Cauliflower rice a healthier alternative to many side dishes. This delicious side is ready in a just a few minutes and can be easily made ahead of time. You can customize cauliflower rice with any flavors to compliment the main dish or make a healthy salad.
Cauliflower is one of the best vegetables if you ask me so it’s wonderful to use in many recipes including soups, snack, main dishes and sides. I have two wonderful soups that you might just fall in love with so try a Cheesy Cauliflower soup and Ham and Cheese Cauliflower Soup. If you’re looking for a snack, Cauliflower Parmesan Crisps are amazing.
CAULIFLOWER RICE
I always have a head of cauliflower in the refrigerator because it makes an easy and delicious side for any protein. Sometimes I just make a pan of roasted cauliflower as a snack.
Cauliflower holds so many health benefits but it’s often overshadowed by broccoli. Both of them are full of nutrients so it really comes down to personal taste.
Even though broccoli is a great healthy vegetable, I prefer cauliflower because of taste and versatility. You can substitute cauliflower in many recipes to get a much healthier alternative. Some of the best things to substitute with cauliflower include rice, pizza crust, tortillas, and any breaded snacks like popcorn shrimp and chicken.
Cauliflower is full of vitamins, a great source of fiber and antioxidants, and lower in calories and carbohydrates than grains and legumes. It’s also a dense vegetable that has less water than many others, which helps keep it together as pizza crust, rice, and tortillas. That’s why it makes a perfect substitute in many recipes.
Making cauliflower rice is extremely easy. It’s actually the easiest substitute to make when it comes to utilizing cauliflower in healthy alternatives. It take only 5 minutes to prepare and just a few more minutes to cook. You can have a delicious bowl of cauliflower rice in about 15 minutes.
There are many different flavors that can be used to season the cauliflower rice depending on the recipe it will be used in. One of my favorite flavors to add it garlic, herbs, and Parmesan cheese. It compliments many main dishes and delicious on its own.
HOW TO MAKE CAULIFLOWER RICE:
Cauliflower can easily be riced by hand, using a box grater, or in a food processor.
To prepare cauliflower rice on a box grater:
Cut the leaves and the bulky stem off and discard. Wash cauliflower well and pat dry. Cut the head of cauliflower into 4-6 chunks. Use large holes side of the box grater to grate all the cauliflower chunks.
To prepare cauliflower rice in a food processor:
Cut the leaves and the bulky stem off and discard. Wash cauliflower well and pat dry. Cut the head of cauliflower into small chunks and you may need to do it batches, depending on the food processor.
Depending on the food processor, you may need to use a grated attachment and push through one cauliflower chunk at a time.
If using a food processor like Ninja (it looks like a blender), you will need to do it in a few batches and pulse each batch a few times until you see coarse crumbs appear.
The goal with any method is to create coarse crumbs out of cauliflower that kind of looks like rice.
TIPS FOR MAKING CAULIFLOWER RICE:
Cauliflower rice is so simple to prepare that there is not that much room for error.
Once the cauliflower has been grated, you may or may not need to squeeze some of the extra liquid out. I don’t normally have to squeeze out extra moisture unless it has been frozen.
If you feel like you need to squeeze out the moisture, use a cheese cloth folded it in two layers.
Season cauliflower rice in a bowl and mix it well so that seasoning is spread evenly throughout before cooking it.
The best way to cook cauliflower rice is by sauteing it in the pan. Add some olive oil to the preheated pan and saute until it reached your desired tenderness.
CAN I FREEZE CAULIFLOWER RICE?
Absolutely!
I always make extra and portion it in freezer bags.
Use freezer friendly zip-lock bags and make sure to squeeze out as much air as possible.
Remember to label and date the bags. Freeze it for up to 3 months.
Defrosting cauliflower rice is very fast so you can just pull the bag about 10 minutes before starting to cook and let it defrost on the counter.
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Cauliflower Rice
Ingredients
- 32 oz head of cauliflower (1 large head of cauliflower)
Garlic Parmesan Cauliflower Rice:
- 3 cups cauliflower rice
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves smashed and minced
- 2 tbsp minced parsley
- 3 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
- salt
Instructions
Making cauliflower rice:
- To prepare cauliflower rice on a box grater: Cut the leaves and the bulky stem off and discard. Wash cauliflower well and pat dry. Cut the head of cauliflower into 4-6 chunks. Use large holes side of the box grater to grate all the cauliflower chunks.
- To prepare cauliflower rice in a food processor:
Cut the leaves and the bulky stem off and discard. Wash cauliflower well and pat dry. Cut the head of cauliflower into small chunks and you may need to do it in batches, depending on the food processor.
Depending on the food processor, you may need to use a grated attachment and push through one cauliflower chunk at a time.
If using a food processor like Ninja (it looks like a blender), you will need to do it in a few batches and pulse each batch a few times until you see coarse crumbs appear. - The goal with any method is to create coarse crumbs out of cauliflower that kind of looks like rice.
Notes:
- 2 lb head of cauliflower will make about 8 cups of cauliflower rice. You can freeze some of it or cook all of it if needed. Freeze cauliflower rice in portions, in freezer zip-lock bags.Cooked leftovers can be refrigerated in an air-tight container. I recommend keeping any uncooked leftover rice in the freezer. It only takes a few minutes to defrost on the counter.
Cooking cauliflower rice:
- Mix cauliflower rice with parsley and salt in a mixing bowl.
- Preheat a medium pan over medium heat. Add olive oil.
- Smash and mince garlic and add it to the pan. Saute until fragrant and add mixed cauliflower rice.
- Cook, stirring once in a while, for 5-7 minutes. You may cook it a little longer if you want it to be softer.
- Stir in grated Parmesan cheese and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Becky says
I make this all the time!
Lisa says
Yay! Cauliflower rice is so good!
LyubaB says
I really like it and I’m glad you did too!