Oven Roasted Cauliflower Rice
I’m back to low-carb eating because I gained a little weight :O This oven-roasted cauliflower “rice” is a popular faux rice menu item for weight-watchers. To me, the texture of this cauliflower rice actually resembles couscous more than rice, and it certainly can’t fool me that it is a carb. But having said that, I am happy to eat it as a carb substitute occasionally since it is delicious, nutritious & quite filling.
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Even though this is low-carb, I made it more sinful by mixing in some butter and parmesan cheese powder into the “rice”. If you want “plain rice” you can always skip all of that.
While there are other ways to cook this (such as stir-fry or microwave), baking in the oven is my favourite method, because together in the same oven I’ll be roasting something else such as salmon papillote or baked chicken stew to go with it. It’s really too sad to eat just cauliflower rice on its own in my greedy opinion.
More Low-Carb Recipes:
- Guacamole (Avocado Dip) Recipe
- Bacon Wrapped Enoki Mushroom Recipe
- Tonjiru (Japanese Pork and Vegetable Miso Soup) Recipe
As I’ve always believed, the idea of a diet to me is never to starve oneself, always eat well until satiated, but taking more care to reduce one’s carbs and sugars intake. This faux rice is really helpful for that.
Step-by-Step Pictures
This cauliflower rice is a fast and easy recipe. Trim cauliflower into florets removing most of the thick core.
Pulse them in a food processor until they resemble couscous or coarse breadcrumbs texture.
Transfer to a baking dish. Add extra-virgin olive oil, seasonings and coin niblets. Combine the contents evenly with a spatula.
I like to season the cauliflower with garlic powder, onion powder and garlic salt*. They are a time saver and I use them for almost every bit of cooking. As substitution, you can use fresh minced garlic, finely chopped onion, regular sea salt or omit them entirely.
* Disclosure: my iHerb.com affliate links ahead: garlic powder* , onion powder* & garlic salt from Simply Organic. Use my affliate code WIF026 to get up to $10 off first order.
Bake the cauliflower in the oven for 10 minutes. Optional: add butter and cheese while the baked cauliflower is still hot.
Stir in chopped spring onions (or parsley) for extra colour and flavour.
Tip: For drier “rice”, spread the seasoned cauliflower a thin layer in a cookie tray, or two smaller trays instead. Roast for 5 minutes longer than the time indicated in the recipe.
Oven-Roasted Cauliflower "Rice" Recipe
For plain “rice”, skip the garlic powder, onion powder, butter & cheese powder. You can also omit the corn or replace it with other seasonal vegetables such as bell peppers and peas.
For drier rice, spread the seasoned cauliflower a thin layer in a cookie tray or 2 smaller trays. Roast for 5 minutes more than the time indicated in this recipe, or until the top is golden.
Ingredients:
- 200 grams cauliflower florets
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 (50 grams) cup corn kernels/niblets drained from the can
- 1 tsp garlic powder or 3 cloves minced garlic; optional
- 1 tsp onion powder or 1 tbsp finely chopped onion; optional
- 20 grams unsalted butter optional
- 2 tbsp parmesan cheese powder optional
- 2 tbsp chopped spring onions (or chopped italian parsley)
- freshly cracked pepper to taste
Directions:
- Pulse cauliflower florets in a blender until they resemble coarse breadcrumbs or couscous.
- Add corn, garlic powder, onion powder and salt to cauliflower in a oven-save casserole. Mix well.
- Bake in preheated oven at 200°C (392°F) for 10 minutes, or until the cauliflower at the edges of casserole start to brown.
- While the cauliflower is still hot, stir in butter & cheese powder until melted. Then add spring onions. Season with freshly cracked black pepper.