Roasted cauliflower goes from boring to addictive when tossed with Indian spices. Serve this alongside curry or Sunday’s roast chicken. It’s that versatile!
Roasted Cauliflower Recipe with Indian Spices
I’m not sure anything I write about roasted cauliflower can do it justice. Perhaps it’s enough to tell you that I ate this with my fingers, popping the cumin and coriander-spiced florets into my mouth faster than a teenaged girl pops M&Ms after a bad breakup. What is typically considered a side dish became an afternoon snack. But I had competition for these tender, golden brown morsels – he’s 7 and he has a penchant for veggies. Did I ever mention that, as a baby, my son’s skin started to turn orange from eating too many helpings of pureed sweet potatoes and carrots? What’s worse is that I didn’t even notice until a friend pointed it out to me. What do you mean that’s not a natural skin color? Not one of my finer maternal moments.
Over the past week, I have been craving healthy meals. Well, besides those Peach Crumb Bars and my son’s chocolate cake. I’m pretending that those don’t count. Humor me. Aside from those indiscretions, my cravings led me to make several vegetarian dishes, including Black Bean Cakes, Mushroom & Cannellini Ragout and a batch of my Crockpot Chickpea Stew with Caramelized Onions. Cauliflower became the next target.
Roasting cauliflower lends a nutty flavor to this otherwise mellow-tasting vegetable and transforms it from a vegetable that often sits on the bottom of the vegetable list to one that is positively irresistible. This recipe requires a minimal amount of ingredients and only a few minutes of active prep time. Simply toss the cauliflower in a mixture of olive oil and spices, and then let the oven do the rest of the work.
The roasted cauliflower recipe:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Cut one medium head of cauliflower into florets, about 1 1/2-inches each. Transfer the florets to a baking sheet.
In a small bowl, stir together olive oil, ground cumin, ground coriander and kosher salt.
Pour the olive oil mixture over the cauliflower and, using your hands, toss to coat the cauliflower.
Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and roast the cauliflower, turning occasionally, until it is tender and golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Serve.
Other cauliflower recipes:
Cookin’ Canuck’s Ginger, Jalapeno & Coconut Brown Rice with Cauliflower
Cookin’ Canuck’s Sage & Gorgonzola Cauliflower Soup
Indian Simmer’s Aloo Gobhi (Potato & Cauliflower)
No Recipes’ Farro & Roasted Cauliflower Salad
Roasted Cauliflower with Indian Spices (Cumin & Coriander) Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 2 1/2 pound head cauliflower
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
- Cut cauliflower into florets, about 1½-inches each. Transfer the florets to a baking sheet.
- In a small bowl, stir together olive oil, ground cumin, ground coriander and kosher salt.
- Pour the olive oil mixture over the cauliflower and, using your hands, toss to coat the cauliflower.
- Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and roast the cauliflower, turning occasionally, until it is tender and golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Serve.
Nutrition
Disclosure: I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
Heather (Heather's Dish) says
i love roasted cauliflower but i’m always looking for ways to spice it up – this sounds incredible! so warm and flavorful 🙂
Curt says
That’s awesome that your son eats his veggies and likes them. He won’t grow up to be a picky eater.
I love cumin, and that roasted cauliflower looks very tasty!
Belinda @zomppa says
Gosh, so simple but perfect. I adore cauliflower.
Sanjeeta kk says
So simple yet full of flavors and health! Love the spice mix.
Khushboo says
I love cauliflower and this is such a healthy way of eating it. I reckon this would be nice with a sprinkling of garam masala too!
Jeanette says
My kid love roasted cauliflower, and now I’ve got some of my girlfriends hooked. Will have to try making it with these Indian spices as that’s another favorite cuisine.
Rachel @Balance and Blueberries says
I love how simple and tasty this looks. I can’t wait to try it!
Alison @ Ingredients, Inc. says
so pretty!
Bev Weidner says
This post has me singing praises and I’M SERIOUS. I’m so in love with roasted cauliflower with Indian spices that I can just retire for the day and go back to bed.
Pretend Chef says
Looks so delicious. I love roasted veggies and I bet the flavor of this with the Indian spices is amazing.
My German Kitchen...in the Rockies says
I always roast my cauliflower. It brings out the best flavors. I like your spice combo with it!
carolinaheartstrings says
This cauliflower looks fantastic. So did the video. Nice job.
naomi says
Great recipe I love cumin with most everything. I would be popping them like crazy as well.
And gorgeous photos!
Louise says
I’ve got a recipe for Roasted Balsamic Cauliflower that is delish!
http://basildevelopment.blogspot.com/2010/12/roasted-balsamic-cauliflower.html
Tara @ Chip Chip Hooray says
Yum! It always makes me sad that cauliflower gets no love amongst its vegetable breathren…I think this spice kick will fix that. 🙂
Jack Etsweiler says
I added some Turmeric for color (as much as anything), and I put the spices, salt and olive oil into a large-enough bowl, stirred everything into a paste (you might need a bit more oil), and then tossed the cauliflower florets, with “impeccably-clean hands” (nod to Julia Child there) with the spice paste. Seems to make slightly less of a cleanup mess, and you can line the baking pan with parchment paper or a Matfer to simplify things further. Lovely recipe. Greetings from Ann Arbor, MI.
Big City Eater says
Looks good. We have been trying to eat more cauliflower as it is so good for you and I will try this one for sure. I made a gratin with it and thoroughly enjoyed it. Here it is if you want to try a different approach – http://bigcityeater.blogspot.com/2011/04/cauliflower-gratin.html
Keep up the good work my fellow Canadian. 🙂
CJWiggs says
My daughter turned orange for a bit, too, as a baby. Hard not to when all the baby vegetables seem to be green or orange. Only her “orange” was on her nose and her chin. So we had a dirty-looking orange baby. Everyone always wanted to wipe her face. 🙂
Chris @ TheKeenanCookBook says
Great job on TV! I would have been nervous and throwing in a lot of uh and ums, probably with a few deer in head light looks 🙂
When I saw this recipe title I thought you were going to include curry, which would have made me sad. See, my first run in with curry was in Japan during a summer abroad. My first day walking to university I stopped in a local bakery for breakfast with fellow foreigners and, to my pleasant delight, saw a jelly donut. What luck! Comfort food at its finest thousands of miles from home. Just what I needed on this first day of school in a foreign country.
I buy my sugar frosted donut and merrily continue my walk to the university. I take a big bite out of that donut as I’m walking. Only instead of the sweet taste of jelly I got hit with the quite strong flavor of curry – yes, it was filled with curry. I had never had curry before, and expecting jelly only made this mistake worse. I had no drink to wash it down. It was 90 degrees already at 7am. My new friends are laughing at me (It was funny, in retrospect) Unpleasant? Yes! Needless to say, I am still recovering from that incident and only occasionally venture something with curry flavoring.
Anyway… Long comment here. Sorry. Glad you didn’t include curry. This looks like a tasty and healthy recipe, and encourages me to cook a little healthier 🙂
Donna says
Cauliflower just screams out “autumn” to me – must try your spiced and roasted version!
Katherine Martinelli says
You are so right about roasted cauliflower! It’s the best. I really love how it brings out a nutty flavor. This recipe looks sensational. And congrats on the TV segment!!
JulieD says
Like I said before you’re a natural on tv! 🙂
Barbara | Creative Culinary says
The weird thing about cauliflower, well at least for me, is that I never really crave it, only seldom buy it and then when I make something from it…I could eat the whole thing. Maybe that’s why I don’t buy it, for fear of cauliflower addiction?
Roasted I’ve not done. Now I must!
Katrina says
Love roasted veggies. I love what Barbara just said–I really like it, too, and don’t buy it that often. Maybe it’s an addiction. 😉
Lauren from Lauren's Latest says
Oh, Dara! You did great! And, good for you for roasting vegetables. People don’t do it nearly enough. It’s so easy and delicious!
Deborah says
I need some healthy in my life after the way I’ve eaten the last couple days. I love roasted veggies, and this cauliflower sounds amazing!
Krista {Budget Gourmet Mom} says
These look delicious! I really love cauliflower but have never tried roasting in. Something I need to remedy, soon!
a spoonful of yumm says
simple flavors and so tasty ! i make it often at home… love the pictures
bellini says
I am a firm believer that if made in the right way I would love anything, including cauliflower. I have tried it roasted and its nuttiness would be perfect on pizza.
Drick says
love both recipes, always looking for ways to use cauliflower and this Dara is a good one… like the bean dip too as mentioned before, and wow, you did so good on the food segments… makes the dip even that much better seeing you prepare it…
marla says
You are awesome on TV Dara. Sooo fun to watch you. A natural 🙂
Isn’t it funny how our comfort foods change as we grow….back in those m&m’s days I would have thought you were nuts to put roasted cauliflower in the “crave” category. These days I much prefer this healthy approach….though a few handfuls of chocolate treats might be nice for after 😉
Frank says
I love cauliflower, especially with pasta, but this looks like a delicious new way to make it. Thanks for expanding my horizons!
foodwanderings says
Hi Dara, I love cauliflower and in facct made it twice for some reason recently. I love your version of roasted with some Indian spices. Super healthy. Congrats on your TV appearance!!
Jen at The Three Little Piglets says
Great job on your tv spots! You seemed so relaxed – I think I might have babbled like an idiot…
HeatherChristo says
Dara- what a great episode! you are fabulous on camera- congratulations!!
grace says
Thank you for this recipe. Never thought cauliflower could taste so good. Big hit in my family. We may not be able to eat cauliflower any other way in the future.
Dara (Cookin' Canuck) says
I”m so glad you enjoyed this! Thank you for letting me know.
Mai says
I love roasted cauliflower. I always eat this as a snack. Fabulous job on TV episode!
Amanda says
Those look amazing Dara! I cant wait to try it.. I think everyone will enjoy them!
Ling says
Hi hi,
I love the simplicity of your recipes 🙂
I’ve tried baking other veggies before and it really brings out another dimension of flavour in them. Hope to try out this one with cauliflower. Instead of using my bare hands, I shall throw the florets and olive oil mixture into a plastic bag and do the mixing. 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
Tickled Red says
These look sooo good. LOL…”Faster than a teenager popping M& M’s”, you crack me up! I adored yo video, great job love. You’re a natural.
Elizabeth says
Thanks for the recipe with the Indian spices to go along with the cauliflower.
My family also enjoys eating this delicious vegetable. I have only added the olive oil with salt and pepper and thinly sliced onion. There are never any leftovers of this.
Also wanted to thank you for the memory of my oldest daughter and her love for vegetables as a young child. I always made the baby food at home so I knew my girls were always getting the best nutrients. Well off we go one day to visit the doctor for her checkup and the pediatrician walks in and says well well it looks like someone is having a little too many of their orange veggies. What? The pediatrician says thats ok, the beta carotene is great for them but you may want to cut back a bit.
OMG was I feeling like an idiot??? YES.
Till this day we laugh about this…once in a great moon when someone has to pull out an album and we go back to those days and sure enough there is my orange baby girl.