Description
Orange cauliflower is a weeknight meal sure to spark rave reviews from your loved ones– plus this sneaks some good-for-you turmeric in the mix! T-minus 30 minutes until your next delicious dinner.
Also: You can buy raw, organic turmeric online- here’s the best on Amazon.
Ingredients
For the cauliflower:
- 1 medium head of cauliflower, chopped into equally sized 2-3″ pieces
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt and pepper to season
The sauce: (For keto option, see notes section below!)
- 1 cup orange juice + the zest (3–5 oranges depending on size, skip zesting if using bottled OJ)
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 3 tablespoons sweetener ( sugar, honey, or maple syrup)
- 1” fresh ginger finely grated or 1 teaspoon powdered ginger
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce or coconut aminos
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon turmeric (more if you’re up for it!)
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch + 2 tablespoons water to thicken
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F and prepare the cauliflower head. Remove the leaves and cut cauliflower into equally sized florets, about 2-3″ in size. Equally sized pieces help the cauliflower cook evenly. Toss the florets with 1 tablespoon oil and a pinch of salt and pepper in a mixing bowl.
- Lay the cauliflower out in a single layer on a sheet pan, preferably with the flat knife-edge touching the pan for better browning. Roast for 15 minutes.
- While the cauliflower is roasting: start cooking rice or quinoa or prepare a bed of greens to serve the cauliflower on.
- For the sauce: If using fresh oranges, zest the oranges then juice them, straining the seeds. If using fresh ginger, peel the 1″ knob of ginger and grate it on a microplane.
- Add the orange juice, zest, and ginger to a pot on the stove. Add vinegar, soy sauce, ground coriander, turmeric, sweetener, and sesame oil and stir to combine.
- Heat over medium heat until boiling. While the sauce is heating up, make the cornstarch slurry: stir 2 tablespoons cornstarch into 2 tablespoons water in a cup or small mixing bowl. Set aside.
- When the sauce comes to a boil, reduce heat to low. Stir the corn starch slurry once more as it can separate, then add to the sauce stirring well to combine. The sauce will thicken within 1-2 minutes. Cover and turn off the heat.
- When cauliflower is done, run a spatula underneath all florets to loosen them from the baking sheet. Drizzle half of the sauce over the cauliflower florets and gently mix to combine. This recipe makes about 1 cup of sauce, which may be more than you need based on the size of your cauliflower head and your preferred ‘sauce’ level.
- Spoon your orange cauliflower over rice, quinoa, or mixed greens and top with other veggies/ pickled veggies, cashews, sesame seeds, or your preferred garnishes!
Notes
For the keto option:
- 1 cup lemon juice + the zest (4-6 lemons depending on size, skip zesting if using bottled juice)
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 5 tablespoons keto sweetener (or more to taste)
- 1″ fresh ginger finely grated or 1 teaspoon powdered ginger
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce or coconut aminos
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
Add all ingredients to a shallow, 10-12″ pan, preferably a cast iron pan as this works well to reduce sauces. Heat the sauce to boiling, then reduce to a high simmer stirring occasionally. Watch the sauce closely– as it reduces down you’ll need to lower the heat to maintain a simmer. It will take from 10-20 minutes to thicken appropriately.
** If you fall a bit short on orange juice from fresh oranges, juice and zest them and sub water for any remaining portion needed to reach 1 full cup.
** If using bottled orange juice you may not need as much sweetener as bottled orange juice usually has added sugar.
** If after thickening the sauce and a final taste you find you want to add more sweetener you can as long as it’s a liquid sweetener so it will dissolve into the sauce.
Keywords: Orange Cauliflower, Turmeric Cauliflower