Roasted Cauliflower With Pine Nut, Raisin, and Caper Vinaigrette Recipe
Unraveling the mysteries of home cooking through science.
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt. Video: Serious Eats Video]
When roasting cauliflower, as with other brassicas, you need high heat to get the most flavor. Roasting the cauliflower in fat wedges creates a nice contrast between deeply browned exterior and tender, meaty interior. It's great on its own, but I like to turn mine into a warm salad with a more elaborate vinaigrette, like this one flavored with pine nuts, capers, and raisins.
Why It Works
- Slicing the head of cauliflower into wedges, rather than cutting it into small pieces, creates greater contrast between the caramelized exterior and tender interior.
- A sweet and tangy vinaigrette nicely offsets the nuttiness of the cauliflower.
Read more: How to Roast Cauliflower and Romanesco
- Yield:Serves 4
- Active time: 20 minutes
- Total time:40 minutes
- Rated:
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower, trimmed and cut into 8 wedges
- 6 tablespoons (90ml) extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) sherry vinegar
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) honey
- 2 tablespoons capers, rinsed, drained, and roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
- 1/4 cup raisins
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
Directions
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1.
Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 500°F. Toss cauliflower with 3 tablespoons olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Roast until cauliflower is tender and deeply browned on both sides, about 20 minutes total, flipping cauliflower with a thin metal spatula half way through roasting.
-
2.
While cauliflower roasts, combine remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil, vinegar, honey, capers, pine nuts, raisins, and parsley, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
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3.
Transfer cooked cauliflower to a serving plate and spoon dressing on top. Serve immediately.
This Recipe Appears In
How to Roast Cauliflower and Romanesco The Food Lab: How to Roast Fall and Winter VegetablesThis post may contain links to Amazon or other partners; your purchases via these links can benefit Serious Eats. Read more about our affiliate linking policy.
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