Looking for a fun spicy side dish? To get more vegetables into your meals? Something grain-free? You’ll love the bold flavors, and easy of making Mexican Fiesta Cauliflower Rice. It is a tasty versatile side dish that pairs with anything and is fast to make.
For any of you that follow culinary trends, search recipes online or are into low-carb eating you’ve undoubtedly noticed the trend of ‘cauliflower rice’. It’s exactly what it sounds like; cauliflower processed into pieces the size of rice or couscous. It’s a fantastic option for those wanting to incorporate more vegetables into their meals (or their kid’s meals), to create a lower-carb recipe in place of traditional grains, or to try something new.
Spicy Cauliflower Rice Recipe
This recipe for spicy Mexican Fiesta Cauliflower Rice perks up the mild cauliflower with traditional Mexican flavors and instructs on how to make cauliflower rice from scratch.
Plain cauliflower rice can also be purchased at the grocery store and substituted to make the recipe prep even faster.
Last week I shared a mouthwatering Sicilian Cauliflower Salad recipe and had purchased some extra cauliflower when buying the ingredients. It seems a perfect time to break out a cauliflower rice recipe to share.
One of my favorite flavor profiles (and my family’s too) is Mexican. I love the aromatic scent of cumin and it’s the one spice I constantly run out of so am using it often. Colorful sweet peppers, red onion, corn, jalapeno come together to create a feisty side dish.
An obvious way to use the Mexican Fiesta Cauliflower Rice is as a side dish but it is also great in a bowl recipe layered with meat or burrito fillings and toppings. I served this with some grilled chicken shish kabob and I don’t think anyone realized it wasn’t rice.
A classic question about cauliflower rice is ‘does it taste the same as rice?’ No it doesn’t, it only looks like it. However, if you are a rice-lover, do give this recipe a try. It’s a great alternative to rice. And if you aren’t a cauliflower lover, never fear. The spicy, strong spices really mask any distinct cauliflower flavor!
How to make Cauliflower Rice – Step-by-Step
STEP 1. Prepare the Cauliflower.
Cut the head of cauliflower into quarters. Cut off the stalk and cut into florets.
Process through a food processor until the cauliflower is the size of cous-cous.
TIME SAVING TIP: Buying bagged cauliflower florets saves the prep time described above.
Even faster? Use fresh or frozen and thawed plain cauliflower rice from the store for this step.
STEP 2. Make the Mexican Cauliflower Rice.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oil to heat.
Sauté the onion until translucent.
Add the garlic and cook 2 more minutes.
Add the remaining vegetables (sweet pepper, corn, jalapeno pepper, tomato) and spices (cumin, cayenne pepper, salt).
Cook stirring occasionally until the cauliflower rice it cooked through (aproximately 5 minutes).
Serve immediately.
More Recipes You’ll Love!
- Cauliflower Cheese Soup
- Buffalo Cauliflower
- Spiced Indian Cauliflower and Potatoes {Aloo Gobi}
- Roasted Cauliflower
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Recipe
Mexican Fiesta Cauliflower Rice
Ingredients
- 1 large head Cauliflower
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1/2 medium Red Onion peeled and chopped
- 1 large Garlic Clove
- 1/2 medium Sweet Pepper (any color) chopped
- 1 small Jalapeno Pepper stem removed, seeds scrapped out (and discarded), diced
- 1 cup Corn Kernels fresh or frozen and thawed
- 1 cup fresh chopped Tomato
- 1 teaspoon ground Cumin
- 1/8 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- 1/2-1 teaspoon Kosher Salt to taste
Instructions
- Cut the cauliflower head into quarters. Cut off the bottom stalk, cut out any stalk inside the cauliflower head and break or cut into florets. Process 2-3 batches through a food processor processing the cauliflower into rice or couscous size pieces. TIP: doing this in batches ensures the cauliflower will end up uniform in size.
- Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oil. When hot add the onion and sauté until translucent (about 5 minutes). Add the garlic and sauté 2 minutes more or until garlic is fragrant.
- Add the remaining vegetables and spices. Sauté to coat all the vegetables and allow to cook, covered stirring occasionally, until the cauliflower is cooked (about 5 minutes). Add salt to taste. Serve immediately.
Kelly Hutchinson says
This sounds AWE-some! I love the healthy side while still having lots of flavor. I cannot wait to give this a try!
Lisa Bristol says
We love spicy food. This Mexican Fiesta Cauliflower Rice recipe looks so good. I am excited to give it a try. I have been wanting to try cauliflower rice.
Claudia Krusch says
Mexican Fiesta Cauliflower Rice looks so delicious and easy to make. I will have to get the ingredients I need to make some this weekend. I am always looking for healthy recipes to try.
Sadie Roach says
This recipe looks really easy to make and I really like that it uses cauliflower rice! It definitely seems like it would be very flavorful and delicious!
Liz Mays says
I’m liking those spices and the heat from the jalapeno sounds really good. Making cauliflower rice would be awesome.
Vera Sweeney says
Everyone in my house is going to love this! We actually love cauliflower rice more than actual rice, and we’re always ready for the southwester flavor! Om nom nom.
Roger D Willis says
This is right up my alley as a low carb option! I’ll have to try this! Thank you for sharing this unique recipe!
Meagan says
This sounds really delicious. I am amazed at all the things people have learned to make from cauliflower.
Joyce Brewer says
Thanks for the reminder to break out the food processor I bought to make cauliflower rice. I haven’t used it yet, but I’ve been meaning to.
Stacie @ Divine Lifestyle says
I’m a big fan of using cauliflower to make “rice”. I’ve only ever made it plain, but I think I’m going to give this recipe a try the next time I make it. It looks so flavorful!