What:

Cauliflower “rice”. It isn’t just for the Paleo folks, guys. Many of you might know what I’m referring to, but basically the result from grating then steaming cauliflower essentially looks and almost feels like plain white rice. I hope whoever originally discovered this gets full credit one day because I think it’s genius! I have my “recipe” for this below, but I do love this tutorial for a play-by-play on this very simple technique.

Why:

We know that cauliflower is part of the cruciferous vegetable family, a family of vegetables that we should be eating EVERY DAY for its proven cancer-prevention benefits and of course its fiber, vitamins, and other anti-oxidants. It’s truly one of the foods (I’m afraid to say superfood because that word is used too casually now) that we find a way to eat EVERY SINGLE DAY. Every grocery trip includes either broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, or bok choy. Most often though, I’ll buy one of the first two; cauliflower has certainly proved to be more versatile than I once thought it to be. I use the cauliflower rice often, not because we are grain-free, but because we are reducing our amount of simple starches and at the SAME TIME, we can get in all the chemo-protective properties that this vegetable offers.

Now, its benefits are best absorbed if the cruciferous veggie is either steamed or boiled (the latter is not quite clear to me thus far on my research). I’ll know more of the recent data on this after I head to the Health and Nutrition Conference this Spring. I’m sure we will be discussing many new findings in our Springtime culinary medicine classes.

Grated Raw Cauliflower

How To Use:

Let’s get to the idea list. Cauliflower “rice” was probably identified by the Paleo movement in the quest of finding a grain-free idea of rice. I’ve seen plain cauliflower rice used in the following ways:

as a plain side dish to meat and vegetable heavy Paleo meals
stir-fried just like one would do with day-old rice; the moisture content is higher so the result won’t exactly be the same
as a PERFECT accompaniment to gravy-laden dishes, like CURRIES and stews. It’s great with this shrimp dish and also this fish dish. Sometimes, in our family, I will mix it with plain real rice especially for the kids or if I really want a little real rice.
in a crust, like my Cauliflower-Crusted Pesto Tart, coming to the blog later this week
as a pizza crust
as a substitute for couscous or tabouleh like in this recipe.

How To Make:

The What, Why, and How-To of Cauliflower Rice

Cauliflower “rice” really looks like rice. The texture is certainly not the same: more watery, less starchy. and less satiating. But this kind of rice is nutritious and a good accompaniment to drier curries; in general Indian food is perfect for cauliflower rice because the flavors and spices can overpower--in a good way. After all, rice is just a vehicle for deliciousness.

Ingredients

1 head cauliflower

Instructions

Roughly chop the cauliflower into large florets and rinse and dry them thoroughly.
Grate them coarsely; this is best done in a food processor.
Place grated cauliflower into a microwave-safe large bowl.
Cover the bowl and microwave for 3 minutes.
Stir up with a fork (careful, there may be steam!).
The rice is ready to serve!

Notes