazed cashews and chickpeas. This recipe is so simple, easy, and will be ready in no time.
I used to consume countless amounts of fried rice as a kid…a little bit too much. It had tender vegetables, such as carrots and peas, scrambled eggs, a savory salty sauce, and perfectly crispy rice. You could say this is a carb lovers heaven.
I already have a fried rice recipe on my site, but I thought I would take another go at it because it has been a while since the release of that recipe.
This version is much better if I gotta say so myself. The sweet and sour sauce is more balanced and the addition of toasted cashews is absolutely delicious.
This recipe starts by cooking some short-grain brown rice. You could also use white rice!
Bake rinsed and drained chickpeas on a baking sheet for 25 minutes until crispy.
Meanwhile, prepare the sweet and sour sauce by combining lime juice, tamari, rice vinegar, sesame oil, maple syrup, garlic, sriracha, and a corn starch slurry in a small saucepan. Bring to a lower simmer and cook for a few minutes until thick and sticky. Set aside.
Saute vegetables in a large skillet. Add cooked rice and flatten in an even layer. This will allow the rice to crisp up. Cook for a few minutes until light golden brown on the bottom side. Add in additional seasonings and mix. Cook for a little while longer trying not to stir too much to allow rice to crisp up.
Toast cashews in a small skillet until golden brown. Add baked chickpeas and cashews to a bowl. Add sweet and sour sauce and stir to combine.
Serve fried rice topped with sweet & sour chickpeas and cashews and chopped green onion.
Bon appetit!
This recipe would also work great with baked tofu instead of chickpeas! Just rinse and drain your tofu, cut into cubes, and arrange on a baking sheet. Bake in a 425 degree oven for 30 minutes until crispy. Then add to a bowl with the cashews and toss in the sauce.
You can also sub in any vegetables of your choosing. In this case I opted for onion, garlic, red bell pepper, frozen peas and carrots. Other options could be: eggplant, broccoli or water chestnuts.
This Sweet & Sour Cashew and Chickpea Fried Rice is…
- Savory, sweet, and sour
- Perfectly balanced
- Easy and simple
- Vegan
- Oh so delicious!
Savory, sweet and sour fried rice topped with glazed cashews and chickpeas. This recipe is so simple, easy, and will be ready in no time.
- ⅓ cup low-sodium soy sauce such as tamari
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- Juice of 1 lime
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- ½ tsp sriracha
- 1 tsp corn starch
- 1 ½ cups short grain brown rice
- One 15 oz. can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 1 tbsp neutral-flavored oil
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- ½ white onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 cups frozen peas and carrots
- 2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp rice vinegar
- ½ cup cashews
-
Cook rice in a rice cooker or over the stovetop in a saucepan. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Add rinsed and drained chickpeas to a baking sheet. Bake for 25 minutes. While chickpeas and rice are cooking, prepare sweet and sour sauce.
-
Whisk together corn starch and 3 tsp of water. Add to a small sauce pan along with the rest of the sauce ingredients. Whisk to combine. Bring mixture to a low boil over medium heat. Simmer for 1-2 minutes until thick, sticky, and coats the back of a spoon. Set aside.
-
When rice is done cooking, heat a large skillet with 1 tbsp oil over medium-high. Add onion, garlic, bell pepper, and a pinch of salt. Cook for 3-4 minutes until onions are translucent and soft. Add frozen peas and carrots. Add rice and stir to combine all ingredients. Flatten rice in an even layer. Allow to cook for 4-5 minutes until bottom side is golden brown and crispy. You may need to turn up the heat to achieve that texture.
-
Add soy sauce, sesame oil, and rice vinegar. Stir to combine. Cook for an additional 3-4 minutes. Turn heat to low and keep warm while preparing the sweet and sour cashews and chickpeas. Toast cashews in a small skillet until golden brown. Add to a small bowl along with chickpeas. Pour over sweet and sour sauce and stir to coat.
-
Serve fried rice topped with sweet & sour cashews and chickpeas. (Optional): Sprinkle over sliced green onion.
Great post 😁
Author
Thank you!! 🙂
Just made this the other day and it was delicious! I didn’t have any cashews on hand so I just left them out, but the dish came together so easily and I love that I can use it for leftovers as well!
Author
So happy to hear!! Thank you 🙂
This looks like a great addition to the different kinds of fried rice dishes. Thank you for posting this recipe.
Love this dinner. It’s become one of our firm favourites! The flavour is awesome.
Author
That’s so great to hear! Thank you so much 🙂