- Frozen cauliflower is an affordable, convenient and versatile frozen food item to keep on hand.
- The best ways to cook frozen cauliflower are steaming, roasting and air-frying.
- Frozen cauliflower is rich in vitamins C and K, along with antioxidants and retains more nutrients than its fresh counterpart.
For far too long pale foods have been demonized as not as nutritious as their rainbow-hued peers. True, there are countless benefits to consuming fruits and vegetables that rock coats of many colors. I often snag a bag of frozen berries while stocking up on a bell pepper multi-pack, bananas, leafy greens and blueberries.
However, some white or pale foods have benefits too. Enriched grains actually have about twice as much folic acid as their whole-grain peers, and the fermentation that makes sourdough bread possible is great for gut health. And the item that I grab on every single supermarket run—which I believe is seriously underrated—also happens to be white.
I’m calling it: the most underrated frozen food at the grocery store is frozen cauliflower.
Why Frozen Cauliflower Is Underrated
It’s Budget-Friendly
Frozen cauliflower is one of the best budget buys in the entire store. For example, a 12-ounce, four-serving bag is under $2 at my local Target. And the freezer lengthens its life span from a few weeks to many months, which helps cut down on wasted food (hello, money in the trash!).
It’s Convenient
Who doesn’t love a vegetable that’s already prepped and ready to go? The stems and leaves have already been trimmed away (and hopefully, used in a stock or composted!) so the cauliflower is ready to go right out of the bag. Talk about a time-saver!
It’s Remarkably Versatile
Frozen cauliflower can become the MVP of your freezer with all the ways it can be used:
- Bulk Up Frozen Meals: I frequently turn to well-balanced frozen meals in my busy workdays, but while these entrees are always efficient, but they’re rarely as vegetable-rich or as filling as I would like them to be. To fix this I steam half a bag of cauliflower, toss it with seasonings and then heat up a frozen meal. I pile the main dish over the steamed veggies, which allows the sauce to spill over everything below. In a matter of minutes and with next to no effort, I’ve checked off two more vegetable servings from my daily goal.
- Thicken Up Soups: I swear by this trick of stirring in ½ to 1 cup of mashed frozen cauliflower per serving of canned soup to create a thicker, creamier soup.
- Base for Bowls: Frozen cauliflower rice is also stellar as a base for grain bowls, fried “rice” or even turn it into a risotto.
- Add to Smoothies: Sneak frozen cauliflower into smoothies for a creamy texture with less carbs than a banana.
How to Prepare Frozen Cauliflower So It Isn’t Soggy
One of the most common complaints about frozen vegetables is that they can err on the soggy side compared to their fresh counterparts, but it is totally possible to get frozen vegetables to taste just as good as fresh.
- Steaming: I find that steaming works just fine for the frozen meal hack, and I don’t notice the difference between fresh and frozen once the cauliflower is seasoned and showered in sauce.
- Air Frying: Air-Fryer Cauliflower is awesome. Simply toss unthawed frozen cauliflower with olive oil and seasonings and pop it into the air fryer, then cook at 360°F for 18 to 22 minutes, shaking the pan or basket halfway through. The florets caramelize beautifully as long as you don’t crowd the pieces.
- Roasting: Try roasted-from-frozen cauliflower. Leaving space on the pan and adding the olive oil and seasonings three-quarters of the way through the cooking time will score you the ultimate roasted cauliflower.
Frozen Cauliflower’s Health Benefits
Last and certainly not least, I love frozen cauliflower for its health benefits. Don’t be deceived by its absence of color. Frozen cauliflower is loaded in nutrition.
- Rich in Vitamins and Antioxidants: Cauliflower is rich in vitamins C and K and other heart-healthy and chronic inflammation-reducing antioxidants.
- Provides Protein and Fiber: Each cup of frozen cauliflower delivers 2 grams each of plant-based protein and fiber.
- Low in Calories: A cup of frozen cauliflower is just 28 calories.
Still think fresh is best? Research proves that there is no nutritional difference when you compare fresh and frozen vegetables, too. In fact, frozen can often be more nutritious since the produce is put on ice at peak ripeness, while fresh may lose a little of its micronutrient content the longer it sits.
Cauliflower Recipes to Try
Our Expert Take
Frozen cauliflower is affordable, convenient and versatile to keep on hand—it’s easy to prepare and you can use it in a number of dishes. And frozen cauliflower also helps you meet your daily vegetable servings and offers many health benefits. If you don’t currently have a bag of cauliflower in your freezer, I hope you might feel a little more convinced to snag one next time you shop.
