Recipe: Pan Roasted Cauliflower Steaks with “Gremolata”

1 very large non-stick frying pan with a metal handle NOT plastic (see notes for other options)
A Microplane
1 cooks knife (see notes)
A wooden chopping board (see notes)
1 small mixing bowl
Barbecue tongs (optional)

Method: Pan-Roasted Cauliflower with “Gremolata”

Step One: “Gremolata”

Pick the parsley leaves and remove the stems (but save them for stocks). Peel the shallot and finely minced the shallot (but save the skins for stocks). You can either finely mince the garlic gloves or grate on the Microplane, as you prefer. Place all these ingredients in your mixing bowl and stir together. Add your chilli flakes. Zest the half lemon on the Microplane and place the zest in the bowl. Stir the ingredients together. Juice half your lemon to taste. Add the other half if you want (you may do, I did). You want sharpness but not overwhelming sharpness. Leave the “gremolata” to steep and the ingredients to mingle.

Step Two: Prepare the Cauliflower

Trim each side of the cauliflower modestly to create a flat surface. You now slice the cauliflower to the thickness of your preferred steaks. I recommend at least two inches thickness per person to make this a meaningful main course portion. I went to four inches for my steaks.

Lightly smash the garlic cloves but keep them in their skins and keep them ready.

Step Three: Roasting the Cauliflower

Preheat the oven to 180 Celcius / 360 Fahrenheit. Pre-heat your large frying pan on medium-high heat for 5 minutes. Warm your stock and keep it warm on low heat or occasional microwaves.



Remove the frying pan from the heat if you see smoking. Place a generous amount of olive oil in the pan and lay the widest side of cauliflower down in the pan with a centimetre / half an inch between each steak (see notes). Add the skin-on garlic cloves around the sides of the frying pan (not in the middle, see notes).

Check the cauliflower steaks for a light sear. Flip the cauliflower over to sear on the other side. You may find the tongs helpful. Sear the cauliflower on the other side.

Pour the stock around the frying pan and a little over the cauliflowers to baste them. Place the frying pan in the oven and watch every ten minutes. You should baste the cauliflower in the stock periodically. Leave the garlic cloves in the stock and not on the cauliflower. Make sure to spoon it over the florets.

Step Four: Serving

Test the tenderness of the cauliflower steaks through the stalk and remove at your preferred tenderness. I like a bite in the stalk; it gives credence to the notion of this being a ‘steak’. Plate the cauliflower steak and generously spoon “gremolata” over the cauliflower. Drizzle some around the cauliflower steak too.

Notes & Rationale: Pan-Roasted Cauliflower with “Gremolata”

So why is this “Gremolata” and not just Gremolata?

Gremolata is an Italian condiment traditionally made with just parsley, garlic and lemon. The usual admirable Italian minimalism of a few things at their best doing the most. This is beautiful as an addition Milanese braised veal shanks and roasted red meats like as it punches straight through fatty or robust flavours. Gremolata stands up and demands your attention. I like to add the minced shallot, olive oil, chilli flakes and sea salt. I like a ‘saucier’ version that runs between the crevices, root and branches of the cauliflower. A “gremolata” that plays hide and seek throughout.

Can I batch cook “Gremolata” and store it in my fridge?

Sadly this will only last about 1-2 days at their best as the chopped parsley fades and starts to oxidize despite a bath of olive. You want to make gremolata or “gremolata” fresh to order. However, it is perfectly acceptable to make this in the morning or a few hours before you intend to use it. If you enjoy the garlic and chilli elements of the sauce then there is a lot to be said of leaving the ingredients to get to know each other for a while.

Why cauliflower, roman cauliflower or romanesco broccoli?

Plot twist: roman cauliflower and romanesco broccoli are the same things. This variety realises a lovely sweet and charred flavour when roasted, which adds a lot to the dish. I encourage you to buy roman cauliflower whenever you see it. It is glorious with fish, artichokes and other dishes.

Why use unwaxed lemons?

Lemons are often waxed by farmers and producers partially to protect the fruit during transit but also to keep a glossy sheen on the peel for buyers. You do not want to ingest this wax ideally. You can easily remove the wax from the lemons if you cannot buy unwaxed lemons. Pour hot water from a recently boiled kettle over the lemons and scrub the peel.

Why a large non-stick frying pan?

You want plenty of space between the steaks. If the steaks (or anything else) is too close together they will not sear. The heat creates steam that just falls to boil the steaks. The steaks will cook but you will not get the colour you are looking for on the steaks.

You want frying pans with metal handles as it allows you to move the pans directly from stove to oven. You cannot do this with plastic handles as they will melt at high temperatures.

There is an alternative if you do not have large-enough frying pans with metal handles. Caste iron is a good substitute. You could use a metal baking tray as a substitute. These work well for searing food over the stove and then transfer to the oven. Do not use a baking sheet without a ridge as items, hot oil and stock will not work.

Why leave the skin on the garlic and place it around the sides?

Leaving the skin on the garlic means that that garlic is less likely to burn. It also means the garlic can soften inside of the skins. You can use this softened garlic to spread on the cauliflower later if you wish.

You place the garlic around the sides of the frying pan because it helps cook the garlic slowly and reduces the risk of burning. This is especially true for gas stoves.

Why do you recommend the tools you use?

Non-stick frying pan: I would not try to make crepes outside of a non-stick pan for reasons that speak for themselves. You want to find the widest possible non-stick pan in your house. This will help with the thinness of the crepe in some ways but also people just love a wide, thin crepe.

Cook’s knife / Global knives: I like the weight of a cook’s knife and it’s versatile enough to do fine dicing.

Wooden chopping board: wooden chopping boards are durable and they are better on your knife’s longevity. Never buy a glass chopping board. They look nice but they will dull your knife very easily. The alternative would be to buy plastic but there are many articles about wood vs plastic, which is more sanitary etc. Wooden chopping boards require washing by hand and drying thoroughly. Plastic boards can go in the dishwasher on an appropriate setting so there are points for convenience. I personally buy wooden boards. You do not need to go buy expensive boards. I have a GIANT wooden board about 5 feet wide and just under two foot tall and about 3 inches thick. It is made from recycled wood bought in a hardware store. The store’s carpenter made and treated it for me. It is brilliant as you can cook a whole meal on the same board without washing, drying or flipping over between prepping items.