Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Cauliflower Pizza Crust comes out crispy, you can hold the slice and use fresh or frozen cauliflower, or cauliflower rice to make it. Tasty, low carb, naturally gluten-free and grain-free pizza crust with rave reviews!

We also love this almond flour pizza crust, cottage cheese pizza crust and cottage cheese flatbread!

You are looking at the best cauliflower pizza crust on the web! It is crispy, cheesy and you can really hold the slice. Nobody likes a soggy pizza crust!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Foolproof recipe: Well-tested recipe with detailed video instructions and over 480 five star reviews!
• Low carb: One slice of cauliflower pizza contains 4 grams of carbs compared even to my cottage cheese pizza crust with 28 grams of carbs per slice.
• Tasty: I will not lie, this low carb crust doesn’t taste like traditional pizza crust and has a bit of cauliflower flavor. But it is still very tasty and cheesy!
• Crispy: This cauliflower crust pizza is not soggy, you can hold the slice and it will satisfy your pizza cravings!
• Versatile: You can make it with fresh or frozen cauliflower, or cauliflower rice.

Ingredients for Cauliflower Pizza Crust

To make this cauliflower pizza crust recipe, you will need just 7 simple ingredients, including salt and pepper.

• Cauliflower: You will need a large head of cauliflower, 6″ – 7″ in diameter, about 2 – 2.5 pounds. Or you can use two 12-16 oz packages of store bought fresh or frozen cauliflower rice.
• Egg: Egg is part of “the glue” that holds cauliflower pizza dough together.
• Parmesan cheese: As cheese melts during baking, it helps to bind small pieces of cauliflower into a crust. Cheese is crucial, so is the egg. If you need to avoid both, try vegan cauliflower pizza crust.
• Spices: Simple dried herbs like oregano, basil or Italian seasoning plus salt and pepper add flavor to the crust. Also you can add garlic powder. Otherwise, cauliflower by itself is pretty bland vegetable.

What Is the Best Cauliflower to Use?

This is the most asked question! There are a few options when it comes to making cauliflower rice for the pizza crust.

• Fresh head of cauliflower
• Cauliflower rice (fresh or frozen)
• Frozen cauliflower florets

I have tested all options and it truly doesn’t matter which cauliflower you use for this recipe. It comes down to your budget and your grocery store’s stock. You will save time by using cauliflower rice and frozen florets, and you will save money (in most cases) if you use a head of cauliflower.

If you are wondering, I used fresh cauliflower this time.

How to Cook Each Type of Cauliflower

Here is a quick breakdown how to cook each type of cauliflower for the cauliflower pizza crust.

Fresh Cauliflower

• Separate cauliflower: Using a paring knife, remove the outer leaves, rinse it and separate florets one by one. Here is easy tutorial on how to cut cauliflower. Core is used too, so do not discard.
• Rice it: Place cauliflower florets in a food processor and process until “rice” texture, some coarse chunks are fine. Here is detailed tutorial how to make cauliflower rice.
• Cook it: There are 2 options. You can either spread “the rice” on same baking sheet you will be baking crust on or in a baking dish and bake at 375 F for 15 minutes. Or cook it in a microwave-safe bowl for 8 minutes.

Cauliflower Rice

To cook pre-made cauliflower rice, all you have to do is microwave it in a large bowl for 8 minutes or bake in the oven at 375 F for 15 minutes. Same process as with homemade cauli rice above.

No need to defrost first!

Frozen Cauliflower Florets

Thaw cauliflower in the fridge overnight and then process in your food processor. Cook it as with other types of cauliflower.

How to Make Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Now that you have your cauliflower ready, here is step-by-step process how to make cauliflower pizza crust with it. There is also a full recipe card and video below.

• Cool cooked cauliflower: If you cooked the cauliflower, you will have to let it cool first because we will be touching the ball with hands to squeeze. Line large bowl with cheesecloth or linen kitchen towel, transfer cauliflower to it and let cool until safe to the touch.
• Squeeze the water out: Holding by the four corners of a cheesecloth with one hand, squeeze out as much liquid and moisture as you can with another hand. I squeezed and then moved the cauliflower around a bit, and squeezed more. You should be left with a cauliflower mash that is very-very dry and about 1 1/2 cups of liquid.

• Make pizza crust dough: Transfer squeezed cauliflower to a large bowl. Add egg, Italian seasoning, cheese, salt, pepper, and mix well.
• Shape the crust: Line rectangle or round sheet pan, or pizza stone with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray well. Transfer cauliflower mixture onto it and using your hands, flatten the dough into about 11 inches wide crust. Make edges same thickness too.

• Bake it: Bake cauliflower crust at 450 degrees F for 20 minutes or until golden brown and crispy edges. For more crispy crust, flip and bake for a few more minutes.
• Add toppings and bake: Add pizza sauce, toppings of choice, cheese and bake again until cheese is melted. Do not overload the baked crust with heavy toppings as you won’t be able to hold the slice then.

Toppings Ideas for Cauliflower Pizza Crust

• Mediterranean: Marinara sauce, bell pepper, tomato, olives, red onion, feta cheese and fresh parsley or fresh basil.
• Chicken and pepper: Marinara sauce, sliced grilled chicken breast or baked chicken breast or Instant Pot chicken breast, olives, red onion and cheese.
• Cheese: My favorite!
• Asian: Shredded baked honey garlic chicken, finely chopped broccoli, thinly sliced white onion, sriracha and mozzarella cheese.
• Shrimp: Cook shrimp and make sauce as per my shrimp taco recipe, and use fresh mozzarella or provolone cheese. So good!

Tips for Best Results

• Squeeze more than you think: The best advice I can give you for foolproof cauliflower crust is to squeeze cooled cauliflower very well. You really do need to squeeze out more water than you think you’ll ever be able to. Cauliflower should be pretty dry. I squeezed for about 3-4 minutes, until I couldn’t get any more liquid out. If your hands and arms are sore for a bit after, you did it well.
• Size and thickness: You should end up with 10-11 inches wide crust. Make it too thick, and it will be soggy. Make it too thin and it will fall apart.
• Edges: Don’t make edges too thin because they will burn. After you get the crust right size, go around the edges and push them lightly with a palm of your hand.
• Don’t add too many toppings: Do not overload cauliflower crust pizza with too many ingredients because it will become soggy and fall apart.
• Let it cool a bit: If you really want to be able to hold the slice, let cauliflower pizza cool on a baking sheet for 2 minutes, then slice, transfer carefully onto a plate and cool for another minute. Crust will set and solidify on a cool plate!
• Double the recipe: Make 2 cauliflower crust pizzas at a time if you want to feed more than two people. Means two large heads of cauliflower.
• If you don’t have a food processor: Grate cauliflower on a box grater.

How to Freeze It

Because making cauliflower pizza crust is pretty labor intensive, I highly recommend to double or triple the recipe and freeze at least one crust for later! You can freeze 2 larger crusts or 4 smaller individual pizza crusts.

To do so, bake and cool pizza crust and wrap it either in a few layers of plastic wrap or place smaller crusts in a resealable large Ziploc bags.

Freeze for up to 3 months. When you are craving pizza, place frozen crust on a pizza sheet and bake at 400 degrees F for 10 minutes. Then add toppings and bake for another 5-10 minutes.

FAQs

If you have been waiting to jump on the cauliflower pizza crust bandwagon, here is your chance. I think I took all the guessing out for you. Make it and please let me know how your cauliflower pizza recipe turns out!

More Pizza Crust Recipes

• Oatmeal pizza crust
• Sweet potato pizza crust

More Cauliflower Recipes to Try

• Cauliflower breadsticks
• Cauliflower biscuits
• Air fryer buffalo cauliflower
• Cauliflower mashed potatoes
• Cauliflower potato salad
• Cauliflower fried rice