Cauliflower Rice is the superstar substitute for regular rice. Low in carbs, it's a great way to eat more veggies. This post will show you how to make a healthy batch - quick and easy!
In This Post You'll Find:
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is easy when you find the right substitutes. One of those important substitutes is the amazing cauliflower. Especially when you consider how much lower in carbs and calories cauliflower is compared to other starchy foods, like potatoes or rice, you're gonna love this cauliflower rice.
Cauliflower rice will soon be your best friend when transforming your favorite meals. It's also a great meal prep tool to have in your arsenal, whether you are trying to lose weight with meal prep or just want to make healthy meals easy.
Ingredients
The beauty of making cauliflower rice is in its simplicity. Here's all you'll need to make cauliflower rice.
- Cauliflower: Cauliflower is an amazing low-carb cruciferous vegetable that is high in fiber and very versatile. I've used it to make cauliflower hash browns, cauliflower mashed potatoes, cauliflower tortillas, and so much more.
- Olive Oil: I like to add olive oil to a fry pan before making the cauliflower rice to add a little more moisture and fat and keep the rice from sticking to the pan. You can also use avocado oil, if you prefer.
- Sea Salt: Cauliflower will taste a little bland without the addition of salt, and my favorite type of salt is sea salt.
- Ground Black Pepper: You don't need a lot of black pepper, as a little goes a long way with this cauliflower rice.
- Garlic Powder: You can use a fresh clove or garlic instead, r can omit the garlic if going less savory.
How To Make Cauliflower Rice
Prep 101: How Do You Make It With A Food Processor?
To prep with a food processor you simply:
- Cut the cauliflower into small florets;
- Add these to the food processor (the food processor should be ¾ full);
- Pulse the cauliflower florets until small pieces are formed.
Tip: Stop pulsing and scrape the sides of the bowl. Pulse again. Repeat if necessary.
Can I Make It Without A Food Processor?
Yes! If you have a stand mixer then you can chop the cauliflower head into 3-4 pieces and then feed them through the blender.
You can also use an inexpensive cheese grater (which I'm 100% sure you have at home) with those large holes on the side. Here's how:
- Cut cauliflower into larger florets
- Push florets against the grater and shred.
TIP: A medium cauliflower head makes about 8 cups of cauliflower rice.
And trust me when I say, that's a lot!
How To Cook Cauliflower Rice
The top two ways to cook Cauliflower Rice are stir-frying and roasting. I'll walk you through each below.
Stir-Fry
Grab a little bit of olive oil for this easy method:
- Heat a pan on medium heat;
- Add a little bit of olive oil and cauliflower rice;
- Cook for approximately 7-10 minutes, stirring frequently;
- Mix in your seasoning and stir to combine.
Roasted
This makes for a delicious side dish:
- Drizzle a little bit of olive oil over cauliflower rice and toss;
- Spread evenly on a baking sheet;
- Roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes at 400 degrees F.
*Mix the tray halfway through roasting to get it evenly cooked.
Cauliflower Rice Goes Well With:
- Slow Cooker Chicken Burrito Bowls – Making burrito bowls is a great way to incorporate cauliflower rice into your family’s diet...without making it too obvious 😉
- Steak Fajita Bowl with Cilantro Lime Rice – Cilantro Lime is not only for regular rice, peeps. It’s delicious in cauliflower rice recipes as well!
- Chicken Cauliflower Fried Rice - a lighter take on an old favorite.
More Recipes Using Cauliflower
I hope learning how to make this recipe made you realize how amazeballs cauliflower is. And I have more recipes to prove it!
FAQs
Rice made from cauliflower contains only 5g carbs per cup while white rice has 45 g of carbs per cup. White rice has approximately 218 calories per cup, while cauliflower has only 25. Yes, seriously!
With low calorie and carb stats, cauliflower rice is a great choice when you're trying to lose weight. Nutritionally speaking, this superb vegetable is high in fiber, filled with B-vitamins, vitamin K, vitamin C, and antioxidants. Additionally, this veggie is versatile and can be easily transformed into many delicious dishes like Cauliflower Gratin and Parmesan Roasted Cauliflower. Want more? Take a look at these 10 Healthy Cauliflower Recipes.
While white rice tastes relatively neutral, cauliflower takes on mild nutty flavors with a slightly bitter undertone (similar to cabbage). So, soft yes. It can have a similar flavor to rice but there are certainly differences. Described as "delicate," cauliflower's flavor is not too overpowering. Like regular rice, this recipe will ultimately taste how you season it.
After it's cooked, it will last 1-2 days in the fridge (in a sealed bag or air tight container). It's not recommended to freeze cooked cauliflower rice but you could prep the cauliflower and freeze it raw. This will last up to 6 months in the freezer. When you're ready to use it, transfer the frozen chopped cauliflower to the fridge the night before and allow to thaw. Then you're all set to transfer it to a pan and cook it up.
How To Make Cauliflower Rice
Equipment
*This post may contain affiliate links for products I use often and highly recommend.
Ingredients
- 1 large head cauliflower
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- There are two ways to turn the cauliflower into rice-size pieces: (1) using a kitchen grater on the larger holes or (2) in a food processor. (The food processor makes this way quick and easy so I recommend it if you have one). If using a grater, keep the cauliflower whole and grate as you would cheese. If using a processor, break the cauliflower into florets - it may be necessary to do this in 2-3 batches.
How To Make Cauliflower Rice on the Stove
- Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.
- Add the cauliflower "rice" and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cauliflower rice is tender and just slightly golden brown, about 7-10 minutes.
- Mix in the remaining salt, pepper, and garlic powder into the cauliflower rice and stir to combine.
How To Make Cauliflower Rice in the Oven
- First, start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees F and lining a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Lay out the "rice" evenly on the rimmed baking sheet, and place into the oven.
- Roast the cauliflower for 20-25 minutes, tossing halfway through, until the cauliflower is tender and starting to brown around the edges of the pan.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool.
- If using the cauliflower rice to make cauliflower tortillas or cauliflower pizza crust, it is necessary to squeeze the liquid out of the rice. Once the cauliflower rice is cool enough to handle, place it into a thin clean dish towel or cheesecloth and squeeze out as much excess liquid as you can. This will be very helpful when it’s time to cook because they won’t be super liquidy. You can just discard the liquid once you’ve gotten as much out as you can.
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