Cauliflower Rice

Another one of my favorite vegetable rice varieties. Sometimes Cauliflower rice is simply made bland and even looks white. While that is also tasty, I like this method which has a lot of added flavor.

The rice itself is first cooked in tomato puree which adds juice and moisture to each particle of rice. And then its mixed with cauliflower  that is cooked separately. This way, the cauliflower still remains crisp while eating the rice. If the rice is cooked with cauliflower, it really softens the veggie and some pieces get all mushy and soggy - not a good way for me to eat. Don't like that.

You could use the same method to make many more varieties of rice - even pulav and biriyani would be full of flavor when cooked this way.

Let's get started with the recipe.

I cooked rice in my rice cooker. But, here's what you do before you put the rice inside the cooker.

Chop up one onion and use half of it for this step. Save the other half for the next step.

Heat up the rice cooker. Add 1 tsp of oil. Add a few bay leaves and then add half of the chopped onions. Saute for a min.

Then add the juice of a couple of pureed tomatoes. Again here, you can puree 3-4 tomatoes and use half here. We will use the other half of the tomato puree for the cauliflower.

Cook for a couple of mins with the onions. Now add some spices. I added

1/4 tsp of turmeric
1 tsp of red chilli powder
Salt to taste
Biriyani Masala - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp

Mix everything well.

Now, add the rice and mix well along with the tomatoes and onions.

Then, add 2 1/2 cups of water. I took 2 cups of basmati rice. I would normally use 3 cups of water to get pulav rice consistency. But since the puree contains some water, reduce the plain water to 2 1/2 cups.

Cover the rice cooker and cook.

While that is cooking and filling your kitchen with a nice aroma, wash and cut a big cauliflower.

Roughly chop into medium sized florets like this.

Add the rest of the tomato puree to the chopped cauliflower.

Then, add a little bit of all the spices you used for the rice to match the flavors.

Mix well and marinate for atleast 15 mins so that the cauliflower absorbs some of the flavor.

In a wide pan, add a couple of tsps of oil. Then, throw in some chopped ginger and chopped green chillies. Then, add the onions to it and saute for a min.

Now, add the marinated cauliflower in here.

Mix well and let this cook in high heat for about 5 mins - don't over cook it.We are going for crisp cauliflowers! Keep stirring every minute so that they don't burn at the bottom.

Take a look at the rice - how gorgeous does that look?

The florets are done - quick and crisp.

Now add the rice to the cauliflower and mix it all up gently without breaking the rice.

Add some chopped fresh cilantro and mix again.

And just to kick it up one more notch, add a little bit of roasted cashews to the rice for that tasty extra bite!

Serve hot with a side of cool cucumber raitha.

Enjoy. Peace Out!