Grilled Cauliflower Steaks with a To-Die-For Cilantro-Lime Sauce
Have you ever made a new recipe and thought, why have I never made this before?! That was me last weekend when I created this sauce. My mom had been raving about her cauliflower steaks the other day and I thought, “now that’s a great Whole30 side dish!”. So, I whipped up a batch for lunches this week but I knew they would need a phenomenal sauce to go on top.
I definitely wanted to keep the entire recipe vegan since my base was cauliflower. Might as well keep a theme throughout the whole meal, right? The sauce is also raw, no cooking involved, which makes it perfect for those hot, summer days we’re about to head into (or might already be there in some places). Grill these steaks outside and you won’t have to heat up your house at all! It’s a win-win.
The cilantro-lime sauce was heaven in a bowl. I literally wanted to lick the bowl after making it. It went great on chicken the next day for lunch or would be perfect as a salad dressing as well! I even put it on my lettuce-wrapped burger last night for dinner. There was definitely not enough sauce as I ran out last night before finishing the cauliflower. Must make more. I can see it being a staple in my house from now on. An avocado gives it creaminess (without any dairy. Whole30 doesn’t allow dairy, which is good because my skin has finally cleared up completely since giving up the dairy in my coffee last week!).
Adding a splash of apple juice gave this dish a needed sweetness but if I wasn’t on Whole30, I would probably have added a tablespoon of maple syrup or honey instead. Ooo, or pureed peach into it! Must try that. A cilantro-peach dressing? Yes, this sounds divine. Cauliflower steaks are so versatile that you could experiment with a bunch of different flavor combinations.
I went for a spicy, Moroccan style spice blend on my steaks to balance out the cool, creamy sauce I put on top. The smokiness of the cauliflower was the perfect complement to the sweetness of the dressing. The bright greens from all the herbs really punched up the color factor! I ended up throwing a teaspoon or so of the spice blend into my dressing to bring the two components (cauliflower and dressing) together. It was divine, simple divine.
- 1 large head of cauliflower, sliced into 1-inch "steaks"
- 2 T olive oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 T Moroccan spice blend (see below)
- .
- Cilantro Sauce
- 1 bunch cilantro, trimmed and stems removed
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 tsp lime juice
- 1 Tbsp maple syrup (or apple juice if on Whole30)
- 1/2 avocado
- 1 tsp Moroccan spice blend
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- .
- Moroccan Spice Blend
- 2 Tbsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp cardamom
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- Preheat oven or grill to 450 degrees. Slice cauliflower head into at least 1-inch slices (if you don't, they tend to fall apart when cooked!)
- Place cauliflower on large baking sheet and coat with olive oil on both sides.
- Sprinkle spice mix over both sides of cauliflower and place on heated grill for 15-20 minutes per side or until nicely browned.
- While cauliflower is cooking, combine all ingredients for sauce in a blender or small food processor until blended completely. You can add more juice or water if needed to smooth things out. Adjust seasonings as desired.
- Plate cauliflower and drizzle sauce and additional cilantro over the top. Serve warm.