Does cauliflower rice taste like cauliflower.....

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  • pomegranatecloud
    pomegranatecloud Posts: 812 Member
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    Yes, but it'll take on the flavor of whatever sauce or seasoning you use.
  • CeejayGee
    CeejayGee Posts: 299 Member
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    I don't think it tastes too much like cauliflowers - depends on the seasoning you use! Soaks it up.

    Last night I made cilantro-lime cauliflower "rice" - i used tons of lime, cilantro, and a pinch of salt. That served as the bottom of my burrito bowl that was topped with beans & taco-seasoned boca crumbles, tomatoes, lettuce, etc...just like a Chipotle burrito bowl, but cauliflower rice! It was delicious and filling and low-cal!

    I also love the cauliflower stir-fried rice. So good.
  • CeejayGee
    CeejayGee Posts: 299 Member
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    (I use the pre-packaged caufiflower crumbles by Jolly Green Giant - no prep!
  • NikkiMichelleS
    NikkiMichelleS Posts: 897 Member
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    I like to sauté mine after it's riced in some butter with whatever herbs/spices I have on hand. The cauliflower flavor is so mild that it is easily masked by other stronger flavors.

    I agree, and make mine this way. Heat a bit of olive oil & butter in a pan with minced garlic, sauté the cauliflower. Add in various spices or herbs, or Parmesan cheese... Yummmm.
    Tastes delicious.
    Not like true "rice", but pretty good. We are not big veggie eaters but cauliflower rice has become an easy go-to for us.
    We've traded it in more often alongside curries and salmon rather than rice.

  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    I mix it half and half with rice, and don't notice the flavor at all. For the person who asked why rice it, I don't like the texture of large steamed florets.

    Interesting. I really do, although I sautee or roast more often (and occasionally like it raw, especially with baba ghanoush).

    This thread is making me wonder if maybe the main advantage of ricing is for people who don't really like cauliflower?
  • ASKyle
    ASKyle Posts: 1,475 Member
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    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    I mix it half and half with rice, and don't notice the flavor at all. For the person who asked why rice it, I don't like the texture of large steamed florets.

    Interesting. I really do, although I sautee or roast more often (and occasionally like it raw, especially with baba ghanoush).

    This thread is making me wonder if maybe the main advantage of ricing is for people who don't really like cauliflower?

    Could be, but my bet is people are ricing it to save some calories on actual rice.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    ASKyle wrote: »
    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    I mix it half and half with rice, and don't notice the flavor at all. For the person who asked why rice it, I don't like the texture of large steamed florets.

    Interesting. I really do, although I sautee or roast more often (and occasionally like it raw, especially with baba ghanoush).

    This thread is making me wonder if maybe the main advantage of ricing is for people who don't really like cauliflower?

    Could be, but my bet is people are ricing it to save some calories on actual rice.

    But again, you don't need to actually rice it to do that. I almost never eat rice and eat lots of cauliflower. When I decided I didn't like rice enough to waste calories on it very often, I didn't replace it with mock rice -- it never crossed my mind to do that.

    I admit realizing that people were using the food processor instead of messing around with a ricer made it make a little more sense to me (I've riced potatoes and found it a pain), but in the "what keeps you from cooking more" thread cleaning up seems to be a popular answer, and one reason I'd use cauliflower in the kinds of recipes that are being discussed without ricing it (even in the food processor) is that I have fewer things to have to clean up. (Similarly, I would not bother making zucchini noodles -- I might eat the same foods with zucchini sliced.)

    But I think I have a thing about "mock" foods also that others don't have, that for some reason that just is different from how my mind works mimicking the look of foods that are being replaced is appealing to some people. And that's cool--I'm not being critical. Just lazy, like I said.
  • Numberwang22
    Numberwang22 Posts: 213 Member
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    I cauliflower riced for dinner tonight for the first time! I used it to cut my basmati - sceptical but worked really well. Farting a lot but worth it for the calories!! Had enough to fit in nightcap tonight, sweet
  • mkakids
    mkakids Posts: 1,913 Member
    edited April 2016
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    Mix it 50/50 with regular white rice. I can't taste it and it makes a larger portion less caloric.

    Also, this freezes well so I always make a big batch so I have some to freeze.
  • Spliner1969
    Spliner1969 Posts: 3,233 Member
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    My favourite way to cook cauliflower is cut into florets, coat with a little olive oil (about 20mls does a whole head) ad a couple of tsp of turmeric powder and roast in the oven for about 30 mins.

    ^^This^^^

    Love roasted cauliflower with olive oil salt and pepper.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    ASKyle wrote: »
    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    I mix it half and half with rice, and don't notice the flavor at all. For the person who asked why rice it, I don't like the texture of large steamed florets.

    Interesting. I really do, although I sautee or roast more often (and occasionally like it raw, especially with baba ghanoush).

    This thread is making me wonder if maybe the main advantage of ricing is for people who don't really like cauliflower?

    Could be, but my bet is people are ricing it to save some calories on actual rice.

    But again, you don't need to actually rice it to do that. I almost never eat rice and eat lots of cauliflower. When I decided I didn't like rice enough to waste calories on it very often, I didn't replace it with mock rice -- it never crossed my mind to do that.

    I admit realizing that people were using the food processor instead of messing around with a ricer made it make a little more sense to me (I've riced potatoes and found it a pain), but in the "what keeps you from cooking more" thread cleaning up seems to be a popular answer, and one reason I'd use cauliflower in the kinds of recipes that are being discussed without ricing it (even in the food processor) is that I have fewer things to have to clean up. (Similarly, I would not bother making zucchini noodles -- I might eat the same foods with zucchini sliced.)

    But I think I have a thing about "mock" foods also that others don't have, that for some reason that just is different from how my mind works mimicking the look of foods that are being replaced is appealing to some people. And that's cool--I'm not being critical. Just lazy, like I said.

    Frankly, I usually buy it pre-riced and frozen, and it's less work for me than cutting up florets like you're talking about (and as I've mentioned, I like the texture better than steamed florets. I also can't digest it raw, and sometimes roasted doesn't work in the recipe). I get that you don't like someone using the term "rice" to describe cauliflower, but that seems a bit hypertechnical, doesn't it?

    I actually haven't objected to using the term rice to describe cauliflower, so you seem to be reading something into my questions that is not there. Ricing is the appropriate term, as it refers to the way it's cut, so cauliflower rice seems correct to me. What I was asking about it why bother ricing it when it tastes the same -- the desire to mimic the look of rice (or in the case of zucchini noodles, pasta, or in the case of mashed cauliflower, potatoes) doesn't appeal to me, although I think I was quite clear that I don't see anything wrong in it appealing to others. I was just curious why.

    I have never seen it for sale pre-riced, although I noticed that you (but not the majority of posters) said you bought it that way. Obviously, that would make it not more work, so is one answer to why bother with the extra work/clean up (you aren't). And as I said above, that was my main curiosity about this. It still wouldn't appeal to me personally, probably, although I might pick it up to try on a whim, but buying that makes sense if it does appeal to you or has a preferable texture to you.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    Add whatever seasonings you like and you'll hardly notice the cauli.
  • NAbramovich
    NAbramovich Posts: 131 Member
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    I think it depends on how you prepare the cauli rice. The first time I ate it, I got the idea from a weird vegan site where you were supposed to put kung pao veggies on top of raw riced cauliflower. That was vile. But now when I make it, I throw in all kinds of seasonings. Sometimes I make a curried cauli rice with pineapple; other times I make lime cilantro cauli rice. This morning I made an amazing "fried rice" version with mushrooms, ginger, onion, jalapeno, soy, vinegar, fish sauce and cilantro. I've had any number of friends think cauli rice was real rice when I served it to them.
  • kuranda10
    kuranda10 Posts: 593 Member
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    I rice frozen cauliflower and then mix it with a package of the konjac "rice". It really covers the cauliflower taste and brings the texture closer to real rice.
    My husband didn't even realize that he had picked up my bowl once the curry was on it.
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
    edited April 2016
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    It tastes like cauliflower because it is cauliflower. However, cauliflower is very mild so if you are cooking it with other things, adding soy sauce, etc it isn't going to be very noticeable flavor.
    Zucchini also has a very mild flavor.
  • NatalieThomas90
    NatalieThomas90 Posts: 61 Member
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    thanks for the inspiring posts. I cant wait to chuck it in a pan and try some of your ideas!
    and ideal way to get some vegetables into my otherwise vegetable-less diet :) x
  • Fit4LifeAR
    Fit4LifeAR Posts: 233 Member
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    I like to sauté mine after it's riced in some butter with whatever herbs/spices I have on hand. The cauliflower flavor is so mild that it is easily masked by other stronger flavors.

    This is exactly what we do, and we love it.
  • MostlyWater
    MostlyWater Posts: 4,294 Member
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    Yes but it's not bad .....
  • tamaraworrall
    tamaraworrall Posts: 166 Member
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    If I have cauliflower rice it is always when I make a curry because plain it's not that nice but with the sauce and chicken it's yummy