Ahhhh yes, that lightened up version of mashed potatoes that we all WANT to be as good, but somehow always seems to be a disappointment. Well, not anymore. With the help of the Instant Pot, you can make rich, thick, mashed cauliflower.
The first time I heard about this keto side dish I was so. excited.
I LOVE my Cauliflower Alfredo Sauce, so surely this would be just as good?
WRONG. I tried to make it over and over again, and it always came out weird, and thin. Sometimes soupy, sometimes lumpy, and the flavor always tasted ... thin.
It seemed like a lie.
I just kept wondering ...
how to make mashed cauliflower?!
and have it taste GOOD.
Liquid always seemed to be the issue, so after playing around with my new Instant Pot, I realized that I might have an opportunity here to fix the liquid issue by quick steaming the cauliflower with pressure in the Instant Pot instead of letting it get waterlogged on the stove.
Turns out, I was right. The pressure cooker gets the cauliflower into the perfect state for whipping into shape, without watering it down.
The resulting texture is delightful - smooth but thick, and much closer to the starchiness I always crave and miss when having mashed potatoes.
So today, I proudly present to you: a Mashed Cauliflower Recipe that is ACTUALLY delicious.
Not thin. Not sad. A low carb side dish worthy of your best main courses!
Other great low carb recipes:
[oih_opt_in id="3"]
Instant Pot Mashed Cauliflower
Ingredients
- 1 head of cauliflower cut into florets leaves and main stem discarded
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 ounces cream cheese or Neufchatel
- 1 tablespoon butter
- ½ cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon white pepper black is fine if you don't have white
Equipment
Instructions
- Place the trivet that came with your Instant Pot into the bottom of the cooking insert. Add the cauliflower florets, garlic clove, and chicken broth. It's okay if some of the florets or the garlic falls onto the bottom of the insert.
- Place the lid on top, turn to lock, and set the pressure release valve to sealing.
- Press Manual, and set the time to 3 minutes.
- Once 3 minutes are up, carefully turn the pressure release valve to quick release the pressure in the pot.
- Strain the cauliflower and return it to the pot insert without the steamer insert.
- Add the cream cheese, butter, and salt to the insert with the cauliflower, and begin to process it with an immersion blender until the cauliflower breaks down and begins resembling mashed potatoes. Add the Pecorino Romano cheese and continue processing with the immersion blender until the mixture is smooth.
Notes
Don’t usually comment but this was delicious! Added a little heavy cream, but this was SO good…...didn’t miss potatoes at all!