These roasted cauliflower steaks are delicious and stunning! Perfect as a side dish, but also hearty enough to stand alone as an entree, simple seasonings and a Parmesan crust elevate the texture and flavor to this humble vegetable.

I know.

Something doesn't sound quite right putting the words "cauliflower" and "steaks" side by side to refer to one dish.

But this dish is definitely worth considering.

Not only is this dish tasty, it's also a showstopper of a dish, just through the pure natural structure of the cauliflower!

And while this makes a wonderful side to a main entree, it's good enough to stand on its own as an entree itself.

Cutting the "Steaks"

The steaks come from the center of a head of cauliflower, each steak needing the core to keep it together. Keeping that in mind, you will get about two 1-inch steaks from one head and a bunch of florets off each end that you can save for later use.

The easiest way to cut these steaks is to cut the head of cauliflower in half, and then from each half, cut off a steak from the cut side, about 1-inch thick. If you have a particularly large head, you can make it a thicker steak or you might be able to get 4 thinner steaks, making sure to keep the core in each slice to help keep the steak together.

Save the extra florets that are not part of the steaks for later use. And if your cauliflower head comes wrapped in its leaves, don't throw them away! The leaves are actually delicious roasted with some oil, salt and pepper and drizzled with some lemon juice afterward. They make a great side dish completely on their own.

Roasting the Cauliflower

Using a neutral-flavored oil (I use extra light olive oil), coat the steaks on both side, laying them in a baking pan with the center cut up. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast in a 425F/220C oven for 15 minutes.

Fip the steaks over and pile on freshly grated Parmesan cheese, making sure to cover all the nooks and crannies in the cauliflower.

Put them back in the oven to roast for another 15 minutes or until the Parmesan is golden and bubbly. Top with fresh ground black pepper and chopped parsley immediately out of the oven, add some lemon wedges to the plate and it is ready to serve!

Serving Variations

If you have a 1-inch thick cauliflower steak, it is substantial enough to stand alone as an entree. Top it with chili or a bolognese sauce. If you want to keep it vegetarian, serve it with marinara sauce, pesto, salsa, or even gochujang for an Asian twist!

Add a dollop of sour cream and sprinkle some crisp bacon and chives on top, or try my Creamy Greek Yogurt Cucumber Tzatziki for a refreshing layer of flavor. Substitute the Parmesan cheese with other cheeses, or omit the cheese altogether to make it a vegan dish.

Turn the cauliflower steaks into cauliflower parmigiana by dipping the steaks in melted butter and coating them in breadcrumbs before roasting. Top with marinara and and mozzarella cheese after flipping the steaks for the final roast.

The roasted cauliflower steaks also make a great side dish to any main entree, or use it to top a plate of pasta.

As a side dish, serve it with some Crispy Baked Chicken Wings, Balsamic Marinated Flank Steak, Dry Brined Roast Chicken, or with a fancier entree like Perfect Prime Rib Roast. It would even go great with my Chicken Rice Salad Medley!

And if you're looking for other recipes that use cauliflower, check out my Cauliflower Pizza Bites or my Sweet Potato Cauliflower Shepherd's Pie.

Roasted cauliflower steaks are going to become one of your favorite dishes to make...it is always a welcome dish in my house! It is incredibly simple, highly customizable to any flavor variation, good as a side dish or entree, gluten-free, and easily adaptable to vegan, vegetarian, keto, or paleo diets. As odd as the combination of "cauliflower" and "steaks" sounds, it's a total winner of a dish and sure to impress!

~ Lisa.