Low carb & paleo friendly Cilantro Lime Cauliflower Rice – make it in 20 minutes or less for a healthy & filling side dish! Gluten Free + Whole30 + Vegan
Where do you sit on the whole cauliflower rice thing? Are you pro or against?
I’ve come to learn that people on the internet have very strong opinions when it comes to vegetables imitating grains. Like….aggressively so. And I get it! I really do! Sometimes you just need a bowl of carb-y, delicious pasta or rice to get you through the day.
I’m not going to say that zoodles have no detectable differences from actual spaghetti and cauliflower rice is the exact same as rice. But really – you’re missing out on a whole lot of delicious tasting foods if you’re not on board!
Foods that are
✔️Delicious
✔️Filling
✔️Healthy
✔️Versatile
✔️& EASY
And if that isn’t enough to convince you that’s cool – more lasagna spirals for me!
How to Make: Cilantro Lime Cauliflower Rice
This recipe is pretty simple requiring just 10 ingredients.
You start off with a full head of cauliflower which you’ll need to make into a more rice-like texture. You can do this a couple different ways:
- Cut the head into florets and then pulse in a blender or food processor a couple of seconds at a time. If you do this in a blender you may need to work in batches.
- If you don’t own a blender/food processor you can use a box grater and grate the cauliflower using the large holes normally used to grate cheese.
From this point on it’s an easy process – just sauté your onion, garlic and jalapeño until soft. Stir in the cauliflower and then mix in some vegetable stock for added flavour along with the cilantro & lime. Im getting hungry again just thinking about it!
The whole thing takes 20 minutes at most to make and makes for a perfect side dish!
If you’re on the lookout for Whole30 meal ideas this would be a great side to my Coconut Lime Chicken or Taco Stuffed Peppers.
For a couple of meatless options you could serve this alongside my Sweet Potato Enchiladas/Enchilada Casserole.
Whatever way you have it – I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
Cilantro Lime Cauliflower Rice
Low carb & paleo friendly Cilantro Lime Cauliflower Rice - make it in 20 minutes or less for a healthy & filling side dish! Gluten Free + Whole30 + Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 cup white onion, chopped
- 1 large clove garlic (about 1 teaspoon)
- 1 green jalapeño deseeded & chopped (optional)
- 3 cups riced cauliflower (about 1 medium head)
- 2 tablespoons vegetable stock
- 1/2 teaspoon salt (or as needed)
- zest from 1/2 lime
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped and divided
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
Instructions
- Heat up the olive oil in a large skillet. When the oil is hot add the onions and sauté for 4-5 minutes on a medium heat or until they become soft and translucent.
- Add the garlic jalapeño and cook for a minute until the garlic becomes fragrant. Stir the whole time.
- Add the cauliflower to the skillet. Stir to mix everything together well.
- Stir in the vegetable stock, about half the cilantro salt and zest. Turn the heat up to high and cook for another minute. The high heat will draw out excess moisture in the cauliflower so it doesn't get too mushy. Lower the heat again and add the lime juice. Mix in to the rice well.
- Taste and season with more salt as needed. Stir in the remaining cilantro. Serve warm and enjoy!
Notes
Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-4 days.
Mary Eckler says
It was great. I like a lot of flavor so I added cumin and a little smoked paprika. It was delish.
Sarah Nevins says
Thanks so much Mary!
Melissa says
Do you steam the cauliflower before you rice if???
Sarah Nevins says
No need! If you steam and then rice your cauliflower will be quite soft and end up more like a grainy mash so it’s best to do it raw
Taya says
Question, do I thaw the frozen bag of cauliflower rice first? Can’t wait to try this.
Sarah Nevins says
Hi Taya! You can cook directly from frozen – it might add a few extra few minutes to the overall cook time but you shouldn’t have to change anything else. Hope you enjoy it!
La Torontoise says
Sarah!! Thank you a million!! This was such a big hit in my family!! Did it an hour ago… and it was eaten up in minutes!! Soo delicious, and soo healthy! I am on a limited cal plan and this was a great recipe adding up to the variety of dishes every day!
My best wishes!
Sarah says
That makes me so happy to hear! Thanks for coming back to let me know what you thought!
quinn says
Made this last night and it was SO good! We did not use jalapenos (son likes it mild) but otherwise made exactly as written. I’ve made a lot of cauliflower rice, which is typically met with a slight sigh by the family, but this was by far the best. Great flavor and texture. Used the Trader Joe’s riced cauliflower from the refrigerated section. Served it with some carne asada and a salad. Super easy and quick to make. My son said it was okay but my husband and I loved it and will make it again!
Sarah says
Hi Quinn! Thanks so much for coming back to let me know what you all thought – I’m so glad you liked it!
Johanne says
Thinking of making this but I dont have fresh cilantro on hand. What do you think about using dried cilantro unstead?
Sarah says
That will work! I’d recommend only adding 1 or 2 tablespoons of dried herbs though since they tend to be a lot more potent than fresh.
Kat M says
Made this tonight but with fresh cherry tomatoes and added onion and fresh garlic. My husband LOVED IT!!!
Sarah says
So glad you guys liked it – thanks for coming back to let me know what you thought!
Kaye says
Super yummy and Soo easy . I used to eat the cilantro lime rice at Chipotle many years ago, but this is BETTER! I’ve made other cauliflower rice dishes in the past and they haven’t turned out so well,and
but this has really boosted my confidence to try other cauliflower rice recipes. My dad has blood sugar problems and I’m totally going to make this for him !!! I wanted to make a small suggestion, but i find the cilantro loses a good amount of flavor when it’s cooked down, so I might suggest only adding half of it when putting in the chicken stock and the rest to stir in right before plating and it looks absolutely gorgeous too with all that vibrant leafy green peaking out of the rice. And now I’m hungry again . Anyways thanks for an awesome recipe !!!
Sarah says
Hi Kaye! I’m so glad you liked it! I hope your dad enjoys it as much as you did! That’s a good tip on the cilantro – we’re pretty obsessed with it here so my husband always ends up adding more no matter. I’ll make a note in the recipe suggesting that! Thanks so much for coming back to let me know what you thought 🙂
Anna Rangel says
I made this and brought it to the office so everyone could try. It was very good. However I think I would definitely add more spice… I used 2 jalapenos. This was very good and I’ll be making this often.
Sarah says
Can’t go wrong with more spice! So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks so much for coming back to leave me a review letting me know how it went!
Victoria says
I made this tonight but I added organic corn and black beans and some grill chicken breast and top it off with avocado slices. This was so delicious, I made enough to meal prep for a couple days! Thanks for sharing!
Sarah says
That sounds like such a nice, full meal! So glad you liked it – thanks for coming back to leave a review!