It's been almost two years since I shared a recipe for crispy cauliflower tacos. To this day, it's one of my all-time favorite blog recipes, and it's high-ranking stats suggest that it's also one of yours. I love everything about those tacos—their bright, eye-popping colors, perfectly crisp cauliflower-slaw filling, and delightfully dreamy avocado cream. These crispy cauliflower power bowls with cilantro-lime rice have all the flavors of those beloved tacos plus a bit more oomph thanks to nutty brown rice.
A few weeks back, I had an insatiable craving for those tacos and whipped up a last-minute batch for dinner. The other thing I love about those tacos? How simple they are to make and how quickly they come together.
Less than a week later, the craving struck again, so I made another batch, this time doubling the recipe in hopes of having plenty of leftovers. A few days later, as I was rushing out the door to work, I tossed the crispy cauliflower, slaw, some brown rice, an avocado, and a lime into my lunch bag (all in separate containers) before heading out the door.
I'm sure you know where this is going, but I ended mashing up the avocado with the lime and tossing the slaw and brown rice into the container with the cauliflower. What I had initially judged as being a haphazard, potentially crappy, I'm-running-late packed lunch turned out to be one of those special lunches that brightens an entire day. Ever had one of those? For me, the special lunches are usually the result of careful planning and allotting an extra 5 to 10 minutes in the morning. But in this case, running late and carelessly hurling things into my lunch bag led to unanticipated lunchtime bliss. I'll take it.
This power bowl is essentially a deconstructed version of those tacos - minus the corn tortillas + cilantro-lime brown rice + garlic in the avocado cream + adjusted ingredient amounts to make a bigger batch of cauliflower + updated methods because I'd like to think that my recipe writing skillz (yes, with a z) have improved over the last two years.
But let's not dwell on the logistics for too long, because we've got cauliflower to crisp and lunchtime bliss to seek. I hope you love this Crispy Cauliflower—Power Bowl Remix as much as I do! ♥
📖 Recipe
Crispy Cauliflower Power Bowls with Cilantro-Lime Brown Rice
Ingredients
Crispy Cauliflower
- 1 medium head of cauliflower (6" to 7" in diameter), cut into bite-size florets
- 1 ½ cups gluten-free rolled oats
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves, tough stems removed
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika
- ¾ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground turmeric (optional)
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 ½ teaspoons fine grain sea salt
- 1 cup plain, unsweetened almond milk
- ⅔ cup brown rice flour
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Purple Cabbage Slaw
- 2 cups thinly sliced purple cabbage
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ tablespoon pure maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon fine grain sea salt
Cilantro-Lime Brown Rice
- 4 cups cooked brown rice
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves, tough stems removed
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- ½ teaspoon sea salt or to taste
Avocado-Cilantro Cream
- 1 ripe avocado, pitted and peeled
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro leaves, tough stems removed
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 garlic clove, roughly minced
- ¼ teaspoon fine grain sea salt
For Serving
- 1 lime, cut in wedges (optional)
Instructions
To Make the Crispy Cauliflower
- Preheat the oven to 400F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Add the rolled oats to a food processor. Process for 20 seconds or until a coarse meal forms. You don't want the oats to be a fine flour, but rather a texture similar to panko bread crumbs. Then, add the cilantro, chili powder, paprika, cumin, garlic powder, turmeric, cayenne pepper, and sea salt. Pulse 10 to 15 times to chop and incorporate. Transfer to a large, shallow bowl or baking dish.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the the almond milk, brown rice flour, and lime juice until smooth.
- Create an assembly line by lining up the cauliflower florets, almond milk mixture, oat mixture, and lined baking pan.
- Place a small handful of cauliflower florets into the almond milk batter, toss to coat, shake off excess batter, and transfer to the oat mixture. Toss until the florets are thoroughly coated and transfer to the lined baking sheet. Repeat.
- Bake the coated cauliflower florets for 25 to 28 minutes or until crisp and golden, tossing at the 15-minute mark.
- Remove from oven and let cool slightly.
To Make the Cabbage Slaw
- While the cauliflower is baking, make the cabbage slaw by adding the purple cabbage, lime juice, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, and sea salt to a small bowl. Toss to coat and let rest, tossing occasionally.
To Make the Cilantro-Lime Brown Rice
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooked brown rice, cilantro, lime juice, and sea salt.
To Make the Avocado-Cilantro Cream
- Add the avocado, lime juice, cilantro, garlic, and sea salt to a food processor. Process for 3 minutes or until smooth and cream. The texture should resemble mayo.
- You can either dollop the cream into the bowls with a spoon, or transfer it to a ziploc bag, snip off a corner, and pipe it over the cauliflower.
To Assemble
- Spoon about a cup of the brown rice into each bowl, top with the crispy cauliflower and cabbage slaw, and pipe or dollop on the avocado-cilantro cream. Serve with lime wedges for spritzing, if desired.
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Celeste | The Whole Serving says
I love crispy cauliflower, it so good on a big bowl of greens. This looks delicious.
Ashley says
Thanks so much, Celeste!
Jermisha says
This dish looks so flavorful and the various vibrant color makes this dish really pop.
I have never had cauliflower prepared in the way above. I must give this dish a try.
Ashley says
Thanks, Jermisha! I hope you enjoy/ed the recipe!
Liz says
Wow, that crispy cauliflower looks FANTASTIC! I'm basically obsessed with veggie bowls, so this is totally up my alley. Totally want to try this over the weekend!
Ashley says
Well thanks, Liz! Hope you enjoyed the recipe!
Meg @ Noming thru Life says
You had me at crispy! I think crispy/crunchy is my favorite texture, and I can practically see the crunch in these little cauli bites. Loving it!
Ashley says
Haha, your tastes remind me of mine, Meg! Anything crispy, everything cauliflower. :)
Brenda says
Beautiful dish - can't wait to make it - what to do if I am allergic to avocado?
Ashley says
Hi, Brenda! I recommend making a cashew-based creamy lime + cilantro dressing. I have a recipe for a cilantro-lime crema in my cookbook and it would be perfect, but it won't be released until Dec. 20th (and I'm not allowed to give it away) so it's not much help now!
In the meantime, try blending equal parts raw cashews (soaked if you don't have a high-speed blender) and filtered water + a generous splash of fresh lime juice, a garlic clove or two, a handful of fresh cilantro, and plenty of sea salt. Blend for 3-4 minutes or until super smooth and creamy! This will be a perfect stand-in for the avocado cream. Hope this helps!
Sarah | Well and Full says
That crispy cauliflower looks insanely good!! I can see why it's so popular on here ;)
Ashley says
Thanks so much, Sarah!
Celeste Jackson says
This looks very satisfying! I will be making this very soon.
Ashley says
Hope you enjoy it!
Jo says
Do you have a recipe for cauliflower nachos?
Ashley says
I don't, but that's a brilliant idea, Jo! You've got my mind buzzing with ideas for how to make those, so I'll add them to my list to recipe test.
Lydia says
Ahhhhh SO GOOD!!! As is everything of yours! There’s something so therapeutic about cooking your food. Maybe because so much thought and detail goes into the recipe, I can just trust you and enjoy the process. You have never failed me, and these dishes make me feel like a BADASS!! This is more steps than I would normally take making lunch but I knew it’d be worth it so I put on some boogie tunes and called it my self-care lunch 🤪 Which in these anxiety ridden times, turns out to be so necessary! Sitting here enjoying this bowl more than any lunch I think I’ve ever enjoyed! So THANK YOU for this!
PS This avocado crema is going to become a big part of our lives now!
Ashley says
Lydia, this comment just made my week (and that's saying a lot on a Monday). Your experience captures what I believe cooking and self-nourishing is all about, and it means so much to know that it translated off the page for you. Thank you for taking time out of your day to share such kindness and enthusiasm. Your energy radiates off the page and your words mean a lot to me. Happy cooking to you!