This easy recipe for Vegan Mediterranean Cauliflower rice is bursting with fresh flavor. You’re going to love this healthy low carb side dish with riced cauliflower, olives, pine nuts and fresh herbs. It’s a satisfying and delicious dish, and ready in under 30-minutes…a great way to get a healthy meal on the table.
This post has been updated from the original posted November 27, 2017.
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No more bland and boring cauliflower rice! This mediterranean cauliflower rice recipe is easy to make and has so much flavor. If you’re looking for healthy options for a quick and easy light meal or the perfect side dish for dinner, this is a great option.
Cauliflower is a great addition to a healthy diet. It’s versatile, easy to use and a fabulous ingredient for those on a gluten free or low-carb diet.
Raw cauliflower can be turned into a delicious cauliflower salad, you can roast a cauliflower head whole, slice it into cauliflower steaks for a vegan main dish, pulse it into small rice-sized pieces and substitute it for any recipe that calls for white rice or brown rice.
Looking for more Healthy Passover Recipes? Discover new and exciting ways to enjoy Kosher for Passover Recipes while maintaining a balanced diet with Vegetarian and Vegan Recipes for Passover.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Cauliflower: You can make your own cauliflower rice by turning a head of cauliflower into tiny pieces with a food processor. Or, you can buy a bag of cauliflower rice in the freezer section or fresh produce area of your local grocery store. Cauliflower is a cruciferous vegetable that is low in calories and carbs, high in Vitamin C, fiber, potassium and magnesium.
- Onion: Use yellow, white or red onion. Substitute with leeks, green onions or shallots.
- Garlic: Fresh garlic adds so much flavor. Use garlic powder, not garlic salt if you need to sub. Mince the garlic, or use a microplane rather than a garlic press to get the most out of each clove of garlic.
- Olives: an excellent source of iron, fiber calcium and Vitamin A. They are also rich in antioxidants and healthy unsaturated fats. Use a combination of Kalamata and green olives for a more diverse nutritional profile.
- Pine nuts: Substitute with almonds, pistachios or walnuts. They’re all nutrient-dense and offer plant-based protein, fatty acids, fiber, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals.
- Lemon: use both the lemon zest and the fresh lemon juice for the best flavor.
- Fresh Parsley: fresh herbs add to the robust flavor in this dish. Substitute with fresh dill, cilantro, oregano, basil, mint or a combination. Fresh herbs have some powerful health benefits comparable to those of leafy greens.
- Red pepper flakes: They add just a bit of heat to this delicious recipe…but if you prefer flavor without the spice, substitute with freshly ground black pepper.
How to make it
This recipe starts with already riced cauliflower. For a step-by-step tutorial, with photos, on how to make your own cauli-rice, from fresh cauliflower, check out my simple cauliflower rice post, there’s a section on how to make cauliflower rice.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute the diced onion and crushed red pepper in either water, veggie broth or extra virgin olive oil.
Continue to cook over medium-high heat until onions are soft and beginning to brown.
Add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds, until fragrant. Then add the riced cauliflower, pine nuts and olives.
Cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, until fragrant and all the veggies are soft. Cook time will vary depending on the size of your skillet and how high your heat is.
Turn off the heat. Zest the lemon right over the pan and then squeeze out all the juice. Sprinkle on the fresh parsley.
Stir until fresh herbs are wilted, and the mediterranean flavors are well mixed together.
How to store and reheat
- Serve: Mediterranean cauliflower rice tastes best warm or at room temperature. Serve as an easy lunch, light meal or delicious vegan side dish.
- Store: in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
- Reheat on the stove: over medium heat in a heavy skillet, while mixing, until heated through. Leave untouched if you prefer a crispy bottom to form.
- Reheat in the oven: Spread in a single layer on a sheet pan and bake in preheated 375 oven for 15 minutes. OR, place in a casserole dish and bake in preheated 375oven for 25 minutes.
Debra’s Pro Tips
- Add in some quartered artichoke hearts for even more mediterranean flavor.
- Save time: buy already riced cauliflower in the produce section of your local grocery store or frozen cauliflower rice in the freezer section.
- Save money: Make your own cauliflower rice from a head of cauliflower. Or, Trader joe has decent prices on frozen bagged cauliflower rice.
- For crispy cauliflower rice, use a cast iron skillet and allow to sit, undisturbed for a few minutes at the end. It will crisp up.
- For variety, use a combination of riced cauliflower, riced broccoli or parsnips.
- No pine nuts? Use toasted almonds or pistachios.
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📖 Recipe
Mediterranean Cauliflower Rice
Ingredients
- 1 yellow onion diced
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 4 cups riced cauliflower
- ½ cup kalamata olives pitted and diced
- ½ cup pine nuts
- 1 lemon zested and juiced
- ½ cup parsley roughly chopped
Instructions
- Heat heavy skillet over medium–high heat.
- Saute onion (use your normal saute liquid: water, broth or olive oil) with crushed red pepper, over medium heat, until softened and starting to brown.
- Add the garlic and stir continuously, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Stir in cauliflower rice, olives and pine nuts. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.
- Turn off heat. Add chopped parsley. Zest and juice lemon over pan. Stir until parsley is just wilted and everything is well incorporated.
Notes
Nutrition
Note
The nutrition calculations were done using online tools. To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in any given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients you used. You are ultimately responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information is accurate, complete and useful.
Allie Lavigueur
This sounds absolutely mouth watering! What a zesty combination of flavors. Can’t wait to try this.
Debra Klein
Zesty….exactly! I love the salty of the olives and the crunchy of the pine nuts….it’s a great combo!
Susan
I made this delicious Mediterranean cauliflower recipe tonight. I can’t wait to eat the left overs!
I served it with roasted butternut squash sprinkled with cinnamon and chicken cutlets grilled with zaatar.
Debra Klein
Sounds like a perfect meal! Glad you enjoyed it!
Renee Dempsey
This recipe is delicious. I made it three weeks in a row. So much flavor.
Debra Klein
I agree….I make it often as well and it has so much nutrition there’s no reason not to! All those omega 3s and essential fatty acids!
nancy
This Mediterranean Cauliflower rice is so flavourful ! We paired with with our protein and it was the best meal this week so far!
Debra Klein
Delicious success!
Andrea
This cauliflower rice turned out amazing! Love how flavorful it is too!
Debra Klein
Beautiful!
Elizabeth
So good! Love all the flavor. Thanks for the recipe!
Debra Klein
You’re welcome Elizabeth.