Broccoli Cauliflower Rice Casserole

This tasty Broccoli Cauliflower Rice Casserole uses cauliflower rice, broccoli, and a creamy curry sauce topped with cheese to create layers of flavor! And this is perfect if you’re looking for a meatless comfort-food meal that’s low in carbs!

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My fondness for casseroles is well documented on the blog, and it’s fall so it’s time to be making them again! This new  Broccoli Cauliflower Rice Casserole is a variation of an idea I came up with years ago when I wanted to try creating more meatless casseroles. What I wanted was a casserole that was vegetarian but still had that comfort-food appeal that makes casseroles so popular.

I worked hard on the original version of this recipe that used brown rice, and it was definitely tasty. But through the years more and more people wondered if this could be made with cauliflower rice so it would be a low-carb casserole. And when I experimented with it with my niece Kara, we loved this version with cauliflower rice, with 11 net carbs per serving! (Anyone who was a fan of the brown rice version can use that link to find the printer-friendly recipe for it back in the archives.)

No matter which version you prefer, if you’re looking for a new meatless main dish or a creamy and cheesy side dish, I think most people will like this one, as long as they like broccoli and curry flavors. 

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

• frozen cauliflower rice
• fresh broccoli
• onion
• Olive Oil (affiliate link)
• Sweet Curry Powder (affiliate link), sometimes just called curry powder 
• Hot Curry Powder (affiliate link), sometimes called Madras curry powder
• sea salt 
• Spike Seasoning (affiliate link) or other all-purpose seasoning blend
• grated Mozzarella
• sour cream
• mayo
• fresh squeezed lemon juice, I used my fresh-frozen lemon juice

What cauliflower rice did I use?

I used this frozen cauliflower rice from Costco that comes with four packets that each contain 4 cups of frozen cauliflower rice. (We used one of the four-cup packets for this recipe, but if you want to stretch the recipe to make larger servings or more servings, you could use a bit more cauliflower rice.)

Is Broccoli Cauliflower Rice Casserole a spicy dish?

I kept the curry flavor mild in this recipe with the idea that some kids would enjoy this, and you can skip the hot curry powder or use less curry powder if you prefer. And if you like spicy curries you can increase the heat, even use all hot curry powder if you prefer.

Can you use frozen broccoli for this recipe?

This recipe uses a generous amount of broccoli and although frozen broccoli might be convenient, it would be a lot more expensive. Truthfully I am not a frozen broccoli fan, but nearly every casserole I have with broccoli has comments from people who have reported making it successfully with frozen broccoli. So go ahead and try it if you’d like!

Who else loves broccoli?

There’s a whole section of Broccoli Recipes on the blog for everyone (like me) who just loves to use it in recipes!

How to make Broccoli Cauliflower Rice Casserole:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

1. Measure out four cups frozen cauliflower rice (or slightly more) and let it thaw on the counter.
2. Chop up 8 cups of small broccoli florets.
3. We cooked broccoli in a large 8 cup glass measuring cup in the microwave, but you can also cook in boiling salted water. Either method will take only about 2 minutes to barely cook the broccoli. Drain broccoli in colander if it seems wet.
4. Preheat oven to 375F/190C.
5. Cook the chopped onion in olive oil over medium-high heat until it starts to brown; then add sweet curry powder, hot curry powder, sea salt, and Spike Seasoning (if using) and cook 1-2 minutes more.
6. Mix in thawed cauliflower rice and stir to get the curry flavor distributed. Cook the cauliflower rice 3-5 minutes, until some of the moisture has evaporated and it’s slightly softened.
7. Whisk together sour cream, mayo, lemon juice, and sweet curry powder for the sauce.
8. Measure out the cheese.
9. Spray a casserole dish with non-stick spray. We used a dish that’s 8.5″ by 12.5 inches but any similar size will work.
10. Start with a layer of half the cauliflower rice/onion mixture.
11. Then put half the blanched broccoli.
12. Spread over half the curry sauce.
13. Top with half the cheese.
14. Then make another layer of each of cauliflower rice, broccoli, sauce, and cheese.
15. Bake about 30 minutes, or until casserole is slightly bubbling and lightly browned on top.
16. This will stay good in the fridge for about a week and reheats well. It disappeared quickly at my house so I haven’t ever tried freezing it!

More Meatless Recipes with Cauliflower:

• Greek Cauliflower Rice Bake
• Instant Pot Cauliflower Mushroom Soup
• Roasted Cauliflower with Parmesan
• Roasted Broccoli and Cauliflower
• Broccoli Cauliflower Salad with Feta

Weekend Food Prep:

This recipe is being added to a category called Weekend Food Prep, where you’ll find recipes you can make on the weekend and reheat or eat again during the week.

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Yield: 8 servings

Broccoli Cauliflower Rice Casserole

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Broccoli Cauliflower Rice Casserole is a layered meatless casserole with broccoli, cauliflower rice, creamy curry sauce, and just enough cheese give it that comfort food appeal!

Ingredients

• 4 cups frozen cauliflower rice (or slightly more)
• 8 cups fresh broccoli, cut into small florets (see notes)
• 1 medium onion, chopped small
• 1 T olive oil
• 1 tsp. sweet curry powder (See notes.)
• 1/2 tsp hot curry powder (See notes.)
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt salt
• 1/2 tsp. Spike Seasoning (optional, but good)
• 2 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese

Sauce Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayo
• 2 T fresh squeezed lemon juice, or more (See notes)
• 1 1/2 tsp. sweet curry powder

Instructions

1. Measure out four cups frozen cauliflower rice (or slightly more) and let it start to thaw on the counter.
2. Chop up 8 cups of small broccoli florets.
3. We cooked broccoli in a large 8 cup glass measuring cup covered with cling-wrap in the microwave, but you can also cook it in boiling salted water. Either method will take about 2 minutes to barely cook the broccoli. Drain well, especially if cooking the broccoli in water
4. Preheat oven to 375F/190C.
5. Heat 2 tsp. olive oil in a non-stick frying pan, add the onion, and cook over medium-high heat until onion is starting to brown, about 4-5 minutes
6. Add the sweet and hot curry powder, salt, and Spike Seasoning and cook 1-2 minutes more.
7. Add the other teaspoon of olive oil (or a bit more) and cauliflower rice and stir to mix in the curry flavor, then cook cauliflower rice 3-5 minutes or until some liquid has evaporated and it's slightly starting to soften
8. Whisk together sour cream, mayo, lemon juice, and sweet curry powder to make the sauce
9. Spray an 8.5" X 12.5" or similar size glass casserole dish with non-stick spray.
10. Make layers with half the rice mixture, half the broccoli, half the curry sauce, and half the cheese, spreading out to make an even layer with each ingredient
11. Make a second layer each of rice mixture, broccoli, curry sauce, and cheese.

1. Bake the casserole about 30 minutes, or until it's starting to bubble and the cheese is lightly browned on top.  Serve hot.
2. This will keep in the fridge for at least a week and reheats well. I haven't ever managed to have leftovers to try freezing it.

Notes

We started with about 2 pounds of broccoli in a bag from Costco to get 8 cups chopped broccoli.

Any curry powder that’s not labeled hot will work for sweet curry powder. Hot curry powder is sometimes called Madras curry powder; you can skip this if cooking for kids or increase the hot curry for a spicier dish.

Start with 2 tablespoons lemon juice and taste to see if you want a bit more; I used my frozen lemon juice.

This recipe was originally inspired by Better-than-Mom’s Chicken, Broccoli, and Quinoa Casserole with Creamy Curry Sauce.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

8

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 384Total Fat: 31gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 58mgSodium: 677mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 7gSugar: 6gProtein: 14g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

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Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
Broccoli Cauliflower Rice Casserole is suitable for low-carb diets; check nutritional info and see what you think about eating this for Keto. The recipe is high in fat for the original South Beach Diet, but if you use reduced fat mayo and cheese you could make a SBD approved version.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Casserole Recipes to find more tasty casseroles! Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This casserole with broccoli, cauliflower rice, creamy curry sauce, and cheese is an updated version of a recipe that was originally posted in 2012 using brown rice. See the link in the recipe if you’d like to make the original version. The recipe was updated in 2023 to use cauliflower rice.

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