This Aloo Gobi Will Put Your Other Roasted Cauliflower Recipes To Shame

Try this roasted aloo gobi, you’ll never go back to another cauliflower recipe

There is something grand and celebratory about roasting a vegetable whole. It becomes a centrepiece, which is something I think people look for in vegetable-centred cooking. The food I make most nights celebrates vegetables in some way, but cooking them whole like this takes a cauliflower one step further: Golden and crackled, its colour intensified, in all its glory as nature intended.

Whole roasted cauliflower is something that has been finding its way on to restaurant menus the last couple of years, partly due to the cauliflower renaissance spearheaded by vegetable magician Yotam Ottolenghi. Burnished and browned, a whole cauliflower is such a pleasing thing to put in the middle of the table, with a sharp knife for everyone to cut brave wedges for themselves and uncover the buttery clean white inside, a sharp contrast to the crisp and highly flavoured outside. (Here are 10 detox benefits of cauliflower that might surprise you.)

This is my favourite way to eat cauliflower: The sweet note of coconut milk, the punch of ginger and green chilli, the earthiness of mustard seeds and the clean spiced note of turmeric are perfect sidekicks to the neutral-flavoured, buttery roasted cauliflower.

If you’re craving something spicy, try our Korean spiced cauliflower bites. 

Servings	Cook Time
4servings	40-45minutes

Servings

4servings

Cook Time

40-45minutes

• Course Dinner
• Cuisine Vegetables

Ingredients

• 1 large cauliflower
• 600 g potatoes
• 4 tbsp coconut oil
• 3 tsp ginger fresh, pealed and grated
• 4 chili peppers green
• 4 cloves garlic crushed
• 1 tbsp black mustard seeds
• 2 tsp turmeric ground
• 400 mL coconut milk
• 1 lemon cut in half
• Toppings
• Greek yogurt plain or coconut
• almonds
• 1 small bunch coriander leaves picked

Servings: servings

Units:MetricUS Imperial

Ingredients 1 large cauliflower 600 g potatoes 4 tbsp coconut oil 3 tsp ginger fresh, pealed and grated 4 chili peppers green 4 cloves garlic crushed 1 tbsp black mustard seeds 2 tsp turmeric ground 400 mL coconut milk 1 lemon cut in half Toppings Greek yogurt plain or coconut almonds 1 small bunch coriander leaves picked Servings: servings Units:MetricUS Imperial

Course Dinner Cuisine Vegetables

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan/gas 7. Fill and boil the kettle.
2. Using a pair of scissors cut the large leaves and stalks away from the cauliflower. (You can leave the little leaves close to the florets­, they will go nice and crispy when roasted.) Turn the cauliflower upside down and, using a small paring knife, carefully cut a hollow in the middle of the stalk, so that it cooks evenly. Take a pan big enough to hold the cauliflower, half fill it with water from the kettle and bring it to a boil. Season the water with salt, then immerse the cauliflower and simmer for 6 minutes. Drain the water away, put the lid back on and leave the cauliflower to steam in the residual heat for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, cut the potatoes into 2cm pieces, leaving the skin on.
3. Take an ovenproof dish or pan (that can go on the hob as well) large enough to take the cauliflower. Spoon in the coconut oil, and grate the ginger into the oil. Finely chop the chillies, discarding the seeds if you wish, then add them to the pan. Add the garlic, then place over medium heat and let the spices and aromatics cook for a few minutes, until fragrant. Stir in the mustard seeds and continue cooking until the garlic has softened, then add the turmeric and a big pinch of salt.
4. Pour the coconut milk into the spice mixture, stir well and season with a little black pepper. When the milk starts to bubble gently, turn off the heat, place the drained cauliflower in the dish, then baste it with the coconut-spice mixture. Throw the lemon halves into the side of the dish too, then scatter the potatoes around; they will sit in the coconut milk.
5. Bake the cauliflower, basting it occasionally with the spiced sauce in the dish, for 40 to 45 minutes. You want it to catch a little on top. To test if the cauliflower is cooked, insert a small sharp knife into the middle – it should be really tender (the potatoes and cauliflower should have soaked up most of the sauce). Once it's perfect, take it out of the oven and transfer to a serving dish, then squeeze over the roasted lemons. Serve in the middle of the table, with little bowls of yoghurt, almonds and coriander for sprinkling on top.

Recipe Notes

Nutrients per serving: 373 calories, 19.4 g fat (16.2 g saturated fat), 48.3 g carbohydrates (9.9 g fibre), 87 mg sodium, 10.6 g protein

This recipe is excerpted from The Modern Cook’s Year by Anna Jones.

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