Microwave Vegan Cauliflower Mash

When did cauliflowers get so trendy?! There must have been a huge surge in cauliflower sales in the last five years or so, since everyone started getting giddy with excitement about cauliflower rice, cauliflower pizza bases, and cauliflower steaks.  

Vegan cauliflower mash was a bit of a revelation to me when I first tried it - puréed cauliflower actually tastes surprisingly un-cauliflowery, (is that a word?). It is smooth and 'buttery' if you purée it with dairy-free cream and margarine, and takes on any flavours you choose to pair it with, (in this case, dijon mustard and vegan cheese or nutritional yeast).

I call it mash, but in fact this only becomes mash-like when you blitz it to a purée with a blender or food processor. If you mash it with a potato masher it just won't have that smooth and creamy texture.

I've made it in many different ways over the years but always come back to this very easy microwave method. It is just so quick and very straightforward and ready in less than 10 minutes.

👩🏽‍🍳 Variations and flavour ideas

If mustard and/or vegan cheese aren't you're thing or wouldn't go with what you're serving this with, you could flavour your cauliflower mash with:

• Vegan pesto
• Sun-dried tomato paste
• Fresh herbs (finely chopped parsley and basil would be lovely in the summer)
• Spring onions and finely-chopped kale for a colcannon-style mash
• Curry powder, (cooked gently for a minute or two in the dairy-free margarine before adding it to the mash)

Let me know what you do with yours!

📝 What you need

Ingredients

• Cauliflower
• Dairy-free margarine
• Dairy-free cream or milk
• Vegan cheese or nutritional yeast flakes (optional)
• Dijon mustard

Equipment

You will need a fairly large lidded microwaveable dish - I make this mash so often I actually bought one specially which is really good, similar to this one by Sistema.

A stick blender is the easiest way to blitz your carrot and swede mash to a smooth and silky purée. No pouring into a blender, just stick it in the pan and blitz. Mine is by Dualit and has served me well for many years, but any good quality stick blender will do the job well.

You can of course mash it by hand with a standard potato masher, but you will never achieve that smooth consistency of a restaurant-standard mash without a blender.

🔪 Microwave or stovetop?

The instructions below are to cook this cauliflower mash in the microwave, as that's what I find quickest and easiest. But if you don't have a microwave or prefer to cook it on the hob, that's absolutely fine.

Just steam the cauliflower - either in a steamer over a pan or water, or by cooking in a lidded pot with the vegan butter and a little water. When the cauliflower is just tender, drain off any excess water then blitz as per the recipe.

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🍽 If you liked that...

.... you might also enjoy these vegan recipes from The Veg Space: