Whether you need a side for burgers, an appetizer like loaded chili cheese tots, or a day starter like my breakfast tot nachos, these low carb cauliflower tots are perfect for any occasion.
And even better, they’re super easy to make and have 16 grams of protein per serving!
Ingredients for Low Carb Cauliflower Tots
Not counting spices, you’ll only need five ingredients.
- frozen cauliflower rice
- shredded cheddar and parmesan
- pork rinds (or breadcrumbs)
- eggs
- black pepper, chili powder, and smoked paprika
You’re welcome to use fresh cauliflower. I prefer frozen to save time and avoid food waste. If you go with fresh, ricing two heads of cauliflower should do the trick.
In addition to cauliflower rice, you’ll need pork rinds to make the tots extra crispy and provide a bit of structure for forming the tots.
If you have carbs to spare, you can use breadcrumbs or something like crushed pretzels in place of the pork rinds (gram for gram). This will save a few calories as well.
I would leave the cheese alone if possible. Different cheeses melt differently. So if you get too creative, your low carb cauliflower tots may turn into shredded cauliflower hash in the oven.
Final Recipe Notes
If you notice the wire rack in the photo above, learn from my mistake and go on the baking sheet like the recipe calls for. I thought the wire rack might help the tots get crispier, but they ended up melting through the rack a tiny bit and sticking.
Aside from that, you should be good to go. I’ll leave you with a few pairing ideas:
- air fryer chicken nuggets
- a base for my 100-calorie breakfast chili
- sub for the sweet potatoes in my chipotle beef sweet potato nachos
If you try these low carb cauliflower tots and any of the pairing ideas, let me know! Take a pic of your creation and tag me on Instagram @mason_woodruff or share it in my Facebook group.
Low Carb Cauliflower Tots
Ingredients
- 2 bags, 12 oz each Frozen Cauliflower Rice
- 1/2 C 56g Shredded Cheddar
- 1/2 C 56g Shredded Parmesan
- 2 oz Pork Rinds, finely crushed
- 1 Tbsp Black Pepper
- 1/2 Tbsp Chili Powder
- 1/2 Tbsp Smoked Paprika
- 2 large Eggs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or spray them with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
- Microwave both bags of cauliflower rice for 5 minutes or until the bags are lukewarm to the touch. Cut the corners and squeeze the bags to drain an excess water. Transfer to a paper towel or kitchen cloth and pat dry before adding to a large bowl.
- Add the spices, shredded cheese, and eggs to the cauliflower rice, stirring everything together.
- Add the pork rinds to a food processor and blend until they resemble breadcrumbs. Add the crumbs to the rice mixture, folding everything together. (Don't overmix or the cauliflower rice may turn into mashed fauxtatoes.)
- Use a tablespoon or small ice cream scooper to form each tot. This should make around 36 tots.
- Place the tots on the baking sheets, leaving a bit of space between each tot. Bake for 16-20 minutes or until the tots are golden brown.
If I don’t use pork rinds, how much bread crumbs should I use?
I would substitute 1:1 with breadcrumbs instead of pork rinds.
Love these BUT if you use bread crumbs instead of pork rinds, you need to add salt….. I’m guessing about 1/4-1/2 tsp. I found a whole tablespoon of black pepper to be way too much. Will use 1/2 tbsp next time.