This za’atar-spiced Whole Roasted Cauliflower is baked in the oven until tender and crispy, and drizzled with tahini sauce. It’s delicious, healthy, vegan, and low-carb. Video.
Why You’ll Love This
In this easy recipe, a whole head of cauliflower is seasoned with Zaatar Spice, then roasted in the oven until tender and golden. When it comes out, it is fragrant and beautiful golden with a delicious crust.
Drizzle it with creamy Tahini Sauce for a healthy, delicious vegan meal (or side dish) you will enjoy! Love Cauliflower? Check out our 31+ Mouthwatering Cauliflower Recipes!
whole roasted Cauliflower Ingredients
- Whole cauliflower: Choose a large head of cauliflower head that is firm and tightly closed. Look for one with very pale color and no dark spots.
- Extra virgin olive oil: Drizzled over the cauliflower to help it get tender and caramelized in the oven.
- Salt: Brings out the delicious flavors of the seasoning blend!
- Za’atar Spice: Or try dukkah! You can also sub a mix of coriander, cumin, and optional sumac. If using za’atar, make our homemade spice blend or buy this Seattle brand (our favorite!).
- Tahini Sauce: Our Tahini Sauce recipe is creamy, nutty, and zesty, made with lemon juice! Plus, it’s so easy to make.
- Garnishes: Fresh herbs (parsley, dill, mint) and optional aleppo chili flakes for a little extra punchy taste.
How to Make Whole Roasted Cauliflower
Preheat oven to 425F.
Step 1: Trim the cauliflower. Trim away the leaves and cut off the stem to create a flat base (easiest way!), or leave it intact and trim and slice the bottom so it stands up straight like a tree trunk.
Note: You can also cut the cauliflower into steaks or break into florets, but if wanting to try something different and fun, roast the cauliflower whole in the oven, allowing the crust to get a little crispy and golden.
Step 2: Season the cauliflower. Transfer the entire head of cauliflower to a cast iron skillet or Dutch oven. Drizzle (or brush) with 1 tablespoon olive oil, then sprinkle with salt and Za’atar spice. Pour 1/2 cup of water into the pan.
Step 3: Bake. Cover tightly with the lid or foil and bake on the middle rack 25-45 minutes, depending on the size. It is done when it is tender and can be pierced with a knife. A small cauliflower head can take just 25 minutes, while a larger one can take up to an hour.
Step 4: Uncover. Carefully remove the lid or foil, being mindful of the hot steam. Drizzle with additional oil, then return to the oven to bake for 30 minutes, rotating halfway. It should be deeply golden and fork-tender on the inside, but if not, continue roasting until it is. No pale cauliflower here!
Step 5: Make the Tahini Sauce. Whisk together the ingredients in a small bowl or jar.
You could also try this Green Tahini Sauce for more drama!
Step 6: Serve. Remove roasted whole cauliflower from the oven and sprinkle with za’atar, fresh herbs, and optional aleppo flakes. Add cracked pepper too, if you’d like! Lemon zest also adds a pop of bright flavor.
Either drizzle tahini sauce on top while remaining in the pot, or cut the cauliflower into wedges (like a cake), arrange on a serving platter or individual plates, and serve the sauce on the side.
Chef’s Tips & Variations
- Choose the right cauliflower head. Make sure the surface of the vegetable is clean and white with no brown spots. Make sure the florets are tightly packed.
- Make your own za’atar seasoning! It’s super easy and rewarding and adds so much flavor to the cauliflower.
- Try this with green tahini sauce! It adds a beautiful pop of color! Or try our Tahini Yogurt Sauce.
- Add fresh minced garlic. Sprinkle minced garlic cloves over the cauliflower toward the end of baking for a little extra aromatic flavor.
Storing whole roasted cauliflower
For easy storage, cut the cauliflower into wedges and store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
How to serve Roasted Cauliflower with Tahini
Serve whole roasted cauliflower a vegan main dish with Tabouli Salad and Middle Eastern Zaatar Rice. If serving as a side dish, Sumac Chicken would be delicious with this!
FAQs
Cauliflower should be stored in a loosely closed plastic bag. If you bought your cauliflower wrapped in plastic, loosen up the knot a little bit.
Place the cauliflower head in a colander and rinse under water. Pat dry thoroughly before seasoning.
Be careful not to drench the cauliflower in olive oil. You may be tempted to add more, but you shouldn’t need more than 2 tablespoons oil (divided!).
My husband and I can easily share this Whole Roasted Cauliflower Recipe as a tasty vegan meal or divide it into 4-6 smaller portions for a yummy side dish (perfect for Thanksgiving or Christmas).
xoxo
More Roasted Cauliflower recipes!
Whole Roasted Cauliflower | 60-sec video
Whole Roasted Cauliflower Recipe
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 90 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
- Yield: 4
- Category: side dish, vegan side dish
- Method: roasted
- Cuisine: middle eastern
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This za’taar-spiced, whole-roasted cauliflower is baked in the oven until tender and crispy and drizzled with tahini sauce. It’s delicious, healthy, vegan, and low-carb.
Ingredients
- 1 whole cauliflower (large is best!)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon zaatar spice ( or try dukkah!) ( or try a mix of coriander, cumin and optional sumac)
- 1 cup water
- 1 Batch TAHINI SAUCE (go to the recipe)
- Garnish with fresh herbs – parsley, dill and or mint, sprinkle with optional aleppo chili flakes, drizzle with this optional Tahini sauce!
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F.
- Trim the cauliflower – either cutting off the stem (easier) to create a flat base, or leaving it intact, trimming and slicing the bottom so it stands up straight ( like a tree trunk).
- Place it in an ovenproof skillet or dutch oven. Drizzle 1 tablespoon oil all over the cauliflower, sprinkle with salt and Zaatar spice. Pour 1/2 cup of water into the bottom of the pan.
- Bake. Cover tightly with the lid or foil and bake for 25-45 minutes– depending on size – or until just tender when pierced with a knife. Smaller cauliflower heads may only take 25 minutes, larger ones can take up to 60.
- Uncover. Very carefully take the lid or foil off, minding the hot steam (it will burn!). Drizzle with a little more olive oil, place back in the oven for 30 minutes, perhaps rotating halfway through. At this point it should be deeply golden, but if not, continue roasting until it is… please no pale cauliflowers here!!!
- Make this Tahini Sauce!
- Remove from the oven and sprinkle more zaatar if you like, fresh herbs, optional aleppo chili flakes, and either drizzle the tahini sauce over the whole thing right in the pan, or cut it up, like a cake, into wedges and serve the tahini sauce on the side. Enjoy!
Notes
Make your own Zaatar, or consider buying this Seattle brand– our favorite!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ¼ of a cauliflower with no tahini sauce
- Calories: 127
- Sugar: 4.7 g
- Sodium: 366.7 mg
- Fat: 8 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 12.8 g
- Fiber: 5.1 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
I recently discovered your website when I was looking for vegan recipes for a client. This is my first recipe I’ve made. It was delicious! I also made the green tahini sauce to go with it. I accidentally slipped and put in too much hot sauce so I had to double the recipe. No great tragedy there! Yum! 🙂
Hi Heidi, So happy you found us! Glad you were able to remedy the sauce. 🙂
When you say “rotating halfway through” the 30 minutes in step 5, do you mean flipping it over or just moving the right side of the cauliflower to the left?
Rotate the pan the cauliflower is baking on so just turning 180°. Make sense?
Super easy; super yummy. Thanks for a great recipe!
Glad you enjoyed!
Lovely recipe
I love this recipe and the tahini sauce is sublime. A firm favourite and for my husband who is a meat eater.
Love hearing this Sharon!
Hello Sylvia.
I have made this delicious meal twice in two weeks. Using our own harvested cauliflowers and herbs. My family love this one. The tahini dressing takes it to another level of deliciousness.
I am truly enjoying the familiarity with your recipes. Love your enthusiasm.
Thank you.
Awww, thanks so much Celeste, so nice to hear this! Homegrown cauliflower sounds amazing.
This is addictive and I’m not vegetarian. That’s how good it is. Try it. You deserve happiness.
Haha! Love it Nancy- thanks so much!
We loved the combination of flavors but I found the texture too soft. I will steam it less next time but try to keep the browning.
Oh shoot Laurie! It is hard to gauge how long to steam because the size of cauliflower varies so much. The goal is for cauliflower to be slightly under cooked when removing the foil.
The flavors were fantastic, but I have to agree with the other reviewers that 1 cup of water and 35 minutes in a ditch oven made for a way too soft cauliflower! Perhaps less moisture and less time, then finishing it off uncovered (as I did). I had a huge cauliflower, and even so! Next time I’ll halve the time for the covered bake & see how it goes.
I adjusted the recipe- thanks Kara!
I was looking to recreate what I had at a restaurant last week but unfortunately, this didn’t hold up. The seasoning was great and the color was beautiful! However, 1 cup of water in the Dutch oven steamed it to overdone. I was hoping it would crisp up at the second browning but there was just too much moisture.
I put it in my ricer and made a delicious mashed cauliflower but I was hoping for more of a “meaty” main course.
Sorry Dani, sounds like it steamed too long. Was it a very small cauliflower? I will note the recipe.
I’ve made this several times and it is so delicious (and easy). This time I used purple cauliflower, and for some reason it tasted even better than the white cauliflower. I kept it vegan by making your tahini sauce and adding tamari and some vegan Greek yogurt to it. I also put some fresh dill on everything. Yummy!
Sounds so delicious and I bet beautiful with the purple cauliflower!
Unfortunately my cauliflower came out very soggy. I cooked it in a Dutch oven. I think putting in a cup of water and cooking it covered ends up steaming the cauliflower rather than roasting it. So while the texture was disappointing, the sauce was very delicious.
Oh shoot Danielle- did you see the part about removing the lid and baking uncovered for last 30 minutes? It will give it a nice crust.
Hi Sylvia
I have been looking for a good Cauliflower recipe for
A while now and yours is the best. Absolutely perfect
A big hit with my wife . Thank you so much for sharing your
Recipe. I look forward to trying more and more of them.
Awwww… thanks Roger! Glad you both enjoyed!