This cauliflower tabbouleh recipe is a vegetable-packed twist on traditional tabbouleh salad. It’s great if you’re looking for a lower carb or lower-calorie option!

cauliflower tabbouleh in a bowl

Tabbouleh salad (also spelled tabouli) is one of my favorite side dishes. It traditionally uses bulgur, a type of grain. But I recently tried cauliflower tabbouleh at Whole Foods and it was quite good! I thought it would be fun to make my own version, which is great for a low-carb side dish. While you know I love carbs, I know a lot of vegetarians are looking for lower carb veggie options. So I hope this cauliflower tabbouleh salad comes in handy!

cauliflower tabbouleh ingredients

Ingredients & Substitutions

  • Cauliflower– I recommend ricing cauliflower in a food processor. You want the cauliflower to be chopped very fine. If you’re buying pre-made riced cauliflower, you’ll likely still need to blend it in a food processor. I do not recommend using frozen cauliflower rice, which is too soggy for this dish.
  • Tomato– I used a large beefsteak tomato but you could use any type of tomato. Be sure to finely dice the tomato.
  • Parsley– Fresh parsley is a must. This gives the salad lots of flavor. You can use curly or flat-leaf parsley.
  • Mint– Mint adds an additional layer of flavor in this dish. Again, do not substitute with dried herbs.
  • Lemon– Fresh lemon juice adds a bright, acidic flavor to the tabbouleh.
  • Olive oil– High-quality olive oil has a light, fruity flavor which enhances the dish. Don’t use cheap olive oil for a dish like this.
  • Salt– A hearty sprinkle of salt ties everything together. I like using coarse salt because it adds a little texture, but table salt is fine.

How to Make Cauliflower Tabbouleh Salad

  • Add the cauliflower florets to a food proessor.
  • Pulse until the cauliflower
    is very fine.
  • Toss the cauliflower with remaining ingredients.

How to Use Tabbouleh Salad

I like serving this salad with falafel, but it would also be a delicious topping for these chickpea gyros or as an addition to these chickpea bowls. This cauliflower tabbouleh is best eaten immediately, but it can be made up to a day in advance and stored in the fridge. But fair warning, cauliflower does start to have a smell after a few hours so be sure to store this salad in an airtight container in the fridge if you don’t plan to eat it right away.

If you’re looking for another healthy twist on tabbouleh, try my quinoa tabbouleh salad!

Quinoa Tabbouleh

More Cauliflower Recipes

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Cauliflower Tabbouleh

Cauliflower Tabbouleh Recipe

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  • Author: Liz Thomson
  • Prep Time: 10 mins
  • Cook Time: 0 minutes
  • Total Time: 10 minutes
  • Yield: 4 1x
  • Category: Salad
  • Method: Food Processor
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan
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Description

This cauliflower tabbouleh recipe is a vegetable-packed twist on traditional tabbouleh salad. It’s great if you’re looking for a lower carb or lower-calorie option!

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 1 head cauliflower, chopped into 1” florets
  • 1 large tomato, finely diced
  • 1/4 cup chopped mint
  • 1/2 cup chopped parsley
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

  1. Add the cauliflower to a food processor and pulse until very fine, about the size of a grain of rice.
  2. Toss the cauliflower with the tomato, mint, parsley, lemon juice, and olive oil, then season with salt and black pepper.

Notes

This post was originally published June 2012. Updated July 2022.

Keywords: Cauliflower Tabbouleh Recipe