My Vegan Mushroom Cauliflower Rice "Risotto" is a warm and aromatic one-skillet side dish that is ready in less than 20 minutes using only 9 clean ingredients and is dairy-free.
Table of Contents
Here's Why This Recipe Works
My top 3 favorite reasons:
- One-Skillet Meal!
- 100% Gluten-Free and Vegan!
- Made with Clean, Real Food Ingredients!
All you need to make it is a skillet and ingredients you probably already have on hand.
In this quick and easy recipe, I used diced baby bella mushrooms and diced shallots sauteed in olive oil and seasoned them with fresh garlic, ground sage, black pepper and Himalayan pink salt.
To make this a lectin-free dish (and low carb!) I substituted traditional risotto rice with cauliflower rice. I used frozen organic cauliflower rice (which is less than $2.00 a bag that contains 4 cups) but you could also use fresh cauliflower. Just add it to a food processor and process it until it turns into a rice consistency.
There is one extra "advanced preparation" step you will need to do before making this. Since this is a recipe that doesn't use butter or cheese or even cashews (for a vegan version), I used the "fat" part in the can of coconut milk. But you will need to put it in the refrigerator overnight (or longer) for it to separate from the coconut water.
I always keep at least 2 cans in the back of my refrigerator for recipes like this, and especially when making Homemade Whipped Coconut Cream Topping. You will be ready at a moments notice!
"Feel good about what you eat..."
- Karielyn Tillman
Ingredients
Here are the clean, real food ingredients I used to make this recipe. Try to buy organic if possible.
- Baby Bella Mushrooms
- Cauliflower Rice
- Shallots
- Garlic
- Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
- Full-Fat Coconut Milk
- Ground Sage
- Ground Black Pepper
- Himalayan Pink Salt
That's it! My Vegan Mushroom Cauliflower "Risotto" is super easy to make!
5 Fast Facts About Cauliflower*: 1 cup contains 9.1% DV of potassium; 1 cup contains 85.9% of vitamin C; 1 cup contains 8.5% DV of fiber; excellent antioxidant; contains anti-inflammatory benefits
5 Fast Facts About Mushrooms*: excellent source of potassium; rich source of riboflavin, niacin and selenium; supports a healthy immune system; provides anti-inflammatory benefits; natural source of vitamin D
5 Fast Facts About Extra-Virgin Olive Oil*: lowers blood cholesterol levels; rich in antioxidants; improves bone mineralization and calcification; excellent protection from heart attack and stroke; contains anti-inflammatory benefits
5 Fast Facts About Coconut (Milk)*: 2 tablespoons contain 4.6 g RDA of dietary fiber; healthy source of medium-chain fatty acids, can help to decrease cholesterol; high in lauric acid; excellent source of manganese at 60% RDA and iron at 11% RDA
5 Fast Facts About Onions*: rich source of sulfur compounds; excellent for cardiovascular health; inhibits bone loss in women; reduced blood pressure; lowers blood cholesterol levels
5 Fast Facts About Garlic*: regulates blood sugar levels; lowers high blood pressure; contains anti-bacterial and analgesic properties; anti-viral; helps to lower cholesterol levels
5 Fast Facts About Himalayan Pink Salt*: contains 84 minerals; unrefined, unprocessed, raw; promotes stable pH balance in cells; controls water levels in the body; aids digestion and facilitates better nutrient absorption
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
Advanced Prep Needed
The coconut milk will need to be refrigerated overnight before adding it to the recipe. Once it's been refrigerated, ONLY use the coconut fat (hardened in the refrigerator) and not the coconut water.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! You can make this with regular white rice, but you would need to substitute the cauliflower rice with (4) cups of COOKED white rice.
Just add the cooked rice to your skillet after you've completed Step 1 and Step 2 in the recipe directions.
Yes! You can use a different type of mushroom other than Baby Bella (aka Portobello) and here are some suggestions of the varieties that would work well:
Shiitake
Cremini
Morel
Porcini
King Oyster
You can use one or even a combination of these, just make sure the total amount of diced mushrooms totals 1.5 cups.
Yes! My recipe is 100% vegan, however, traditional mushroom risotto is not as it is made with chicken stock, butter, and Parmesan cheese.
In my opinion, yes!
Traditional S.A.D. (Standard American Diet) Risotto recipes contain typical ingredients like these:
S.A.D. (Standard American Diet) Homemade Risotto Ingredients:
Typical Ingredients: butter, chicken stock, parmesan cheese
And the ingredients in a store-bought boxed version are worse:
S.A.D. (Standard American Diet) Nutrisystem Mushroom Risotto:
Ingredients: Water, Vegetarian Crumble (Water Soy Protein Concentrate, Canola Oil, Spices, Salt, Autolyzed Yeast Extract, Sugar, Dehydrated Garlic, Caramel Color, Onion Powder, Natural Flavor, Red Bell Pepper, Thiamine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin, Niacinamide, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamix B6), Cyanocobalamin (Vitamin B12), Calcium Pantothenate, Ferric Orthophosphate, Zinc Oxide), Arborio Rice, Mushrooms, Bell Peppers, Wild Rice, Modified Corn Starch, Olive Oil, Parmesan Cheese (Pasteurized Milk, Cheese Culture, Salt, Enzymes), Onions, Torula Yeast, Shiitake Mushrooms, Sea Salt, Dehydrated Garlic, Mushroom Powder, Spice.
My healthier, clean eating recipe is organic, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, lectin-free, nut-free and paleo-friendly.
Either will work fine! If you use frozen cauliflower rice, you will need to cook it long enough for it to heat all the way through and soften.
Making homemade cauliflower rice is super easy!
Just cut the cauliflower head into bite-sized floret pieces and add them to a food processor.
Pulse or process it only long enough for the floret pieces to breakdown into rice size pieces, taking care to not over-process.
Karielyn's Expert Tips and Ingredient Substitutions
Here are some of my expert tips to make this recipe perfectly:
Cauliflower Rice: One of the great things about using cauliflower rice in this faux "risotto" recipe is that you don't have all the fuss and drama as you would making an authentic risotto with white rice. And it's low carb too! However, you could still make this recipe without drama by substituting the cauliflower rice with COOKED white rice after completing Step 1 and Step 2 in the directions.
Shallots: This could be substituted with a red onion or white onion. I've used both shallots and red onions and both worked well. I would not recommend a sweet onion variety since this is a savory dish.
Garlic: Freshly crushed garlic will give you the best flavor, but if you don't have any on hand, you could use organic ground garlic.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil: This can be substituted with pure avocado oil or even vegetable broth if you'd like to keep the recipe oil-free.
Coconut Milk: You will need to use coconut milk in a can (13.5-ounces) and not from a box. The fat in the canned coconut milk is the substitute for butter found in traditional recipes to give it a creamy texture.
Ground Sage: I added this to give it a rustic flavor but if you don't have any, you could leave it out.
Himalayan Pink Salt: This is my salt of preference, however, feel free to substitute it with sea salt.
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Gluten-Free Vegan Mushroom Cauliflower Rice "Risotto"
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups organic baby bella mushrooms (diced)
- ½ cup organic shallots (finely diced)
- 2 cloves organic garlic (freshly crushed)
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
- 1 teaspoon organic ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon organic ground sage
For the add-ins:
- 1 can organic full-fat coconut milk (13.5-ounce can)
- 4 cups organic cauliflower rice
Instructions
Advanced Preparation:
- Add a can of full-fat coconut milk to the back of your refrigerator overnight.
Prepare the veggies:
- Dice the shallots and mushrooms into small pieces.
Prepare the cauliflower rice:
- Add all ingredients EXCEPT the cauliflower rice and coconut milk to a non-toxic skillet and sauté on medium-high heat until the onions and mushrooms are soft.
- Remove the can of coconut milk from the refrigerator and after opening the can, remove ONLY the top hardened part (coconut fat). Do not use the liquid (coconut water) part, save this to make a smoothie with. The more liquid that is added to the skillet, the less thick the "risotto" will be.
- Add the hardened coconut "fat" and cauliflower rice to the skillet and stir together until everything is well combined.
- Simmer on medium heat until the cauliflower is soft enough to resemble a rice texture and consistency.
- Adjust seasonings to your preference.
- Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition Information
Copyright Notice
The notes, instructions, and photographs for this recipe are copyrighted material and are protected under the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA). They cannot be used legally without my written permission.
More Healthy Vegan Cauliflower Recipes
- Vegan Cauliflower "Potato" Salad
- Creamy Cauliflower Alfredo Sauce
- Roasted Cauliflower with Chipotle and Lime
- or my Real Food Vegan™ 14-Day Meal Plan Program with 42 plant-based vegan + gluten-free recipes made with clean, real food ingredients just like this one that you will love!
Lara says
I tried it and oh my gosh its so good. The same warm fuzzy feeling of mashed potatoes. I used a head of cauliflower and my own spices (garlic powder, garlic salt, Season All) and dry chives on top, soooo good.
Karielyn says
Hi there Lara! I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed the recipe and love the additions you made to it!
Thank you for trying out the recipe and for taking the time to let me know you liked it...I really appreciate it 🙂