Cauliflower Rice
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 is one of those simple kitchen tricks that quickly becomes a staple once you try it. It’s incredibly easy to make, comes together in just minutes, and pairs beautifully with just about any main dish. Whether you’re keeping things simple with a little garlic and herbs or dressing it up with bold flavors, this versatile side can be customized to fit whatever you’re cooking.
I love keeping a head of cauliflower in the fridge because it’s such a reliable go-to when I need a quick and flavorful side. It’s just as perfect for a weeknight dinner as it is for meal prep, and it works in everything from cozy bowls to fresh salads.
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 Riced Cauliflower?
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 Recipe
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
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Categories:
Cauliflower Recipes, Gluten Free Recipes, Healthy Dinner Ideas, How To Techniques, Most Popular Recipes, Side Dishes, Vegetarian Recipes,All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe.
Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.
I make this all the time!
Yay! Cauliflower rice is so good!
I really like it and I’m glad you did too!