This summer, I got to spend some time on the east coast catching up with my friends from grad school and even a couple fellow bloggers. It was so much fun seeing everyone again, and (of course!) there was a lot of good food. My friend Anita cooked the most beautiful dinner, including a whole roasted cauliflower with a green herby tahini dipping sauce.
When we got home, I put my own spin on it with a wreath of herbs and a tahini sauce. The herb wreath is inspired by Persian sabzi khordan, and the cauliflower sort of takes the place of the big hunk of feta that it’s normally served with. Feel free to use whatever fresh, leafy herbs you’ve got on hand. I used basil, cilantro, chives, and mint, but you could also use parsley or watercress. Just stay away from more perfumey herbs like rosemary and thyme. Their flavors would work wonderfully here, but you wouldn’t want to use them in such vast quantities. Unlike rosemary, an entire wreath of basil will easily disappear in one sitting.
The spices I chose for this whole roasted cauliflower were inspired by Persian Mama Blog’s advieh berenj, a seasoning for rice. It adds a lovely warmth and depth to just about anything.
whole roasted cauliflower with sabzi khordan
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 6 to 8 servings as an appetizer, 4 to 6 as a side
Ingredients
- 1 medium/small head cauliflower (700g)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/8 teaspoon rosewater (optional)
- Salt to taste
- 1/4 cup tahini (60g)
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice (45g)
- 3 tablespoons water (45g), optional
- 1/4 teaspoon crumbled rose petals (optional)
- 1 bunch basil
- 1 bunch cilantro
- 1 small bunch chives
- 1 small bunch mint
- Bread for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Cut the stem so the cauliflower sits level, and (optionally) discard the leaves. Combine the olive oil, cinnamon, cumin, turmeric, cardamom, rosewater (do not add extra—it should be very subtle), and salt to taste (about 1/2 teaspoon) and brush all over the cauliflower, getting under the leaves. Place in a cast iron skillet or another baking dish with room around it, and place in the oven. Bake for about 1 hour 15 minutes for al dente, or longer for more tender cauliflower (up to 2 hours). Decrease the temperature to 350°F and tent with foil if it starts to brown too much for your liking, and check on it often after the first hour.
- While it’s in the oven, make the tahini dipping sauce. Combine the tahini, lemon juice, water, and salt to taste (about 1/4 teaspoon), and whisk together until it thickens. Set aside.
- Remove the cauliflower to a plate. Top the cauliflower with the rose petals. Arrange the basil, cilantro, chives, and mint around it. Serve with the dipping sauce on the side, and encourage guests to grab a big handful of their favoirte herbs with every bite of cauliflower/bread/tahini.
Notes
To make ahead: The cauliflower can be roasted ahead of time, stored in the refrigerator, and then reheated in the oven before serving (it will soften more as it reheats, so cook it for about 15 minutes less than you’d like earlier on, and let it finish cooking through as it reheats). The tahini sauce can be mixed up ahead of time, and then stored in the refrigerator for a couple days. The herbs can be washed, dried, wrapped up in slightly damp kitchen towels, and stored in a resealable container for several days
I made this tonight. I really like the idea of roasting it whole and the spices. I did roast for two hours. The outside was a bit dry, and the inside just a bit more cooked than al dente. I don’t think I would want to cook it less, but how to keep it from drying out so much. I am thinking of either rubbing it with oil first, or adding a couple table spoons of water to the baking dish. What do you think?
So true—it’s definitely hard to get the perfect texture, and it kind of depends on what texture you’re going for. It sounds like for your preferences, it might make sense to simply cook it for less time, so that the outside doesn’t have as much time to dry out, and the inside doesn’t end up getting too soft. Alternatively, you could try cooking it at a lower temperature, more like 350F, and maybe even microwave it briefly first, so that it only needs about an hour to cook through in the oven, all of which will keep the outside from drying too much. I’d try experimenting with all of these things and see what gets you your favorite result. Or let me know what particular inside/outside texture you’re looking for and I can give a more specific prescription.
It might turn out that roasting just isn’t what you’re looking for, because at the end of the day, the ideal thing with roasting is to have a somewhat dry and caramelized outside, with a moist and tender inside. It might be fun to experiment with other cooking techniques to find your favorite way to cook cauliflower.
Wow it looks amazing !!!
Thank you!! 😀
How beautiful! I first learned about sabzi khordan from a recently Iranian immigrant. Fresh herbs and vegetables add so much vibrancy to the table, and I love the way you’ve plated yours. And the crisp on the cauliflower is perfect!
-Jessica
https://www.jessicasdinnerparty.com/
Aw thank you so much! It’s one of my favorite Persian dishes ever. And completely agreed—it’s the perfect addition to just about anything <3