I’m usually behind the trend on things by at least several years. I prefer to consider my tastes ‘classic’ but in reality, I’m just behind the times. This is true for fashion, music and even food. Take this for example:
The humble cauliflower. People have turned it into some incredible things over the past year or two of the paleo movement, but I have yet to play with it much. Until now. Curiosity finally overcame me and I decided to try cauliflower rice.
It really is quite simple to make.
1. Trim the cauliflower and cut into roughly equal-sized florets.
2. In batches (each cauliflower took 2 batches for me), place florets in a food processor in a single layer (don’t overcrowd).
3. Pulse 3-5 times until a rice-like consistency forms.
4. From here, simply heat a small amount of oil in a pan over medium heat (I also added a little garlic), then add your cauliflower rice and sauté 3-5 minutes until soft and turning slightly golden brown. Then eat it up!
I was hesitant to try a new dish for a dinner meal, so I decided to make it for lunch this week instead with roasted veggies and a turkey burger. To make this simple, I decided to freeze it in individual portions. To do this, I scooped about a cup or so of the UNCOOKED cauliflower rice into small ziplocks, squeezed any excess air out and flattened the bags as I placed them in the freezer.
I pulled out a bag and put it on the freezer while I prepared the other meal components, then sautéed it like normal.
The result was really quite delicious! It won’t be mistaken for rice, but the fun texture really worked well with the rest of the meal and the slight garlic flavor was delicious. I will definitely be working this into my Sunday meal prep rotation!
Other cauliflower recipes you might like:
Hidden Veggie Cauliflower Pizza Bites (for kids!)
Creamy Crockpot Mashed Cauliflower
Are you a cauliflower fan?
Have you tried cauliflower ‘rice’?
Tina muir says
ooooh good idea! I would never think to freeze it, but yes, as it is a little more work than most rice style foods, it would be best to make a big batch. Thanks for the thought, this is helpful 🙂
Betsy says
I think Cauliflower rice tastes great, but I can’t handle the mess that it makes! Maybe I should give it another try..
Lauren @ Kale and Cookie Dough says
This is such a cool idea! I love anything that makes live a little easier after I get off work!
Tiff @ Love, Sweat, & Beers says
Thanks for the lunch idea. I can heat things up easily working from home, but I don’t have time to cook a real meal from scratch.
Erica { EricaDHouse.com } says
I LOVE cauliflower rice! Never would have thought to freeze it.
Marnie @ SuperSmartMama says
I am a BIG fan of cauliflower rice but I’d never thought to freeze the unneeded cauliflower for future cooking. Thanks for yet another great idea! I was always hunting for the smallest heads of cauliflower because I’m usually cooking for two adults at most (and a picky toddler)!
Heather says
Love this idea! I’m hoping it’s something I can get my picky toddler to eat!
Brittany Dixon says
I’ve heard people use it to make a play on fried rice and it’s delicious! Probably toddler friendly too, so maybe google that?
Monica says
That looks easy enough for even me to try! 🙂
I love mashed “potatoes” made with cauliflower, and I’ve always wanted to try using it as pizza crust, but haven’t gotten around to it yet!
Liv @ Healthy Liv says
I love roasted cauliflower so much that I never want to make cauliflower another way! I’ll seriously eat the entire head of cauliflower when it’s roasted if I let myself!
Brittany Dixon says
I’m the same way with any roasted veggie! I can eat a ridiculous amount. They are so delicious!
Joanna @Makingmine says
I am WAY behind the cauliflower trend – haven’t done anything but eat it raw and throw it in stir fry (yikes!)
This looks great though, and I love the idea of freezing it ahead of time to make it more feasible to use on a moment’s notice
Hannah @ CleanEatingVeggieGirl says
This is an awesome idea and would be great for when I want to make cauliflower pizza crusts a bit quicker!
Kacie says
Hey Brittany, this is totally unrelated to this post, but I just wanted to say thank you! I’m 28 weeks pregnant and I “failed” my 1 hr glucose test last week with a 139. Apparently my doctor’s office makes you do the 3 hour test if you get over 129. But I took the 1 hr test at 3pm after having eaten 2 meals that day so I really think that’s the only reason my glucose would be on the higher end! The reason I wanted to thank you, is that reading about your experience gave me the courage to call back my doctor’s office and request that they ask her personally whether she thinks I need to take the 3 hour test. In the past I would’ve just said ‘okay’ and not questioned it, even though I see NO reason for me to take the 3 hour test since I have no risk factors for gestational diabetes and took my test so late in the day. I’m not putting myself through that test if I don’t have to!
Brittany Dixon says
Oh Kacie, I am so glad you don’t have to do the 3 hour and had the courage to talk to your doctor about it! It’s tough to be our own advocates sometimes and something I’m always working on. I hope you are feeling well… only one trimester left!! Exciting 🙂
Brittany @ Delights and Delectables says
love it! I am all about freezing things now!!
Kelli H (Made in Sonoma) says
I’ve been meaning to try cauilflower rice the whole time I did Whole30 and never did! I’d love it for when I make curries. Instead I was serving curry on top of smashed up acorn squash.
Jo says
I make cauliflower rice every now and then and when It is just me I often use a cheese grater to make a single serving of “rice” instead of dirtying the food processor. I never thought to make a larger batch and freeze some (although I do this with brown rice all the time!) Thank you so much for the idea!