How to Make and Freeze Cauliflower Rice (Whole30, paleo, keto, & AIP!)

You’ll save money and always have a healthy Whole30, paleo, keto, or AIP side dish when you learn how to make and freeze cauliflower rice!

Download our FREE 7-Day Real Food Instant Meal Plan for more easy dinner recipes + a printable shopping list!

Did you know you can save tons of money and get ahead of your meal prep by making your own cauliflower “rice” and then freezing it?

It’s true!

A 12-ounce bag of frozen organic cauliflower rice from Trader Joe’s is $2.99. I bought my organic whole cauliflower at Aldi for $2.99 and made TWO 12-ounce bags — HALF THE PRICE!

Plus, it only took me about 5 minutes of hands-on time. 🙂

In this post (and video below!), I’m going to teach you how easy it is to make and freeze cauliflower rice.

This is a meal prep hack ANYONE can do — no special equipment needed. (But, I do have one tool that I absolutely love that makes this process so quick — I’ll share it below!)

Cauliflower Rice = an Easy Meal Prep!

When you have some ready-to-go cauliflower rice in your freezer, you’re one step ahead on your next meal.

All you have to do is add it to a skillet with some cooking fat, add seasonings, and saute!

Add some Spanish rice seasonings, like cumin and chili powder, to make a healthy side dish for any Mexican dish.

It’s neutral flavor (always add a bit of salt) makes it pair well with a variety of cuisines: Indian, Mexican, Asian, and more!

Even if you’re totally out of fresh veggies or salad fixings, having frozen cauli-rice means you can whip up a quick, low-carb stir-fry or have a bed of “rice” for your salmon or chicken.

More meal preps to make your life easier:

Real Food, Whole30, Paleo, AIP, & Keto/Low-Carb

Cauliflower rice is a staple for paleo, keto/low-carb, AIP, and Whole30 lifestyles!

Even if you don’t follow a specific diet and prefer to Just Eat Real Food, you will benefit from having some cauli-rice in your freezer. Heck, it’s one creative way to add more veggies to your meals!

Cauliflower is a cruciferous veggie — so it’s awesome for women’s hormones, too. To learn more about the benefits of crucifers and why you’re gonna want to include more of them in your diet, check out this post.

Recipes that go great with cauli-rice:

woman putting cauliflower rice in zip-top bags to freeze

How to Make and Freeze Cauliflower Rice

First, prep the cauliflower: wash it, pull away the green leaves, and cut the florets away from the main, central stem. It’s fine if you have some larger stem pieces.

Next, line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Then, it’s time to grate the cauliflower into “rice”!

Grate it directly onto the lined baking sheet. Spread the cauliflower out into an even layer on the baking sheet.

Transfer the cauliflower on the baking sheet to your freezer. Let it freeze for 1-2 hours.

Last, decide what portion you want (I went with 3 cups) and package the rice into zip-top bags. Squeeze the air out of the bags and seal.

Label each bag with the amount of cauliflower rice and the date. Finally, lay the bags flat in your freezer.

And, you’re done!

Equipment and Supplies Needed to Make Cauli-Rice

These are simply some supplies to make cauliflower rice as quickly and easily as possible — they aren’t necessary!

For grating the cauliflower, you can use:

a normal box grater (most difficult and time-consuming)
a food processor fitted with an S-blade (least time-consuming, very easy, more clean-up)
Salad Shooter (very quick and easy, takes up less space than a food processor)

I used my Salad Shooter!

Yes, the “As Seen on TV” gadget! It makes quick work of shredding any type of veggie and cheese! It also comes with a mandolin blade to make veggie chips!

I’ve had this gadget for probably 12 years… maybe longer. It’s one of my must-have kitchen tools!

For storing your cauli-rice, get quality freezer bags in whatever size works best for your family. After trying alllllll the brands of zip-top bags, I love Target’s Up and Up brand.

You’ll also want to make sure you have: