Your Food Processor Is Key For Making Cauliflower Rice

Riced cauliflower provides you with an easy alternative to hearty comfort dishes, and further proves the extreme versatility of this cousin to broccoli. This grain-free substitute not only acts as a low-carb replacement, but cauliflower is also filled with nutritional benefits ranging from vitamin C to potassium. While many vegetables can be riced, cauliflower is a great stand-in because it doesn't have much of a natural flavor, making it versatile enough to fully take on the sauces and seasonings it's being cooked with. Cauliflower rice is easy to pick up in the freezer section of your local grocery store, but when it comes to taste and cost-effectiveness, you really can't beat the fresh, homemade version. Plus, it's easier than you might think to turn bushy cauliflower heads into a delicious, rice-like entree, and your food processor is the perfect tool for getting the job done.

Food processors are most efficient because of their sharp spinning blades that quickly break down ingredients. You can always opt for alternatives, such as box graters, but they take a lot of manual work when it comes to ricing cauliflower, and they force your fingers too close to the blades for comfort. Using the food processor is not only faster and safer, but it also ensures that your cauliflower rice is uniformly chopped, which will help it to cook evenly.

To make riced cauliflower using your food processor, first, remove all the leaves from the vegetable and rinse the cauliflower under cool water. Then, place the entire head onto your cutting board with the stem facing up, and use a paring knife to carefully cut around its core. Don't throw it away, though! You can get plenty of use out of leftover cauliflower cores. At this point, the florets will naturally start to break off, but you should still chop them into bite-sized pieces for easier processing. Add the florets to the bowl of your food processor, and pulse them until they're broken down into small, pearl-like pieces. Alternatively, if you have a grater attachment, you can connect it to your food processor's blade and feed the cauliflower pieces through the opening in the lid to help you achieve shredded cauliflower rice with more of a grain-like texture.

Once your cauliflower is riced, it's time to cook it, though you can always choose to serve a super simple cauliflower rice that's raw instead. You have several options from making cauliflower fried rice to turning it into cauliflower rice risotto, but most recipes start with a quick saute. Cauliflower benefits from a shorter cooking time and releases more water the longer it cooks, turning it mushy. If this does happen, don't worry, dinner's not ruined. You can easily serve up mashed cauliflower instead. Whichever route you choose, it's guaranteed to be delicious.