Friday 19 April 2013

Recipe: Nigerian Twist on Cauliflower Rice - Jollof 'Rice'

I'd heard about cauliflower rice but never tried making it until I saw it in the Fitter Food book (Buy it here: store.fitterlondon.co.uk/fitter-food-book-a-lifelong-recipe-for-success-price-includes-delivery-to-uk-only/). I liked that it was cooked in a pan instead of being steamed, before being grated or put in a food processor. This is because I felt the latter would be mushy, which I cannot stand.

I initially intended to post a rice, stew and 'dodo' recipe but I didn't have any meat or chicken in the fridge! I had to eat this with venison sausages, so the stew was out of the question. I improvised and made Jollof 'Rice' instead.


- 1/2 cauliflower
- 230g chopped tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon of coconut oil
- 1/4 onion
- 1 tablespoon of chilli flakes
- Seasoning - mixed herbs, mixed spices and salt
  1. Wash the cauliflower and remove the leaves and stalk. 
  2. Grate with a grater with large holes (this helps give it a better rice like texture).
  3. In a pan, heat the oil and add the sliced onions. Allow to brown for 2 minutes. 
  4. Add the chopped tomatoes, bring heat to medium and cook for 5 minutes. (If you're using blended fresh tomatoes & onions, cook for at least 10 minutes).
  5. Add seasoning and chilli. Stir. Cook for a further 5 minutes, until the water starts to dry out from the chopped tomatoes.
  6. Add the grated cauliflower and stir thoroughly with the chopped tomatoes.
  7. Stir fry on high heat for 5 minutes.
I served mine with pan fried plantain (in one tablespoon of coconut oil) and sausages. Just like our beloved 'Jollof Rice and Dodo'. Trust me, this was very tasty - seasoning plays a big part in taste so make sure you don't skip that step. 

Eating cauliflower rice instead of rice greatly reduces the carb content of this meal, which the plantain provides most of here. You could even use a whole cauliflower, which has ~16g of carbohydrates.

Try it and let me know what you think :)

PS If you're in Lagos (Nigeria), I've been told cauliflower is sold in Spar and Shoprite. Do you buy cauliflower anywhere else? Please share :)

13 comments:

Tomi Makanjuola said...

Mmm, looks good. I'm going to try this.

Chichi said...

I have been doing the Whole30 challenge and cauliflower rice has been one of my great discoveries. Very filling but low in calories. Haven't tried the 'rice and stew' version (did do a fried rice version which was good) but will definitely give it a go. Love your blog btw!

Adura O. said...

@Vegan Nigerian You MUST try this ;) You'll love it!

@Chichi I hope the Whole 30's going well? Yep I love cauliflower fried rice, I'm going to post that and rice & stew at later dates. Let me know what you think when you try it, please :)
Thank you so much!!!
Have a great weekend!

NaijaScorpio said...

Interesting. I like ds.

Adura O. said...

@Madame Sting :)

Unknown said...

Looks so yummy, I will try this recipe soon, cos am trying to eat less rice.

Adura O. said...

@Titi It was :) :)
Let me know how it turns out, please :)

TY said...

Hi Adura,
Do you know if Cauliflower is sold in nigeria(Lagos to be precise).
Thanks

Adura O. said...

@TY Yes, I've been told about Spar and Shoprite so far. I'll let you know about other places when I find out about them.

TY said...

Many Thanks

IntheMidstofher said...

Adura, what does it taste like? Like honestly? I am not a fan of cauliflower but a HUGE fan of rice....lol

Adura O. said...

@TY You're welcome!

@ITMOH Heyyy! Long time! Honestly, it tastes nothing like I initially expected (ie cauliflower-like), weird but true, thanks to it being mixed with other ingredients. The rice like texture also helps.

I have a friend who says she prefers it to rice - haha! Since the first time she had it, she's been having it often - as white rice, stir fried, etc.

Another friend (she's on the get trimmer challenge) has done jollof, mash, fried, you name it! And she enjoys it too.

Everyone who's tried it has had nothing but good things to say - it's worth a try, trust me :)

IntheMidstofher said...

LOL…ooooookay! * adding cauliflower to grocery list* Will let you know. Thanks!