Low carb sticky cauliflower rice for sushi

Are you on a low-carb diet, but fancy some delicious sushi today? Here’s a brilliant one Alternative to sushi rice this will surprise you: sticky cauliflower rice. Let us show you how to do it!

Rice cauliflower is very popular low-carb rice substitute in the keto diet. We especially love it because it’s a fun way to eat more veggies and have a grain-free option when you hit your daily carb intake.

If you’ve never made cauliflower rice before, you might be wondering: how do you turn a whole cauliflower into rice? Very simple: grate or puree the delicate florets until they are small look like white grains of rice. Simply!

Now turning cauliflower rice into glutinous rice is a little trickier, as cauliflower doesn’t have any starch to bind the “grains” together like regular rice does. But don’t worry, we’ve got it covered!

Many recipes use cream cheese to bind the cauliflower rice and make it sticky. But we wanted to use an ingredient that is Vegan, low in calories and tasteless. And that ingredient is agar-agar!

What is that? Agar-agar is a natural gelling agent obtained from red algae, often found as a powder. It activates when cooked and solidifies when cooled – just like gelatin, but plant-based!

You may have seen agar-agar in dessert recipes like puddings and cheesecake, and now you can use it to make cauliflower sushi rice, too. It works wonders!

In the following recipe, we will show you how to cook agar agar and add it to steamed cauliflower rice to make sushi rice. make sure you follow our instructions carefully and work quickly as agar agar sets quickly.

Once the sticky rice is sorted, have fun preparing your low carb sushi rolls, nigiri and onigiri. The standard ingredients make enough cauliflower sushi rice for 1 serving of maki rolls, about 8 medium hosomaki.

And if you’re looking for sushi ideas to make your low-carb sticky rice a reality, try these crispy tofu rolls, mango maki, and kombu onigiri—all delicious!

Step 1

Begin by preparing the cauliflower rice using either a food processor or box grater.

Food processor option: Halve a head of cauliflower, pluck the florets and cut off the tough stems.

Flick the florets in short pulses (four or five pulses) to grind the cauliflower into rice-like grains.

Box grater option: Quarter a head of cauliflower and save the stalks as they will help you keep the florets on the grater.

Grate the cauliflower with the large holes of a box grater. Once you get to the stems, stop and use another piece of flower.

Now weigh the prepared cauliflower rice Make sure you have accurate 180 g of cauliflower rice needed for this recipe.

step 2

Next, steam the cauliflower rice.

Place a steamer over a pot of boiling water without touching the water.

Line the steamer basket with parchment paper and add the cauliflower rice. Cover and steam on low heat for 25-30 minutes until the rice grains are soft but not mushy.

As an alternative to steaming, cook the grated cauliflower in a nonstick skillet over medium-low heat for 6-8 minutes, stirring constantly.

However, keep in mind that the pan will brown the cauliflower rice a bit, so it won’t look as white as the steamed one.

step 3

While the cauliflower rice is cooking, prepare all the sushi-making utensils and ingredients (rolling mat, nori sheets, fillings, etc.).

That’s because The agar solution you prepare in the next step will set quickly once you stir it into the cooked cauliflower rice, about 10 minutes.

So remember that you need to quickly prepare your sushi rolls and nigiri before the agar fully solidifies.

When the cauliflower steamed rice is done, set aside, well covered.

step 4

Now prepare the agar solution for the cauliflower sushi rice.

Mix the agar-agar powder with salt and erythritol sweetener in a saucepan and stir in the water.

Bring the solution to a boil over medium heat while stirring.

Once the agar solution is boiling, turn the heat down to low and simmer for 4 minutes, stirring constantly to activate the agar.

step 5

Place the cooked cauliflower rice in a shallow bowl, add the rice vinegar and the hot agar agar solution.

Mix well with a spatula, being careful not to crush the cauliflower rice.

Flatten the sticky cauliflower rice and let it rest 3 minutes cool and thicken a bit.

step 6

After those 3 minutes start using it immediately the cauliflower sticky rice to make sushi as the agar quickly sets within 10 minutes (1).

Keep in mind that cauliflower sushi rice isn’t as sticky at first as regular sticky rice: it won’t hold the shape of your sushi rolls and nigiri until it’s completely cooled and the agar has set.

So use the cauliflower sushi rice while it’s still warm and a little fluffy. Then let cool until hard and firm, about 20-25 minutes (2).

Your low-carb cauliflower sushi is ready – have fun!

tips

• To keep this sticky rice recipe low in carbs, we used erythritol sweetener instead of sugar to flavor the cauliflower rice. You can swap it out with other sweeteners like stevia or monk fruit, or use regular sugar if you prefer.

• You can use the leftover cauliflower stalks to make a veggie crumble or bake healthy veggie brownies.