Vegan Ginger Scented Cauliflower Fried "Rice"

I love the aromatics when I cook.  It is basically mouth watering love flowing in the air.  And, there is always something special about walking through the door and just smelling what is waiting for your taste buds.  Almost like that smell when you walk into a Whole Foods, but...oh wait, I still have money in my bank account because I use my local grocer (ok, fine...most of the time).

The aromas of ginger and garlic filled my kitchen, along with a touch of toasted sesame oil/chili oil.  At that moment, I knew this recipe was going to be fantastic.  Ginger root is one of my all time favorite ingredients.  I felt nauseous all day, so while prepping for this meal, I chewed on some ginger root.  Badda-bing-badda-bang....bye-bye nausea.  I also love taking a lemon-ginger-cayenne shot every morning as well!  I swear, it is a great way to start the day!

The use of cauliflower "rice" is similar to my Moroccan Stew with Cauliflower "couscous" recipe, except I did not use a food processor this time.  I did not want the texture to be as delicate, and wanted larger, rice-like peaces, so I manually grated the cauliflower to resemble more of a piece of rice. 

Vegan Ginger Scented Cauliflower Fried "Rice"

Ingredients (yields 3-4 servings)

1 small head of cauliflower, grated

1 c dried shitake mushrooms

1.5 c vegetable or mushroom broth

2 carrots, shredded or grated in food processor

1/2 c shelled edamame (cooked)

1/2 block extra firm tofu, cubed

3 scallion chopped (save the green parts for garnish)

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 inch piece of ginger root, minced

1/2 tbsp sesame oil

1/4 tbsp chili oil

1 tbsp soy sauce (possibly more accordingly to taste)

Directions:

In a small pot, bring broth to a boil and add in dried shitake mushrooms.  Turn off heat and let the mushrooms rehydrate in the broth for about 20 minutes, maybe 30 minutes.  Dried shitakes tend to be hard and chewy if you do not let them soak long enough, so give them a try before you are done soaking.   Once they are nice and soft, strain them in a collander and set aside.  

Heat sesame oil and chili oil in a wok (or large pan) and saute ginger and garlic for about a minute/  Add in the grated cauliflower, chopped green onions and shredded carrots.  Saute veggies for 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently.  Add in more sesame oil if need be.  Add in soy sauce, tofu, edamame and mushrooms.  Add more soy sauce if you wish.  Serve when heat