How to cook cauliflower in a slow cooker?
Now there are many fans of dishes with cauliflower, because it contains a large number of nutrients.If you cook the cauliflower in a slow cooker, you can save as much as possible the vitamins, trace elements and minerals that are contained in this vegetable.
Composition and properties
Colored or Syrian cabbage is very popular among connoisseurs of tasty and healthy food. Due to the presence of a large amount of vitamins, the use of healthy Syrian cabbage dishes will have a beneficial effect on the general condition, help to improve the tone, feel more cheerful. In their homeland in Syria, this vegetable was used for a very long time. Cauliflower was brought to us only at the end of the 17th century. At that time, its seeds were very expensive, and only notable and rich people could taste dishes from Syrian cabbage.
For a long time, agronomists tried to cultivate this vegetable, but this did not succeed until a variety that could withstand low temperatures was bred. Currently, colored or Syrian cabbage can be found quite often on the table in the residents, especially in the late summer and early autumn, when it ripens.
It is considered not only a tasty product, its use can reduce the risk of cancer incidence. Dishes prepared from cauliflower are recommended for people with heart and vascular diseases, with diseases of the stomach, liver, biliary tract. This vegetable is often used in various diets.
Given that the calorie content of the product, which is steamed in a slow cooker, is only 30 kcal, it should be included in your diet, anyone who wants to lose weight.
Syrian cabbage has a very valuable substance that reduces the risk of prostate cancer, often referred to as a male vegetable. The use of cauliflower will bring great benefits to women, with its regular use, the risk of breast cancer is sharply reduced.
Cauliflower is eaten raw, boiled, baked, you can steam it. In addition, many more different dishes are prepared from it: casseroles, puddings, soups. Very piquant and juicy are cutlets or vegetable stews, the main component of which is this vegetable.
If you cook foods in a slow cooker, you can get non-nutritious and healthy dishes.
Vegetable preparation
When buying cauliflower, you should carefully inspect the head. You should not choose cabbage, if it is loose or covered with dark spots. It is necessary to give preference to medium-sized dense heads of cabbage, which have a uniform structure, the cabbage color should be soft cream, although now you can find purple, yellow or green cauliflower on sale.
Vegetables after purchase should be stored in the refrigerator, but not for very long, as the cabbage becomes sluggish, dark spots can appear on it. It is better to cook vegetables immediately after purchase. Cauliflower can be bought in the store or grow in your backyard. If you managed to grow a big crop of vegetables, you can send a part of them to the freezer for freezing.
Frozen vegetables will retain their properties for a long time. Inflorescences of frozen cabbage can be removed from the freezer at any time to prepare a vitamin dish in a slow cooker.
Vegetables become especially necessary in the winter when the body receives less vitamins. A dish made from fresh or frozen vegetables can be given even to very young children. Children do not always like boiled vegetables, so it is better to cook a casserole or make mashed cauliflower.
To cook vegetables in a slow cooker, they must be prepared in advance. Green cabbage leaves are removed, and the head of cabbage is washed under running water. Heading should be divided into inflorescences. In that case, if the inflorescences are too large, they are cut into several parts. But you do not need to chop them too small so that they do not turn into porridge during the cooking process.
Inflorescences are better to lay out in one layer, if you put them in several layers, they can be prepared unevenly.
When cauliflower is frozen, you need to take a shallow container and place it in one inflorescence. It is better to think in advance how much product you need to use to prepare one dish, and freeze vegetables in portions.
Recipes
There are many interesting recipes for this wonderful vegetable in a slow cooker. Cauliflower contains the necessary for the human body substances, vitamins, fiber, vegetable protein. This product is often included in the diet.
Foods based on cauliflower should be included in the diet for people who have digestive problems, other diseases. Not many people know, but nutritionists recommend using cauliflower raw, although not everyone likes its specific taste. If raw vegetables do not like, you can boil it, stew, bake or fry in batter.
How fast and tasty to cook vegetables should be discussed separately. Cooked inflorescences are often prepared as a main dish, or used as a side dish for other dishes. If you cook cauliflower in a slow cooker, you can preserve the beneficial properties of the product.
Stewed
Cooking vegetables in a multibag is a simple process. You just need to prepare the necessary ingredients, put them in the bowl and start the process of extinguishing. To get a tasty and healthy dish, you need to prepare the necessary ingredients and step by step to paint the culinary process. To prepare cauliflower stew you need to take:
- cabbage head;
- 2-3 onions;
- 2 small carrots;
- garlic clove;
- vegetable oil;
- salt and spices to taste.
How to cook stewed cauliflower
Cabbage head inspect, wash and divide into florets. Vegetables are grated. A small amount of vegetable oil is poured into the multi-bowl. As soon as the onion becomes golden, inflorescences of cabbage fall into a container. After stirring the stewed vegetables, add salt and spices. Then add 100 ml of water, cover the multicooker with a lid and stew for another 10–20 minutes.
After 10 minutes, the vegetables are gently mixed and try the dish readiness. Cooking time for stewed vegetables is 20–25 minutes. After turning off the appliance, sprinkled steamed vegetables on top with parsley, dill, green onions. Serve vegetables both hot and cold.
Steamed
If you cook vegetables for a couple, you can save all the nutritional properties of the product. This method is considered the easiest, and the dish is very tender and juicy.
This method is more suitable for those who lead a healthy lifestyle. Steamed dishes are useful for those who want to lose weight, because the caloric content of the finished product is very low and is 30 kcal per 100 grams. Steamed dishes can be considered dietary, since they do not use oil or other high-calorie foods. To cook the cabbage steamed, you must:
- pour water into the bowl, better - a little less than half;
- washed inflorescences are placed in one layer on a special pan;
- enable cooking mode "Steamed";
- the lid of the multicooker to keep closed.
Dish steamed is cooked within 15–20 minutes. Willingness is determined by piercing inflorescences with a sharp knife. The knife should pierce the cabbage effortlessly. Do not cook vegetables for a long time, otherwise their taste will become watery. The time while the cauliflower is cooked can be used to make a side dish or sauce.
Casserole
To make a casserole, you need to prepare:
- cauliflower (one head of medium size);
- carrot;
- onion;
- 120–150 g of cheese;
- spices, seasoning for vegetables;
- 50 g sour cream and mayonnaise.
Pour 1 tbsp into the bowl. l oils and lubricate their surface. A head of cabbage is taken to florets. If the inflorescences are large, it is better to cut them into several pieces. Carrots are rubbed, onions cut into rings or cubes.Vegetables spread in a bowl in layers, add spices, and pour sauce, for which sour cream is mixed with mayonnaise. The device is set in the "Baking" mode for 30-40 minutes. When the time is over, the multicooker lid is opened and sprinkled on the casserole with grated hard cheese.
Breaded
It is worth trying to cook cabbage in batter, this dish will definitely appreciate all the guests, it turns out very tasty and satisfying. Necessary ingredients for cooking vegetables in batter:
- Half a kilo of fresh cabbage;
- 2 eggs;
- 3-4 tbsp. l flour;
- 50 g sour cream;
- 30–50 g of vegetable oil;
- garlic;
- spice.
For the sauce you need to take:
- 5 tablespoons sour cream;
- clove of garlic;
- chopped parsley;
- a pinch of salt.
To cook vegetables in batter, cauliflower buds should be boiled beforehand. Boil inflorescences either in a multicooker bowl, or in a conventional saucepan on the stove. As soon as they pierce easily, they are removed and cooled. Boiled until half ready vegetables can be sprinkled with salt and pepper.
While the inflorescences are boiling, it is worth making a batter. To make the batter, they put eggs and sour cream into the container, salt it and add flour. The consistency of the mixture will resemble a thick dough for making pancakes. You need to stir it until they stop falling lumps. After mixing, add herbs to the mixture.
During this time, the inflorescences have cooled, you can continue to prepare the dish in batter. 3-4 cups should be poured into the bowl. l oil and set the mode "Fry" or "Fat". Boiled inflorescences are dipped into a batter so that they are completely covered and then gently dipped into the bowl. Using a wooden or plastic spoon, they begin to turn over so that the cabbage roasts evenly from all sides and has a golden color.
It is better to put the vegetables in batter on a paper napkin, so you can get rid of excess fat.
To make the finished dish spicy, it is worth making a special sauce. Sour cream is poured into prepared dishes, garlic and chopped greens are added. The sauce is slightly salted. From above you can put a lot of fresh parsley, dill and cilantro. Sauce-boat is placed near cauliflower cooked in batter. Vegetables in batter will be tasty hot and cold.
For cooking cauliflower with a delicious crisp, you need to take the inflorescences, mix them with pre-beaten eggs, then salt and roll them in 3-4 tablespoons. spoons of semolina. To get a golden crisp, it is better to cook the dish in butter. Cooking time 15 minutes. While frying the cabbage, the lid on the slow cooker is not closed, the vegetables are mixed regularly. Prepare the dish in the mode "Frying" or "Baking".
If you need to cook a wholesome dish in a hurry, we recommend making a tasty and nourishing casserole. For this dish you can take both fresh and frozen vegetables.
Ingredients:
- 400–500 g of fresh cabbage;
- carrot;
- bow;
- 200 ml of milk;
- 3 tbsp. l sour cream;
- 1 egg;
- 50–100 g of hard cheese.
Such a casserole turns out very juicy, besides, the cooking process is very simple and does not require much effort. The process of making a quick-fry casserole is as follows:
- vegetables cut into small pieces;
- lay out vegetables in a bowl: cauliflower first, then onions and carrots;
- spread the grated cheese on a layer of vegetables;
- prepare pouring for the dish;
- To prepare the filling, you should mix the milk with the egg and add sour cream;
- add spices to taste;
- pour the poured into the bowl on top of vegetables;
- the device is turned on for 30–35 minutes. in the "Baking" mode.
When the dish is ready, it is removed from the container and sprinkled with herbs. To prevent the vegetable casserole from sticking to the crock-pot, it should be pre-lubricated with vegetable oil.
The casserole is best served at the table when it cools down a bit. It is cut into portions and served to the table. You can serve ketchup, bread toast or vegetable salad to this dish.
Those who prefer an omelet for breakfast should diversify this dish and add the healthy ingredient in the form of fresh or frozen cauliflower.
To make a lush omelet with cauliflower you need to take:
- 3 or 4 eggs;
- a glass of milk;
- cauliflower, its amount may be different with regard to the preferences of the culinary specialist;
- salt, ground black pepper, spices;
- parsley, dill;
- oil for lubricating the bowl.
To make an omelet with vegetables, you need:
- boil vegetables until half cooked;
- grease the bowl with butter;
- put the vegetables in the bowl;
- make a preparation of eggs and milk, for this, all the ingredients are mixed, spices are added;
- vegetables poured milky egg mixture;
- the device is turned on for 20–30 minutes;
- Prepare an omelet in the "Baking" mode.
When the omelet is ready, it is better to lay out on a large dish and sprinkle with grated cheese. You can put pieces of hard cheese side by side on a plate.
Tips
Cauliflower is rightly considered a storehouse of vitamins, so it is recommended to cook it in any form as often as possible. It is important to be able to choose fresh vegetables and cook them so that in the process to keep the maximum nutrients.
- When choosing cauliflower, you should give preference to heavy heads of medium size. It is better not to take loose heads, with flaccid leaves.
- This vegetable can be white, cream or greenish. The color of vegetables does not affect the taste of the finished dish. But inflorescences with dark patches are better not to take, they will still have to be cut off and there will be no benefit from them.
- Before cooking, cabbage is cut into florets and washed. It is advisable to lower the inflorescences for 10–20 minutes in a container with salted water, thanks to this technique, you can get rid of insects that may be inside the vegetable.
- Before baking, inflorescences boil in boiling water until half cooked or steamed for 10 minutes. If frozen cabbage is used, it is not defrosted before cooking.
- Cauliflower is prepared as a main dish, or used as an additional ingredient for meat, mushroom and vegetable dishes.
- It is better to cook dishes in a slow cooker in the mode "Baking", "Frying" or "Stewing".
You can cook very tasty and hearty dishes that will be appreciated by all family members. Men can enjoy a dish of pork ribs, baked with cauliflower or cook a hearty vegetable casserole with sausages, bacon and vegetables.
Given the beneficial properties of the product, nutritionists recommend that cauliflower dishes be included in the daily ration more often.
The classic recipe for cooking cauliflower in a slow cooker, see the next video.