Rich and silky, this keto mashed cauliflower tastes like the real thing because I steam it in chicken broth instead of water. Cream cheese and parmesan do the rest. 5.3g net carbs per serving.
I've been making this keto mashed cauliflower since I started keto in 2012, and it's the side dish I come back to more than any other. The reason mine tastes different from most cauliflower mash recipes is the cooking method. I steam the florets in chicken broth instead of boiling them in plain water. That broth infuses real flavor directly into the cauliflower, so you're not starting from a bland, waterlogged base and trying to fix it with add-ins.
The squeeze step is where this recipe actually happens. After the cauliflower is fork-tender, I drain it, sandwich it between paper towels, and press out every drop of liquid I can. Skipping this is the single biggest reason cauliflower mash turns into soup. Reader after reader has confirmed the same thing in the comments below. Tricia put it perfectly: "The cream cheese can only do so much if the cauliflower is still waterlogged."
Once the water is out, everything goes into a food processor with cream cheese, parmesan, salt, and pepper. The cream cheese makes it rich and thick, and the parmesan cuts any lingering cauliflower taste. I blend until it's completely smooth, and what comes out looks, feels, and tastes like real mashed potatoes. I've served this at Thanksgiving and nobody clocked it. Reader Keisha's husband, who grew up on Midwestern mashed potatoes, was halfway through the bowl before he asked what she did differently. That's the kind of review that matters to me.
Here's a tip nobody else mentions: if you want these to taste even more like real potatoes, try mashed potato extract. Start with one drop. Seriously, one. It's incredibly strong and you can always add more. I mentioned this to a reader a couple years ago and it's become one of my favorite tricks for skeptics.
Cauliflower: I use a whole head chopped into florets, but frozen florets or cauliflower rice work too. Frozen cuts the prep time, and I’ve written up exactly how to handle cauliflower rice in the FAQ below.
Chicken broth: This is the difference. Steaming in broth instead of water builds flavor into the cauliflower from the start. Homemade bone broth is even better if you have it.
Cream cheese: Two ounces makes it thick and creamy, and it covers up any lingering cauliflower taste. This is not optional.
Parmesan cheese: Works with the cream cheese to mask the cauliflower. I use freshly grated, not the stuff from the green can.
Which blending tool to use
I’ve made this with a food processor, a blender, an immersion blender, and a potato masher. They all work, but the results are different.
For smooth, creamy cauliflower mash, use a food processor or high-powered blender. That’s what I reach for most of the time. For a chunkier texture (more like smashed potatoes), an immersion blender or potato masher gets you there without over-processing.
My favorite add-ins
I switch these up depending on what I’m serving alongside:
Roasted garlic (3-4 cloves roasted until soft, mashed right in)
Sharp cheddar cheese
Crumbled bacon
Green onion or chives
Fresh rosemary or thyme
Parsley
A drizzle of olive oil on top
The roasted garlic version is my go-to for holiday dinners. It adds a deeper, sweeter garlic flavor without the raw bite. If you’d rather use sour cream instead of cream cheese, I’ve tried it and it works. Start with 1/4 cup and taste from there. Sour cream makes it a little tangier, which I actually prefer when I’m serving it alongside roasted chicken. I’ve had guests ask for the recipe thinking it was some kind of gourmet potato dish. If you want to go full cauliflower dinner, pair this with my keto mac and cheese.
How to make keto cauliflower mash
I steam my cauliflower in a skillet with butter and homemade chicken broth instead of boiling it in water. The broth adds real flavor to the cauliflower from the start, so you're not working against a bland base. I saute a couple garlic cloves in the butter first, then add the florets and broth and let it all simmer until a fork slides through easily (about 5-8 minutes).
Here's the step that makes or breaks this recipe: squeeze out every drop of liquid before blending. I drain the cauliflower, sandwich it between paper towels, and press hard. You'll be surprised how much water comes out. Skip this and you'll end up with cauliflower soup, not mashed cauliflower. Two ounces of cream cheese cannot save waterlogged cauliflower. Once it's dry, everything goes into the food processor with cream cheese, parmesan, salt, and pepper. Blend until smooth.
Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 to 2 minutes.
3
Cook cauliflower
Pour in cauliflower florets and broth. Simmer until cauliflower is tender, about 5-8 minutes.
4
Press out liquid
Drain fluid. Squeeze out excess fluid from the cauliflower by placing it between two paper towels. Get as much fluid out as possible for thick mashed cauliflower.
5
Puree
In a food processor or blender, combine the cooked cauliflower, cream cheese, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Puree until smooth.
Nutrition
Per serving: 1/4 of recipe
Calories
198
Fat
14.8g
Protein
7.2g
Total carbs
8.3g
Net carbs
5.3g
Nutrition is an estimate calculated from the ingredients listed. Brands vary, so check labels if you track closely.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use frozen cauliflower florets or cauliflower rice instead?
I've made this with all three: fresh florets, frozen florets, and cauliflower rice. Fresh is cheapest but frozen cuts the prep time down to nothing. For cauliflower rice, cook it in a dry skillet with a little oil and no water until most of the moisture evaporates. Then sandwich it in paper towels and squeeze hard. That extra step kills the cauliflower smell too. I gave this exact advice to a reader a few years ago and it works every time.
Can I make this ahead, freeze it, or reheat it without it getting watery?
I freeze this all the time. I make double batches specifically so I can stash portions in the freezer for busy nights, and the texture holds up fine. To reheat, I microwave it with a small splash of chicken broth, not water, and stir halfway through. The broth adds flavor back instead of diluting it. If anything, the mash gets a little thicker as it sits, so that splash of liquid brings it right back to where it started.
Can I make this dairy-free?
I haven't tested a fully dairy-free version myself yet, but I'd swap the butter for ghee or coconut oil, and use coconut cream in place of the cream cheese. You'll lose some of the richness the parmesan and cream cheese bring, so I'd add extra salt and maybe a tablespoon of nutritional yeast to compensate. If you try it, let me know how it turns out in the comments.
How do I make the mash thicker?
The squeeze step is everything. I mean it. Squeeze the cauliflower between paper towels until you think you've gotten all the water out, then squeeze again. If it's still not thick enough after blending, I add a little more cream cheese or 1 teaspoon of arrowroot powder. I've honestly never needed the arrowroot when I squeeze properly.
Silky is not an exaggeration! Mine comes out so SMOOTH I keep waiting to hit a lump and it never happens. This is a regular side here now, and last time I used turkey stock instead of chicken since I had some in the freezer. It was a little richer, and the pepper came through more. Thank you for this one!
Confession: food processor, not immersion blender. I’d been defaulting to the immersion blender on every cauliflower dish for years, and this recipe is what finally made the tool choice click. Cooking the florets in broth means the liquid gets absorbed rather than pooling at the bottom, so you’re not blending loose soup. The cream cheese and parmesan bind to something solid. I’ve made other cauliflower mash that went thin by the time it hit the plate; this one holds and reheats without separating. At 5.3 net carbs it fits easily into a full meal.
You nailed why it holds. I kept an immersion blender in the drawer for years and it never once gave me mash that stayed thick, so the food processor is what I reach for now too.
Not my first thought for a mixed-diet dinner party, but cream cheese and parmesan make it feel like real comfort food. Three people came back for more after the main course. Better than a compliment.
Honestly I thought cauliflower mash was for people who’d decided food wasn’t fun anymore, which isn’t fair but that was my position for most of the year. Then a head went soft in the crisper and I made this rather than throw it out. The garlic in butter smells genuinely good, and simmering in broth instead of boiling in water made a difference I could actually detect while it was cooking. Color came out richer. The food processor with cream cheese and parmesan turned it into something fluffy, nothing like the waterlogged versions I’d had at places trying to be keto-friendly. I’d call it four stars because it’s not mashed potatoes and I’m not going to lie about that, but I served it with chicken thighs last week and forgot to miss the real thing through the whole meal. Kind of what I needed it to do.
Steaming the cauliflower in chicken broth instead of boiling it was the step that finally made this work for me. I’ve tried other versions before and always ended up with something thin and watery, but pressing out the liquid before blending made the texture actually hold. Do you think this works the same with frozen cauliflower florets, or does the extra water content throw things off?
Frozen works fine, I use it when I don’t feel like chopping a whole head. More moisture means the press step takes longer, I give it a solid 2-3 minutes under a heavy pan instead of just squeezing over the sink. Spread on a dish towel, put weight on it. The broth-steam still does its thing.
I have made at least four other cauliflower mash recipes and they all had that waterlogged, vaguely sad quality that makes you feel like you’re being punished for being keto. This one is different and I think it’s the broth steaming that changes everything, because by the time you add the cream cheese you’re already working with something that tastes like it has a reason to exist. Mine came out freaking rich. Not “pretty good for cauliflower” rich, actually rich. My only note is I could’ve squeezed out more liquid before blending, mine was slightly looser than I wanted, but I’ll fix that next time.
Yeah squeeze until you think you’re done, then squeeze again. Most of the extra liquid is in that second squeeze. “Freaking rich” is exactly what I was going for with this one.
Is the chicken broth thing actually what makes it taste better? Every cauliflower mash I’ve tried ends up flat even with butter and cream cheese. Maybe that’s the missing piece.
That’s it. Water-steamed cauliflower is just wet and bland no matter what you add after. The broth gets absorbed while it cooks, so the flavor’s already built in before the cream cheese even touches it.
I doubled the parmesan (half a cup instead of a quarter) and it gave the whole thing so much more body. That sharp bite cuts right through the cream cheese. One tip: if your food processor runs hot, pulse it rather than blend continuously or it’ll go gluey fast.
Yeah, more parmesan makes it feel like real mashed potatoes instead of just cauliflower. The food processor tip is legit, I’ve gone too long before and it goes from fluffy to gluey in about ten seconds.
My daughter was just told she has a dairy sensitivity and we’ve been doing keto together, so I’m trying to figure out how to adapt our favorites. Would dairy-free cream cheese still blend smooth in this or does it turn gummy? She loves mashed cauliflower so I really want to get this right for her.
I haven’t tested dairy-free cream cheese in this one, but some brands do go gummy when blended. Coconut cream is a cleaner swap, blends out completely smooth.
My husband grew up on Midwestern mashed potatoes and is always suspicious of cauliflower substitutes. He was halfway through the bowl before he asked what I did differently. That said more than any compliment. Squeeze the water out before blending. Skipped it once, got soup. Four stars because it took two tries to nail the texture, but it’s in the regular rotation now.
Skeptics who don’t notice until they’re halfway through the bowl. That’s the real review. Two tries is pretty standard with cauliflower texture, glad it clicked.
Squeeze the cauliflower in a dish towel until you are surprised by how much liquid comes out. Skipped that step once and could not figure out why mine was soupy. The cream cheese can only do so much if the cauliflower is still waterlogged.
Wow, you can’t tell that it is cauliflower. Everyone really thought they were delish, will definitely be making more of this. Not hard to do and fantastic.
I’d pour it back in the pot with a splash more chicken broth and turn it into gravy. Xanthan gum, 1/8 teaspoon at a time, until it coats a spoon. Or just freeze it.
To use cauliflower rice, cook it in a skillet with a little bit of oil and no water. Try to cook out most of the moisture from it. Then remove it from the skillet and sandwich it in between paper towels. Squeeze out any excess fluid from the cauliflower. Then continue with the recipe. This should help get rid of the cauliflower smell too.
