How to Make Cauliflower Rice

What Makes This Cauliflower Rice Recipe So Good

• Low in carbs. You can substitute low-carb cauliflower rice in just about any recipe that calls for regular white rice. I even make cauliflower fried rice!
• Quicker to cook. Unlike regular rice, cauliflower rice contains a lot of moisture, so a quick 5-minute sauté is enough to cook it. No steaming or boiling needed! If you’re making a curry or stir fry, you can simply cook the cauliflower rice in a skillet with oil, then season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Perfect texture. The step of coarsely chopping the cauliflower in the food processor is absolutely worth it. (And if you don’t have a food processor, no worries—you can use a box grater instead!)
• Flavorful and versatile. If you’re using this cauliflower rice in a burrito bowl or as a side dish, I like to add garlic and lime juice to amp up the flavor.

Notes on Ingredients

Please note that this is important information on the ingredients and instructions. The full recipe, including amounts and details, can be found below (scroll to the recipe card) for your reference.

• Cauliflower – Choose a large head of cauliflower. Look for creamy white cauliflower with firm, tightly packed florets. The cauliflower should feel heavy for its size.
• Coconut oil – Or use any oil you like to cook with.
• Garlic – Freshly minced garlic boosts the flavor. If you don’t have fresh, substitute 1 tablespoon of jarred minced garlic instead.
• Lime – I love adding a squeeze of fresh lime juice to my cauliflower rice, especially if I’m serving it with Thai curry or Mexican-inspired dishes, like tofu tacos. Depending on what you’re pairing your rice with, lemon will work too!

How to Make Cauliflower Rice

Gather your ingredients, and here’s how to make cauliflower rice, step by step. A blender or food processor makes ricing the cauliflower very easy. If you don’t have one, after cutting the cauliflower into florets, use a box grater to rice it instead.

• Cut the cauliflower. Cut the cauliflower into manageable florets. They should be small enough to fit into your food processor.
• Rice the cauliflower. Pulse the florets until the mixture resembles grains of rice. 
• Drain the excess liquid. Now, transfer the riced cauliflower to a paper towel and squeeze it to remove any excess liquid. 

Cook the Cauliflower Rice

Once your raw cauliflower rice is ready, follow these quick steps to cook it for a simple, easy side dish that pairs well with just about any dish.

• Sauté the garlic. Warm the coconut oil in a skillet set over medium-high heat, then add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
• Add the cauliflower rice. Add the riced cauliflower, salt, pepper, and lime juice. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the cauliflower begins to brown slightly, which should take 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and serve.

Tips for Perfect Cauliflower Rice

• Pulse in batches. If you have a large cauliflower or a small food processor, I recommend ricing the florets in two batches to ensure that the “grains” are uniform in size.
• Make ahead. You can rice the cauliflower up to 5 days in advance, then cook it whenever you’re ready to eat!
• Customize it. Add fresh cilantro and lime zest for a Mexican-inspired flavor (or try a variation of Mexican rice with cauliflower rice), cook it with turmeric or curry powder, stir in your favorite herbs. Just like traditional rice, cauliflower rice is like a blank canvas!

Serving Suggestions

You can use cauliflower rice in any dish where you’d use regular rice. Here are some of my favorite ways to serve it:

• Use it in place of regular rice when making pineapple fried rice or dirty rice.
• Use cauli rice as a base for a vegan sushi rice bowl.
• Let it soak up the sauce from this sweet-and-sour tofu or tempeh stir fry.
• Serve it with vegan butter chicken or chickpea tikka masala.

More Ways to Use Cauliflower Rice

• Pizza crust. Use cauliflower rice to make a low-carb pizza crust by adding a vegan egg replacer and cheese to bind it. Also, try these cauliflower pizza bites.
• Vegan meatballs. Combine the leftover cauli rice with hot sauce, quinoa, and a handful of other easy ingredients to make spicy vegan Buffalo cauliflower meatballs.

How to Store Leftovers

• Refrigerate. Store cooked cauliflower rice in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Cauliflower rice is wonderful for meal prepping. I like to portion it into containers and top it with marinated tofu or use it in place of rice in these peanut tofu bowls.
• Reheat. Reheat it in the microwave or in a skillet on the stovetop.
• Freeze. You can freeze cooked cauliflower rice in a freezer bag or an airtight container for up to 2 months. Warm it in a skillet from frozen or let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight, then heat it.

Enjoy friends! If you make this cauliflower rice recipe, please snap a photo and tag #jessicainthekitchen on Instagram! We’d also love it if you would leave a comment below, and give the recipe a rating! Thanks so much!

P.S. Here are some of the items I used to make this recipe, if you’d like to use them too:

More Cauliflower Recipes

• Bang Bang Cauliflower
• Cauliflower Mac and Cheese
• Roasted Cauliflower Hummus
• Whole Roasted Cauliflower
• Cauliflower Steaks