Creamy Mashed Cauliflower
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Simple enough for weeknight dinners and special enough for the holiday table, this easy mashed cauliflower recipe is one of those back-pocket side dishes every home cook needs.
Photo by Alexandra Grablewski (Chronicle Books, 2018)
Creamy, buttery, and comforting, this mashed cauliflower recipe comes together with just a handful of ingredients in about 25 minutes. It delivers a silky, flavorful mash that lets cauliflower shine. Even the biggest mashed potato fans are often surprised by how much they love it.
My favorite review came from my friend Heather after she tested the recipe. Her text said it all: “OMG so good, just licked the bowl of my Cuisinart.”
This creamy cauliflower mash pairs nicely with comfort food favorites, like my classic meatloaf or turkey meatloaf, onion-braised beef brisket, or braised short ribs.
“Delicious, delicious, delicious–it’s just like eating mashed potatoes. So, simple to make, and quick too.”
What You’ll Need To Make Mashed Cauliflower
- Cauliflower: Its mild flavor and naturally creamy texture make it the perfect base for a silky purée. Look for a firm, heavy head with tightly packed white florets.
- Chicken Broth: Rather than boiling the cauliflower in water, this recipe gently steams it in chicken broth, seasoning it from the inside out and adding savory depth. Vegetable broth works well if you’d like to keep the dish vegetarian.
- Butter: A few tablespoons of butter add richness and help create the smooth, velvety texture that makes this mashed cauliflower so satisfying.
- Fresh Thyme: Lends subtle earthy flavor without overpowering the cauliflower. Chives also make a delicious alternative.
- Salt & Freshly Ground Black Pepper: Simple seasonings are all you need to enhance the cauliflower’s delicate flavor.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Steam the cauliflower florets. Cooking the cauliflower in chicken broth instead of water infuses it with flavor from the start. You want to steam it until it’s very tender. It should mash easily with a fork so the purée blends up silky smooth—cauliflower that isn’t cooked all the way through won’t blend smoothly and can leave you with a grainy texture.
Step 2: Purée until smooth. Transfer the cooked cauliflower to a food processor with the butter and a few tablespoons of the cooking liquid, then process until completely smooth. Be careful not to add too much of the broth—you can always add more if needed, but too much can make the mash thin or watery.
Pro tip: If you prefer a little more texture, pulse the cauliflower instead of running the processor continuously. This gives you more control and lets you stop when it’s exactly where you want it.
Step 3: Finish and serve. Taste the purée and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, then stir in the fresh thyme. Serve hot alongside your favorite comfort foods or holiday favorites. The mashed cauliflower keeps nicely in the fridge for 3 days or can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Easy Variations
- Loaded: Top with shredded cheddar, chopped chives, crumbled bacon, and a dollop of sour cream for all the flavors of a loaded baked potato—minus the potato.
- Cheesy: Blend in a handful of freshly grated Parmesan or Gruyère for extra richness and a nutty depth of flavor. Freshly grated cheese melts much more smoothly than pre-shredded.
- Roasted Garlic: Blend in a few roasted garlic cloves for a mellow, sweet garlic flavor.
- Pesto: Replace 1 to 2 tablespoons of the butter with pesto for a fresh, herby twist and a subtle green color (omit the thyme).
- Brown Butter: Swap the butter for brown butter. It takes just a few extra minutes to make but adds incredible nutty, toasty flavor.
- Truffle: Finish with a light drizzle of truffle oil and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt for an elegant finishing touch.
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Creamy Mashed Cauliflower
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower (about 2 lb/908 g), cut into ½-in (13-mm) pieces
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into chunks
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a large pot, bring the chicken broth and salt to a boil. Add the cauliflower; bring back to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to low and steam for 20 minutes, or until cauliflower is very tender.
- Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cauliflower to a food processor. Add 3 tablespoons of chicken broth from the pot, along with the butter. Process until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and freshly ground pepper. Add thyme and process until just combined.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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My husband hates vegetables and my older son is vegan. Made this recipe twice, once as you had listed except reducing butter to only 1 TBS and it was absolutely delicious and my husband could not tell he was eating cauliflower and thought they were mashed potatoes and ate all of it. The second batch I cooked the cauliflower in vegetable broth and used 1 TBS of vegan butter and my son raved about it. Thank you so much for helping me find something else that I can make that can work for my family. BTW, I also tried the asparagus soup and my husband ate all of it. You have helped me find a way to get my husband to eat vegetables and enjoy it!! Everything I make comes out so delicious and makes me feel like a real chef. I now have a friend subscribing to your recipes too since I keep raving about them. Can’t wait for your cookbook.
Thank you, Nancy – I’m so happy you’re having success with the recipes! ?
This is amazing!! I make it all the time instead of mashed potatoes. It is great with chicken stock or veggie stock!
This recipe is absolutely perfect! Thank you for sharing. One shortcut I have found for busy nights and/or a lack of desire to dirty too many more dishes is to pour out some of the chicken broth leaving somewhere in the neighborhood of the 3 tablespoons, adding the butter and thyme, and then using my immersion blender.
Hi
I have to say I rarely boil or steam cauliflower anymore. I oven roast it instead.
Cooked it this way then blended it. I think this adds another layer of taste and keeps it from becoming too runny.
Steve
Great idea Steve- thanks for sharing!
Loved this recipe so much! I can’t believe I haven’t tried it earlier! The thyme adds such a nice flavor. Thanks for this keeper recipe!
Oh My YUM!
This is SO easy and delicious…the first time I made it I had to stop myself from eating it right out of the cuisinart! I only use 2 T of butter and it is still rich and creamy. This is my go-to recipe whenever I’m craving mashed potatoes
I absolutely love this cauliflower pure’e. So much more flavor from the usual mashed potatoes side dish. It has become my go to side when I barbecue or grill…which is all year long living here in So Cal. Super Dish J S Thanks for posting this!!!
Loved it. So did puppy 🙂
wow! this is so easy to make and so delicious–I can’t wait to make it again. I only used 2T of butter, and it still tasted very rich and buttery. Next time I may try skipping the butter entirely. I served it with your bbq turkey meatloaf which was also great! thanks for all the great recipes!