How to Make Cauliflower Rice + 16 Cauliflower Rice Recipes

Light and fluffy basic Cauliflower Rice recipe used to make delicious gluten-free and low carb sides, risotto, fried rice, salads, soups, burrito bowls, sushi and more! Step-by-step video guide on how to make cauliflower rice using a box grater plus 16 recipes that include cauliflower rice.

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The new year started for me with insane amount of food and a stomach flu, so healthy eating is my top priority at the moment.

I’m a proponent of a long-term solution to losing weight and getting fit.

I will take a moment to write about „quick fixes” and why you should NOT do them.

After indulgent eating during holidays (hello Thanksgiving and Christmas!) many of us are thinking about detox, various cleansing programs and restrictive diet.

While it’s tempting to get the result you want in a short period of time, it might be dangerous for your body in the long run. You can’t wash away your dietary sins with a glass of magic detox smoothie. It simply doesn’t work that way.

Don’t get too excited about losing a few pounds after detoxing, because you’ll get them back when you get back to your regular diet.

The reason you might lose a few pounds during detoxing is that you body gets rid of excessive liquid and the overall calorie intake is less than usual. Therefore, the body will learn to store your energy resources (fat) better, when you try to lose weight next time.

Your body will rather lose muscles than fat, making it harder for you every time to stay fit. That is why healthy does not equal weight loss.

You don’t need detox because your body can detox itself. That’s the reason we have liver and kidneys (in addition to lungs and colon).

These organs filter harmful substances and unless you have serious poisoning, they can do it pretty efficiently.

Removing certain food groups from your diet can be dangerous for your body.

We need fat, we need carbs, we need protein. Just make sure you cut off junk food, sugary drinks, eat less processed foods and more fiber-rich seasonal vegetables and fruits, whole grains, drink plenty of water and do exercise.

You’ve heard about this before, didn’t you?

You don’t need diets, cleansing and detoxing programs. You don’t need to be fooled by marketers.

There is no evidence in nutritional science that detoxing is beneficial to your body. There is no evidence that toxins exist either!

Otherwise, you could measure the amount of toxins in human body before and after detoxing, proving its effectiveness.

All you need to stay fir is maintain a healthy lifestyle. As easy and obvious as it is.

Get enough sleep, be active, drink plenty of water, eat a balanced diet and you’ll see yourself bursting with energy, fit and healthy.

I’m not saying that you can’t have an occasional chocolate fudge bar once in a while. Or that you should not eat your birthday cake. It’s totally fine to indulge yourself from time to time if your overall diet and lifestyle are healthy.

What I found great in following a consistent healthy diet is the idea that it doesn’t have to be bland and unappetizing. If you follow my blog, you know that eating healthy is fun.

I like to create delicious recipes using mostly plant-based ingredients. Sometimes you need a few spices and a bunch of herbs to make your recipe shine.

Why Make Cauliflower Rice

Cauliflower rice is a healthier alternative to white rice that tastes great.

Moreover, it’s so versatile: use it as a side dish, as a base for cauliflower fried rice, serve it with curry stir fry, as a salad, soup, risotto or even incorporate it into burrito bowls or sushi rolls!

You’ll find 16 recipes below to choose from!

How To Make Cauliflower Rice Without a Food Processor

One way to make cauliflower rice is to use a food processor to chop the cauliflower.

Another way is to use a box grater. It’s a very easy method that also ensures that all the „rice” pieces are the same size.

If you want to protect your hands during grating (or chopping), a great way to do so is to use cut resistant gloves.

Discard the leaves and cut a medium-sized cauliflower head in quarters and grate each of them using a box grater with medium holes.

Heat a lug of olive oil in a large skillet. Sautée minced garlic until golden. Add cauliflower rice, stir and cover with a lid.

Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring once or twice.

Add chopped parsley (optional), salt, black pepper and a pinch of cayenne. Enjoy!

You’ll find the full recipe on the bottom of this post.

Cauliflower Rice Recipes

1. Vegetarian Red Curry Stir Fry by Happy Kitchen.Rocks

Easy and wholesome Vegetarian Red Curry Stir Fry Recipe makes for a nutritious weeknight dinner ready in just 30 minutes! It’s also vegan, gluten free and paleo, not to mention flavorful and easy to make!

2. Creamy Cauliflower Garlic Rice by Pinch of Yum

This creamy cauliflower garlic rice is simple, healthy, and so surprisingly good.

3. Healthy Cauliflower Fried “Rice” by Eat Yourself Skinny

Healthy makeover of an all-time favorite dinner meal.

4. Cauliflower Risotto with Caramelized Pears, Blue Cheese and Walnuts by Happy Kitchen.Rocks

Cauliflower Risotto with Caramelized Pears, Blue Cheese and Walnuts: A healthy and gluten-free makeover of a traditional risotto packed with flavor! Easy 30-minute step-by-step recipe.

5. Fiesta Cauliflower Rice Salad by Destination Delish

A fluffy cauliflower rice salad packed with colorful veggies and tossed in a tangy citrus dressing. Enjoy this as a healthy side dish or light lunch!

6. Curried Cauliflower Rice Kale Soup {Paleo, Vegan, Whole30} by Cotter Crunch

Curried Cauliflower Rice Kale Soup is one flavorful healthy soup recipe to keep you warm this season. An easy paleo soup recipe for a nutritious meal-in-a-bowl. Roasted curried cauliflower“rice” with kale and even moreveggies to fill your bowl! A delicious vegetarian soup to make again again! Vegan andWhole30 friendly.

7. Pesto Cauliflower Rice by Kirbie’s Cravings

Cauliflower rice is flavored with homemade pesto sauce for an easy, delicious, low-carb and gluten free dish. It’s great to eat on it’s own or as a rice substitute for any meal.

8. Mexican Cauliflower Rice Burrito Bowl by Apples for CJ

This Mexican Cauliflower Rice Burrito Bowl is a healthy, tasty, one bowl dinner or lunch. Cauliflower Rice seasoned with Mexican flavors, and then topped with all your favorites. Vegan & Gluten free.

9. The Classic Power Bowl by A Virtual Vegan

Find your bliss with The Classic Power Bowl from Blissful Basil. A delightful combination of spicy cauliflower rice,warming& crispsweet potatoes & creamy, garlicky avocado mash.

10. Vegan Sushi with Cauliflower Rice by Namely Marly

You’ll love this super easy, super healthy Vegan Sushi with Cauliflower Rice. If you haven’t made sushi at home before, don’t worry, we provide step-by-step process photos to make it easy for you to DIY this sushi yourself. Served with a creamy peanut butter sauce, the results are stunning…and delicious!

11. Low Carb Mexican Cauliflower Rice (Paleo, Vegan, Keto) by My Food Story

Low Carb Mexican Cauliflower Rice is a healthy, paleo friendly, keto friendly, vegan side dish recipe thatis bursting with Mexican flavours and ready in 30 minutes!

12. Spanish Cauliflower Rice by Trial and Eater

Spanish Cauliflower Rice – a grain-free substitute for Spanish rice that’s quick and healthy. Vegan and gluten-free option.

13. Vegetarian Korean Bibimbap Recipe by Wicked Spatula

A vegetarian bibimbap recipe packed with healthy vegetables, kimchi, and fried eggs! 25-minute Korean bibimbap bowls are EASY, plus this one has a secret ingredient to make it low carb, keto and paleo friendly.

14. Grain-free Spicy Cauliflower Fritters with Chipotle Lime Aioli by Tasty Yummies

These Grain-free Spicy Cauliflower Fritters are an amazing way to embrace the cauliflower love, taking the cauli-rice trend to a whole new level. These versatile patties can be adapted to whatever flavor and spice blend you’d like and served with your favoritesauce, we like ChipotleLime Aioli.

15. Cauliflower Pizza Crust by Chocolate Covered Katie

Asimple cauliflower pizza crust recipe that’s so surprisinglydelicious, you’d never guess it could possibly be so healthy!

16. Leek and Mushroom Cauliflower Risotto by Jennifer Banz

Creamy and delicious cauliflower risotto made with leeks and mushrooms. A perfect low carb side dish.

Here is a recipe video on how to make the best cauliflower rice and a detailed recipe card, as well as 16 dishes you can incorporate your cauliflower rice into!

If you can’t see the video, disable your AdBlock for this page by clicking on the AdBlock button and selecting Don’t run on this page.

Please give this recipe a 5-star rating if you enjoyed it! That would mean a world to me 🙂

5 from 13 votes

Course Main Dish, Side Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 2 servings

Calories 141kcal

Author Elena Szeliga

Ingredients

▢ 1 head cauliflower washed and dried
▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
▢ 2 cloves garlic minced
▢ 1/3 cup parsley, chopped (optional)
▢ salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
▢ a pinch cayenne

Instructions

Discard the leaves and cut a medium-sized cauliflower head in quarters and grate each of them using a box grater with medium holes. If you want to protect your hands during grating (or chopping), a great way to do so is to use cut resistant gloves.
Heat a lug of olive oil in a large skillet. Sautée minced garlic until golden. Add cauliflower rice, stir and cover with a lid. Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring once or twice. Add chopped parsley (optional), salt, black pepper and a pinch of cayenne. Enjoy!

Equipment

box grater

skillet

Nutrition

Tried this recipe?Follow @happykitchen.rocks on Instagram and show me the recipes you are making from my blog using the hashtag #happykitchenrocks!

How to Make Cauliflower Rice + 16 Cauliflower Rice Recipes • Happy Kitchen (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between cauliflower rice and riced cauliflower? ›

As far as we can tell, it's the same thing, just a different name. The term “cauliflower rice” didn't become an internet sensation until around 2012. But ever since then, this nutrient-rich rice substitute has been booming in popularity!

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Is it cheaper to make cauliflower rice or buy it? ›

Cheaper: Making riced cauliflower from scratch will save you money in the grocery store. A head of cauliflower is cheaper than buying fresh or frozen riced cauliflower. Tastes Great: Because it's made fresh, it also tastes better. You can use it in any recipe that calls for rice.

How do you squeeze water out of cauliflower rice? ›

Wrap the cauliflower rice in a clean tea towel or paper towels, twist, and squeeze as much water as possible from the rice—you might be surprised by how much water you can wring out, or you might not be.

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Why is my frozen cauliflower rice soggy? ›

If you're cooking frozen cauliflower rice on the stovetop, cook it in small batches. Cooking too much at once can produce excess moisture and lead to soggy cauliflower rice.

Is it OK to eat riced cauliflower everyday? ›

The fact that it's a vegetable makes cauliflower automatically good for you. Additionally, cauliflower is packed with nutrients that give it unique benefits, such as fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K and choline. These properties give you a good reason to eat it frequently or even daily.

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Is cauliflower rice actually healthy? ›

Cauliflower rice is a nutritious alternative to rice that's low in calories and carbs. It may even provide a number of benefits, such as boosting weight loss, fighting inflammation, and even protecting against certain illnesses. What's more, it's simple to make and can be eaten raw or cooked.

What is the best appliance to make cauliflower rice? ›

While using a food processor is one of the fastest and easiest ways to chop cauliflower into rice, there are a handful of other methods that can also be used. Chopping by hand, using a box grater, or substituting a food processor for a blender are all techniques that can also make cauliflower rice.

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Which is better broccoli or cauliflower rice? ›

While they are both very nutritious vegetables, broccoli has a higher vitamin content, specifically in vitamin K and C, than cauliflower and is specifically known to be great for eye health. Broccoli florets also provide more minerals and fiber as well as contains vitamin A that isn't in cauliflower.

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Is cauliflower rice good for diabetics? ›

Carb-rich foods, especially ones made of simple carbs, tend to be high on the glycemic index (GI) scale. This means they may cause your blood sugar to rise faster than foods that have lower GIs. While white rice has a relatively high GI, cauliflower has a very low GI, making the swap a diabetes-friendly one.

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How do you thicken riced cauliflower? ›

The key to a thicker consistency is to drain the steamed cauliflower really well before pureeing or blending it up. Put the puree back into the warm pan and add grated cheese. Stir until the cheese is melted and you should have a nice, thick texture. You can also add a keto thickener like glucomannan or xanthan gum.

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Can you overcook cauliflower rice? ›

Overcooking It

"When it is riced it's really easy for it to turn mushy from overcooking and then it won't hold up as well in your dishes where you're trying to use it to substitute rice," says Maggie Michalczyk, MS, RD.

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Why is cauliflower rice so filling? ›

It can also serve as a low calorie substitute for high calorie foods, such as rice and flour. As a good source of fiber, cauliflower slows digestion and promotes feelings of fullness. This may help reduce the number of calories you eat throughout the day, an important factor in weight control ( 2 , 9 ).

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Why does cauliflower rice make me bloated? ›

The reason for this is that cauliflower, as well as other cruciferous veggies, such as kale and broccoli, contains raffinose and other oligosaccharides. These are specific types of sugars that remain undigested until bacteria in the gut ferment them, producing gas, and, in turn, causing bloating and gas.