Cauliflower Rice Carne Asada Bowls with Mango Salsa.
The perfect Monday Bowl: Cauliflower Rice Carne Asada Bowl!
Especially after a long Easter weekend when many of us may have had just a little too much sugar and are in need of something slightly healthier, BUT don’t really want a salad. Don’t worry, I have you covered and it’s going to be delicious!
I could not be happier to bring you this colorful dinner today. It’s a reflection of all the things I’m loving right now and these bowls radiate with serious Mexican flavor…which you know I love!
First though, how was everyone’s Easter weekend? On Saturday, Miss Asher walked her little self down to my house and convinced me go with her and my dad to see some horses over at a ranch a few miles down the road. My dad’s friend owns some horses and one of them just had a baby, so he invited Asher over to come see it. The little guy was just five days old and probably the cutest thing ever. If you follow me on Instagram you saw all the snaps of the cute little baby and his mom. We weren’t there too long, but it convinced me that horses definitely need to happen over here pretty soon! We have the chickens and the goats, so obviously horses are the next step. I mean, right?
Easter Sunday was spent cooking away…what’s new? We had almost a complete Gerard family dinner, minus my oldest brother Creighton, and my brother just above me, Brendan. Somehow, everyone else was at the table. Kai is in town for surgery that he had done on Wednesday to repair a torn ACL, Red flew in on Saturday (he’ll be off again on Friday I believe), and the rest of us live here in Colorado! It was a pretty simple dinner, but perfect none the less. It’s always nice when Kai and Red are both around! What did you guys do?
Oh, and we also had sunny skies all weekend, so that was a major added bonus. PLUS I’ve even seen a few flowers popping up out of the ground. YES. Signs of life. Whoop, whoop!
Okok, on to Mexi food talk now!
How incredible do these bowls sound? I can’t hide my excitement for them. They’re full of color, flavor and texture, plus healthy at the same time. Yes, please!
Question: have you guys gotten on this whole cauliflower rice craze? They are now selling it already riced at grocery stores and people seem to be buying it off the shelves! I went to Whole Foods the other day looking for it and there was none in sight. They where completely out! I heard even Costco is selling it now?
Anyway, I’ve actually been making cauliflower rice for years. Or well, let me rephrase that, I made it years and years ago for a while when I was on a serious health kick, but somehow forgot about it until someone mentioned she made this recipe of mine, but used the cauliflower rice instead of quinoa. That got me thinking about cauliflower rice and then this bowl was created. Now I can’t get enough of everything happening here. It’s layer after layer of flavor.
If you’re new to carne asada, it’s simply Mexican marinated steak with tons of orange and lime and just a kick of heat. You want to start this recipe off by marinating the meat. You can marinate it anywhere from thirty minutes to overnight. If I can remember, I really like to marinate it overnight for super tender meat and great flavor. It’s one of my favorite meat marinades. SO GOOD.
Once you have your meat marinading, it’s time to make the rice! Like I said, you can now buy pre-chopped cauliflower rice at many grocery stores (Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Costco are the three I know of), but you can also just add a large head of cauliflower to a food processor and pulse until it becomes a rice consistency. Easy as that! I like to roast the riced cauliflower in the oven to not only warm it, but toast it up at well. Then I finish with hit of lime juice and a little cilantro. If you’re one of those people who think cilantro tastes like soap, try swapping in basil. Different flavor, but still delish!
And then, no good Mexi inspired meal would be complete without a little salsa! Yup, yup! Top this dish with a little mango salsa and you’ll have dinner perfection…any night of the week! Not gonna lie, the salsa is probably my favorite part, but I feel like I say that every time I pair a recipe with salsa. I can’t help it, it’s my favorite!
Also, you can use this carne asada recipe for tacos, burritos, etc. The leftovers are insanely good topped with a fried egg. Just sayin’.
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Cauliflower Rice Carne Asada Bowls with Mango Salsa
By halfbakedharvest
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: mango salsa, rice bowl, steak
A beautiful rice bowl with marinated steak
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds flank steak
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup orange juice
- 4 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 1 chipotle pepper in adobo, chopped (or 2 teaspoons chili powder)
- zest and juice of 1 lime
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- shredded lettuce, sliced avocado, and cheese, for serving
Cauliflower Rice
Mango Salsa
- 1 mango, chopped
- 1 jalapeño, seeded and chopped
- juice of 1 lime
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Instructions
-
1. Add the steak to a ziplock bag and add the olive oil, orange juice, garlic, chipotle peppers, lime zest and juice, and the cilantro. Seal the bag and marinate 30 minutes or in the fridge as long as overnight.
2. Meanwhile, make the cauliflower rice. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
3. Spread the riced cauliflower out on a large baking sheet and toss together with the olive oil, cumin, and a large pinch of salt. Transfer to the oven and cook 10 minutes, toss and cook 10 minutes more or until the cauliflower is tender. Remove and stir in the cilantro and juice + zest of 1/2 a lime juice.
4. Preheat your grill or grill pan to high.
5. Remove the steak from its marinade and sear the steak for 5-8 minutes, flip and sear another 5 minutes or until your desired doneness is reached. Remove the steak from the grill and allow to rest 10 minutes. Slice steak thinly against the grain.
6. To make the salsa. In a bowl, combine the mango, jalapeño, lime juice, cilantro, and a pinch of salt.
7. To serve, divide the rice among bowls and top with steak, lettuce, avocado, salsa, and cheese, EAT!
Oh, and don’t forget the chips and guac! Happy Monday guys!
Somehow you always know just what I want to eat right now. This is a perfect Monday night dinner.
Thanks for the inspiration.
I don’t know how, but sure am happy your liking everything (:
Thank you!
That steak looks incredible! I’ve actually just bought some cauli rice today to try out. I love mango and lime together so might give this a try. Danielle || Miss Danielle
So perfect, if you do decide to i hope you love it!
Your dishes are beautiful and tasty thanks for sharing
Thank you so much!
Yum! This is so colorful and gorgeous
Thank you Sara!
What a bright, delicious, beautiful bowl Tieghan! Perfect for a Monday. And perfect after a weekend of indulging!
Thats how I felt after this weekend! Needed this one. So happy you like it (:
Cauliflower rice is the best! Mex-flared takes it over the top 🙂
Agreed!! So happy you like it Lindsay (:
I love these bowls for any night of the week, and that mango salsa is so pretty – such a fun taste of summer! 🙂
Thanks Laura (:
It looks delicious and yummy
Thanks so much!
LOVE this healthier version of carne asada!!
Thanks a bunch Jennifer!
That steak looks perfect! I love the pairing with the cauliflower rice and mango salsa. So fresh and light with the steak!
I was so excited about it! So happy you like it too (:
Perfect lunch, dinner, whatever, this looks so good!
My lunch and dinner!! Thanks Matt (:
Wonder how this would be with chicken instead of steak. What do you think?
I think chicken will be great, just swap for the steak, but make sure to cook it all the way through. Let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this! 🙂
This is freaking brilliant!!! cauliflower rice?! love it here!! delicious!!
Ah yay, thanks Alice!
Perfect lunch, dinner, whatever, this looks so good!
Wow, thanks so much!
This looks amazing! Tips for making the steak on the stove?
Hey Lauren! I would just get your skillet real hot and then sear on the skillet,, maybe 5-8 minutes per side. But it will depend on the thickness of your steak. Let me know if you have questions. Thanks!
Rockin’ recipe – shared with hubby and we collectively got all the ingredients and had this last night..super yummers! Love protein, spice, citrus together! We had some slender asparagus/ green beans, pan roasted them in cast iron & added them in.. also had some charred pineapple leftover..OK..it’s a bowl! Everything down to the cauliflower rice, which is a staple, got major thumbs up at dinner last night! AND now you have more to play with coconut shrimp and spicy fish taco’s…oh how can you not adore Mexican food especially when it is this inspired – Ole Tieghan!
SO happy you guys made it!
Sounds so yummy! Sounds like you guys loved it (: Thanks so much Tammy!
Thinking of trying cauliflower, you rice it, is it cooked first or do you rice it raw. The dish looks so yummy.
Hey Bridget! Add the cauliflower raw to a food processor and then pulse until it resembles rice. Let me know if you have questions. Hope you love this recipe! 🙂
Turned out wonderful! A hit!
Thank you!
If I use the cauliflower rice that comes frozen from Trader Joe’s would you recommend I let it that first? Also, is it recommended to prep the salsa in advance? Does it keep well?
Hey Cody, I am sorry, I am not sure what exactly you are asking. I think you maybe typed something wrong?
ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE! I’m kind of a Half Baked Harvest groupie… as in… I’ve made seriously over 100 of your recipes ?Just made this tonight and it is the perfect Monday dinner to pair with a margarita to cure your Monday blues! Thanks for the tastes, Tieghan!
WOW!! SO cool you have made that many of my recipes!! Thank you so much Lauren!!
Wow – what an informative blog site – i need to spend more time here and intend to do so
Thanks, so happy you like the blog!
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I made the carne asada part of this recipe for dinner and it was fantastic! Super flavorful and easy to make. We served it on corn tortillas with peppers, onions, cheese, and mango/pineapple salsa. Delicious!
Yum! I am so glad you enjoyed the carne asada Hil! Thank you!
The meat had zero flavor, wasn’t bad bud would make changes next time
Hi Kelly! Are there any questions I can help you with? xTieghan
What kind of cheese does the recipe contemplate me using? It just says cheese and there are so many kinds of cheese in the world. I could use a more specific description of the the type of cheese. thanks, Mark
Hey Mark, I like to use crumbled feta cheese. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan