pretend rice that's rather nice

I like rice - it's the perfect side dish to lots of meals BUT I find it to be rather filling. I may have mastered how to cook it successfully (1 cup of rice to 2 cups of water works every time) but I still lack the ability to cook the correct amount. So, instead of cooking waaaaay too much and either throwing it away or eating it out of guilt, I've found the perfect substitute which is easy to control (portion wise) and won't leave you feeling bloated after eating, plus it's one of your five a day. The answer, my friends, is cauliflower.

I think this idea has been doing the rounds on pinterest but I just wanted to say that it works really REALLY well. Rosie used it for a chinese style dish and I've seen it used to accompany an indian curry. I've now used cauliflower instead of rice the last 4 times I've made curry at home and every time it's a winner. Incase you'd like to try it, here's how...

1. Remove the leaves from your cauliflower (one should be enough for two people, or if it's a particularly small one you may need one and a half). Chop into small-ish chunks.
2. Whack the cauliflower chunks in the blender (you may need to do this in two or three batches) and pulse until it's shredded into fine, rice-size pieces. If you have a food processor you'd be better off using that, then you can just shove the lot in in one go.

3. Fry the blended cauliflower in two batches over a medium heat with two teaspoons of oil and one teaspoon of cumin. Stir it regularly and after about 10 mins the cauliflower should turn a slightly golden colour which is cooked enough for me but you could leave it a bit longer, just don't let it burn.
4. Fry the second batch in the same way (avec oil and cumin, but be warned the second batch might not need as long as the first half). Chop up a few leaves of coriander and mix into the cauliflower. And your done!

Of course, if you want to be super healthy you could just heat the cauliflower in the mircowave after you've blended it, but I do think frying it in a little bit of oil and cumin gives it more flavour. I'd be interested to know if anyone else has tried it!