Cauliflower is often cast as the understudy. It steps in when rice, potatoes, or pasta can’t make it to the show. We are constantly asking it to be something it’s not. But it doesn’t have to be that way! This tahini cauliflower with carrots is what happens when you let cauliflower be the main character. It’s not a stand-in, it’s not a background artist—it’s the dish itself.

Roasted until golden with carrots, garlic, thyme, and coriander seeds, it’s savory, tender, and just a little bit sweet. Then, just when it’s already good, you bring in the tahini sauce to make something great. This isn’t just a drizzle for looks. It’s what ties everything together.

Jump to the recipe if you want to hit the ground running, or read on for some tips on making tahini sauce + a few substitution ideas.

Quick guide to tahini sauce

If you’ve never made tahini sauce before, there’s a bit of a funny trick to it. The secret is that tahini actually begins to thicken as you add a few drops of water or lemon juice. Counterintuitive—I know! But it’s totally normal.

The key is to push through and continue adding more liquid until it loosens into a glossy, pourable sauce. This recipe includes enough water and lemon juice, but if you’re ever winging it, don’t stress if it seizes up into a stodgy mess at first.

Also note that it sets up slightly as it sits for a few minutes after smoothing out. If it sets up a more than you’d like, you can always add a bit more water or lemon juice later. If you overdo it on the water, you can always add a bit more tahini. It’s pretty easy to balance out.

Notes on substitutions

Many of the ingredients in the tahini cauliflower recipe in this post are substitutable. Let’s start out with the most polarizing ingredient of all time…

• Yes, those are raisins. But hear me out! First of all, you can totally just leave them out. But I swear, even raisin haters sometimes like caramelized raisins. It’s like taking milk duds and turning them into fleur de sel caramels. It completely transforms them. But you do you!
• If you don’t have carrots on hand, you can always just substitute more cauliflower. Tahini cauliflower is just as tasty as tahini cauliflower with carrots!
• Cilantro can be replaced with parsley.
• If you don’t have parmesan, you can substitute almost any other hard cheese. I’ve used pecorino romano, cheddar, asiago, and even gotten away with a sprinkling of feta crumbles.
• Pistachios can be replaced by pine nuts or sliced or slivered almonds.

tahini cauliflower and carrots

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• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Total Time: 30 minutes
• Yield: 6 side servings

Ingredients

For the lemon tahini sauce:

• 1/4 cup tahini
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste

For the roasted veggies:

• 1 pound carrots, cut on the bias into thick slices
• 1 pound cauliflower, cut into florets
• 2 to 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3/4 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 3/4 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
• 2 tablespoons finely grated parmesan (optional)
• 1/3 cup sultanas (or black or golden raisins), coated in 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
• Lemon tahini sauce (above)
• 3 tablespoons ground raw pistachios
• 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro

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Instructions

1. Make the tahini sauce: Whisk everything together until it smooths out into a salad dressing. This makes twice as much sauce as you need for the following recipe, but you can easily cut it in half (or store the other half in the refrigerator for about 1 week).
2. Roast the veggies: Preheat the oven to 425°F [220°C].
3. Place the carrots, cauliflower, and garlic on a sheet pan. Combine the olive oil, ground coriander, thyme, and salt, and then pour it over the veggies. Use your hands to coat everything evenly, and spread the veggies into a single even layer. Sprinkle with parmesan. Set the raisins aside for later.
4. Roast the veggies for about 15 to 20 minutes, until the cauliflower begins to char. Sprinkle the raisins on in the last 2 to 3 minutes of roasting. While everything’s roasting, throw together the tahini sauce (above).
5. Move the veggies to a serving bowl, drizzle with tahini sauce, sprinkle with pistachios and cilantro, and enjoy.

2025 update: This recipe was originally posted 30 May 2018, and while the recipe is the same as it ever was, I’ve updated it to include many more ingredient substitution ideas.