Here at Our Southern Odyssey we love cauliflower. Not only because it is so simple to cook. But, also, because, cauliflower is so versatile. And one of our favorite recipes is cauliflower rice. Being grain-free means being rice-free. Rice is used in so many dishes that finding a suitable alternative to rice was a must. Cauliflower Rice can be used as a substitute in any meal where rice would normally be served. Even if you do eat grains changing out rice for cauliflower rice every now and then adds diversity to your plate.
Cauliflower is an amazing vegetable. Did you know that cauliflower is high in VITAMIN C? For example, one small head of cauliflower has 125+ mg. of vitamin C. To put that into perspective that is more vitamin C than an orange. Plus you are not getting the added sugar that comes with oranges. Pretty amazing! Right? Plus cauliflower also contains other vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals that a body needs to be healthy. Cauliflower is nutritious and delicious. What more do I need to say?
Let’s start by knowing how to choose a delicious cauliflower. When selecting a cauliflower be sure to choose one that is fresh. The head of the cauliflower should be firm and compact to the touch. The heart of the cauliflower should be surrounded by bright green leaves. When purchasing a cauliflower you will want it as fresh as possible. Because the fresher the cauliflower is the better the flavor. A good indication of the quality of a cauliflower are the leaves that surround the heart. If the leaves are an off color, say yellow, the cauliflower is old. If the leaves are rubbery then the cauliflower is old. If the cauliflower is missing it leaves then keep walking. It is definitely old. Because a cauliflower should always have leaves surrounding and protecting the heart. The heart of the cauliflower itself should be without damage and a bright white.
Cauliflower is one of those old-fashioned vegetables that is under appreciated. Well no more… Cauliflower is making a comeback and being rediscovered as a must on the dinner table. The bland cauliflower of the past is no more. Cauliflower has become so popular over the last three years that farmers are dedicating more farmland to the production of cauliflower. And that make since, every time we go to the grocery store, we buy it in the fresh produce section as well as the frozen section. We are never without cauliflower.
For people who eat grains as well as those that don’t. Did you know that cauliflower contains less than one-eighth the calories of rice? I’m just saying, if you’re looking for a calorie friendly substitute to rice, cauliflower rice is here for you. And to make matters even better cauliflower is always gluten-free. YEA!
Provided below is our recipe for The Best Cauliflower Rice EVER! So next time you are preparing cube steak and gravy and you would normally fix rice prepare cauliflower rice instead. We hope that you enjoy the Cauliflower Rice recipe as much as we do.
Instructions:
We will start by preheating the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the fresh cauliflower from the fridge and remove all the leaves from the bottom of the cauliflower. Next we will wash the cauliflower, remembering to wash the top, as well as, the bottom of the cauliflower. Pat the cauliflower dry with a drying cloth or paper towel.
Here is a tip, turn the cauliflower over so that the bottom of the cauliflower is showing and with your paring knife begin to cut the individual flowers off the stalk. Some of these cauliflower flowers are to large to fit into the food processor so we might have to cut them in half. Usually the flowers around the base are the largest and they get smaller as you move up the cauliflower. After we have separated the cauliflower from the stalk into individual pieces, we will now begin by placing them into the food processor.
PULSE the cauliflower until the cauliflower resembles that of rice. While the riced cauliflower is still in the food processor, we will take this time to line a baking pan with unbleached parchment paper. We will now pour the riced cauliflower out of the food processor, some of it will fall out on its own but some may be stuck to the sides of the food processor. If this happens use a spoon to rake all the riced cauliflower out of the food processor. We don’t want to waste any of the riced cauliflower.
This is just a side note that you might want to know and something that I do that saves me a lot of time on clean up. There will still be some small pieces here and there of riced cauliflower stuck to the side of the food processor. If we will take this time to rinse the food processor and the cutting blade to remove the bits of cauliflower that was left, then we will not have to worry about the cauliflower drying to the sides. If the cauliflower does dry to the sides of the food processor we will either have to let it soak in water or scrub the daylight out of it. I’m not a fan of that much work, so we always rinse the food processor. It’s super easy to do, and saves a lot of time. And this is not just for cauliflower rice, it works when we grate cabbage for coleslaw or sweet potatoes, carrots or really anything. REMEMBER!! Rinse the food processor out before it has a chance to dry on the sides.
After we have all the cauliflower on the baking pan we then need to, with a spoon, press and move (spread) the riced cauliflower so that we have a single thin layer. Take and drizzle 1/4 cup of olive oil over the riced cauliflower. Making sure to spread it equally. Refer back to the photographs on the step-by-step guide if a visual would help.
Now we will crack some fresh Tellicherry black pepper over the top and some pink Himalayan salt. Take fresh parsley (make sure you have washed the parsley) and chop the parsley fine. Now sprinkle the fresh chopped parsley over the riced cauliflower.
We will now place the riced cauliflower into our preheated oven. The oven should still be at 400 degrees. Let’s set our timer for 20 minutes. After the 20 minutes are up, remove the riced cauliflower from the oven and turn the cauliflower rice over using either a spoon or spatula. After all the riced cauliflower has been flipped drizzle another 1/4 of a cup of olive oil on top as well as crack more black pepper and sprinkle with more pink salt.
We are going to place the riced cauliflower back into the oven for another 20 minutes. Again the oven should be at 400 degrees. When the 20 minutes are up remove the baking pan from the oven and plate the cauliflower rice on a platter to serve. This is a very simple recipe that we hope you will enjoy. If you have any additional questions please fill out the comment section below and we will try to answer your questions.
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You can use this recipe to make our Fried Cauliflower Rice.
