Copycat Whole Foods Curried Cauliflower
Roasted curried cauliflower inspired by the version served at Whole Foods. This vegetable dish is perfect to accompany any meal or thrown through a salad- A spicy, salty and sweet combination helps caramelise the cauliflower. Suits a gluten free, paleo or vegan lifestyle.
I hope the security cameras at Whole Foods don’t monitor them too carefully.
I’ve been to America several times and first went to Whole Foods in 2011 with my cousin. I still remember that day as if it were yesterday (mainly because it was my first time in America- Not because of Whole Foods). I was jet lagged, sweating (it was Winter in Australia and the peak of Summer in San Diego). My cousin took me to Whole Foods and I thought it was a buffet restaurant. A healthy buffet restaurant.
My cousin gave me one of those glorious brown box and told me to load up. I did as she said and after a ridiculous amount later, I was fed, happy and in awe of such a concept.
Fast forward three years later, and I still have a soft spot for Whole Foods. Maybe it has to do with the blog world constantly singing it’s praises or perhaps its because we don’t have anything remotely like this in Australia- Either way, I know a pitstop to Whole Foods is mandatory whenever I’m in the Northern Hemisphere (Except maybe not the one in Toronto, Canada. The offerings at the hot bar weren’t too epic).
When I was in New York, I went to Whole Foods for lunch as soon as I arrived because it was conveniently located next to my hotel and my stomach was screaming for food. I went to the hot bar and loaded up with a variety of goodies, including a roasted curried cauliflower.
Let’s talk cauliflower for a minute. Outside of the potato, cauliflower is by far my all time favourite vegetable. I eat it whenever it is in season and if my stomach would be kinder, I’d eat it by the kilo/pound/your measurement of choice. My all time favourite way to eat it is simply roasted with olive oil, salt and pepper. Well, it was until that Whole Foods visit. I don’t know if it was because I was extra hungry, the spice combination was delicious or because it was glistening in olive oil- I was besotted at first bite. (Gross. I can’t believe I described cauliflower like that).
The next day I was dining solo before my early morning flight the next day and I spent close to 5 minutes carefully examining the cauliflower and inconspicuously memorising the ingredients listed on those white cards. Before you question why I didn’t take a photograph with my phone, it had died. (That’s what happens when you mooch wifi from random New York locations.).
When I arrived back on home soil, that very night I tried my hand at recreating the cauliflower and continued to eat this new variation. Friends, stalking the cauliflower at Whole Foods was so worth it. This roasted curried cauliflower tastes exactly like the one served at the Whole Foods hot bar! The best thing? You probably have ALL the ingredients in your pantry. The combination of curry spices with a touch of sweetness helps caramelise the cauliflower to roasted, charred perfection. This rounds off the first of my Copycat Friday recipe series!
PS. That was very expensive cauliflower that final night in New York. So worth it.
- 1 large head cauliflower, chopped roughly into bite sized florets
- 1 T cumin
- 1 tsp ginger
- 1 tsp garam marsala
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp native natural sweetener (or 2 tsp norbu sweetener or sweetener of choice)
- 2 T olive oil
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Coat a large baking dish/pan with oil and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the cauliflower and toss through all the spices. Add the olive oil and using your hands, mix well to ensure all florets are coated with the spices and the oil.
- Add the cauliflower on an even layer on the baking tray and cook for 15 minutes, or until it gets golden, flip and cook for another 15 minutes until the edges are golden brown and slightly charred.
- Remove from oven and serve immediately.
- This cauliflower tastes amazing eaten cold, through a salad or even on it's own. It can be kept refrigerated for up to 3 days, covered.
What is your favourite roasted vegetable?
Are you a fan of cauliflower?
If you’ve been to the Whole Foods hot bar, what’s your favourite dish from there?
Facebook - /thebigmansworld
Pinterest - /thebigmansworld
Instagram - @thebigmansworld
Twitter - @thebigmansworld
Bloglovin - thebigmansworld
Email - [email protected]
Snapchat - thebigmansworld
Big fan of roasted cauliflower, especially with curry powder. Cauliflower is one of those foods which are hard to photograph pretty but you nailed it! Have you tried the mac & cheese at Whole Foods- to.die.for!
Thanks, Khushboo! I ate that with Christina and we were dying over the perfect amount of butter.
I totally love their roasted cauliflower! Definitely my fave from there- well that and the Brussels sprouts, butternut squash and sweet potatoes….Sometimes though they make a different version of their usual and I don’t like it. Not sure what the flavors are in order to say what it is I don’t like.
In LA I tried a different kind which I actually really liked too…need to copycat that recipe too!
This looks like a better way to eat cauliflower! My stomach only sometimes likes it (argghhhhhh) but I do enjoy it from time to time. Whole Foods hot bar=magical…can’t wait for another recreation!
Thanks Druga! Oh that’s like me and broccoli. ONLY small doses.
Second favourite veggie?! Reeeeaally?! I’m not the biggest fan — or at least my stomach isn’t — so you can keep all the cauliflower. I’ll steal the potatoes 😛
same. yet i love the curry ones at whole foods. It’s so tempting! I want to eat it all, but my husband won’t like later if i do. haha. 😉
Hahaha. Sometimes it’s worth it.
NOOOOO. You may have ONE french fry. ONE.
I have never seen curried cauliflower at Whole Foods……haha!
Maybe you’re not looking hard enough 🙂
Perhaps this coming year will be the year I try to reconnect with cauliflower. Or I guess more appropriately, connect. Never was a huge fan of it, but mostly that was when I ate it raw. Definitely open to this recipe, and I’ve always wanted to try cauliflower subbed mashed potatoes. We should start a campaign to measure potatoes and cauli’s in poods. That’s way more fun.
Mate, that is so weird to us Australians- I think the whole country was taught to eat broccoli and cauliflower cooked- never raw!
I eat cauliflower nearly every day! I love it, and this recipe looks amazing. I have to say that my favorite roasted vegetable at the moment is brussel sprouts.
YES! You and me both! I love brussels too but it’s so expensive here right now!
I love to roast vegetables – it’s so easy and flavorful! I will have to try this curry roasted recipe!
Thanks, Kelly! Definitely try it out with the curry flavours- It’s so good!
Cauliflower is one of those veggies that I ONLY like when roasted! I have roasted it with curry powder before, it is SO good! My favourite combination I’d say.
You know my veggie addicition…everything roasted is amazing 🙂 right now I’m impatiently waiting for my brussel’s sprouts to be done!! HUNGRY!
I HATE waiting for the oven to cook veggies….it’s torture!
That’s true…but it’s worth the waiting.
Ok, you’ve convinced me. I need to eat more cauliflower. I don’t have anything against it, but it just never jumps out at me. But after seeing this curried version, I totally need to try this recipe…and soon! They just opened a Whole Foods in our area, too…so stoked about that! I also like that you used the word besotted. You deserve a cookie for that…or maybe just more cauliflower. 🙂
Haha, hasn’t Mike’s blog converted you to appreciate this cruciferous goodness! Ugh, I need to move there. I am besotted by America. America, you besot me.
Cauliflower with Indian spices is one of the only ways I love that broccoli wannabe. So thank you for this!! Although, you’re right— besotted by cauliflower? Who are you?
I don’t go to Whole Foods often, but now I want to go just to see what my favorite hot bar item is. Watch it be the mac and cheese or something.
Broccoli wannabe? Dude, this TRUMPS broccoli!
Oh man, I LOVE their mac and cheese- Christina and I loved it in Toronto!
Looks good! I like a lot of different roasted veggie combos but cauliflower and Brussels sprouts are faves of mine.
Those two are my favourites too! YUM!
There’s a recipe in Thug Kitchen for beer-braised cauli tacos. YOU SHOULD TRY IT.
Have you picked up that cookbook yet? It’s a good one. I wish you & I were married. You’d make such a great wife.
Naww, thanks. You’d make a really good punching bag 🙂
This sounds SO good!! I am pinning, thanks!!
Thanks so much! 🙂
CUMIN!!
I’d never have thought. I can’t wait to try.
I would LOVE a copycat of their Buffalo Garlic Tofu – it’s my fave and I can’t duplicate it for the life of me.
OMG THEIR TOFU. They have to add crack in it because I can’t recreate it either.
Oh I so agree with you about the hot bar at Toronto’s Whole Foods! I’ve been when they have good stuff but usually I’m a little underwhelmed… Luckily there’s a juice bar just down the road in case I don’t like what I find there. This cauliflower sounds delish, I know exactly which one you’re talking about! Very tasty indeed. Happy you got to recreate it at home!
Thanks Gen! I wish we could have hung out in Toronto. I guess that just means you need to come to Australia 😉
Thank you for reminding me that I haven’t been to a Whole Foods hot bar since I was in Minneapolis, which was over a year ago. Jerk. (I kid). I can’t remember if they had the cauliflower when I went…apparently I’m missing out?
Favourite roasted veggie = sweet potatoes. Although for non-potatoes….broccoli.
Imagine if Canmore opened up a WholeFoods…that would make me move there!
Drooling!! I have a wholei odd near by but would much rather make this 🙂
Lucky! I wish we had whole foods here!
I love cauliflower– pinning so I can try this later!
I went to graduate school a couple blocks away from a Whole Foods– boy did that double the cost of my expenses 🙂 At least I was happy and well fed!
Haha, it totally fuelled your brain. Right? 😉
WHAT?! You didn’t like Toronto’s hot bar?! I don’t blame you. It wasn’t my favourite that day either…except for the mashed potatoes. Those were wonderful.
I love roasted sweet potatoes but cauliflower comes in at a close second! Like you, I usually just use oil, salt and pepper but this copycat version sounds AMAZING. Must try. I love when it gets a bit burnt and crispy just like how you’ve got it in your photos. HOT DAYUMN. GIMME SUMMA DAT.
True. If it wasn’t for the butter and cream, it would have been fail whale.
Confession- I actually burn them way more, but they would look like a bushfire.
I live in NY and have still never been to Whole Foods >:-( My favorite roasted veggie is squash. After baking in the over with a bit of maple syrup and oil, it tastes like candy. However, I don’t like roasting squash outside of the cooler months, do I’d say my most frequently roasted veggie is the sweet potato. It’s not a day off from work without some sweet potato oven fries!
Oh yum! I’ll have to try it that way!
And now…. I want to go walk to Whole Foods…… Mmmmmmm and spend $100 on Cauliflower alone!
I need to move to LA just for it. And you.
Gotta love the charred part – it’s the best!!
I kind of lived in Whole Foods when I was in NY. Though I always went for the salad bar – and spent about 2/3 of my vacation money there…..
Seriously, it eats into your pocket!
Be still my beating heart….I love any and all cauliflower along with brussels sprouts, and broccoli but cauli comes first even before kabocha.
Love this recipe (: And my whole foods has it occasionally but who needs them when I can stock up on purple, orange and romanesco cauliflower varieties…even yummier!
Noooooo not broccoli haha! Wow, you guys get COLOURED ones? Do they taste any different?
You’re right – the hot bar/salad bar at the Toronto Whole Foods does suck! I much prefer the one closer to me in Oakville. Especially this one time when they had the more glorious roasted butternut squash. I haven’t seen it there since that one time though!
And I don’t think I’ve ever seen curry roasted cauliflower there either. I love roasted cauliflower though so this looks like a winner!
Wait, you guys have ANOTHER whole foods? Who knew Canada was so good!
WHOLE.FOODS.BRUSSELS.SPROUTS. i can’t even put into words how they get them so effing tender and tasty. i’m also a big fan of their simple grilled salmon. as everything else they serve, lets be honest. but so funny you say you eat it cold because i eat my work lunch every day cold (even though there IS a microwave). maybe i’m 50% lazy and maybe we are 50% genius because cold roasted cauliflower is my beyoootch. I’ve been roasting mine with salt, pepper, garlic powder and buffalo sauce and ughhh so perfect! i need to try this one next even though i don’t have garam marsala dangit! although frieda’s produce just sent me purple, orange and green cauliflower so i’m ready to take down about 3 heads this week.. #beatthebloat
DUDE. I have a recipe JUST for you coming up 😉
Um. Cold roasted veggies > normal ones. That is a fact.
I heart cauliflower – especially curried cauli. My mom makes hers with a spicy curry sauce but I’m liking this spice version! Now to head out and buy some garam marsala…
Omg. Spicy curry sauce? Please share the recipe that sounds insane!
I think she uses a jarred one :-X But I’ll ask & get back at ya!
I don’t think I’ve EVER cooked with curry. I guess this is a good time to start?
Dude. First you dismiss German food and now curry?! LAUREN!
You know how deep my love of cauliflower is. It knows no bounds, and I cannot wait to try this.
Next time, do me a favor and mix a little oil, vinegar, some green onions and blue cheese together. Pour it over your roasted cauliflower when it comes out of the oven. Best thing ever. I have cauliflower haters who love this.
Can I tell you a secret….my next copycat recipe is the Whole Foods Sicilian Cauliflower which is oil, vinegar and parmesan cheese. Blue cheese would be better. Omg. I want blue cheese now.
Never have I ever eaten off the Whole Foods hot bar… looking at this makes me feel like I may be seriously missing out on something!
What! Please tell me you have one near you!
I have everything but the garam masala… But I do have five spice powder. Should I substitute that or just leave the gm out altogether? I’m so conflicted! I want to make this right now but don’t want to screw it up!
Hey Sandi! I’m so sorry for the delayed reply- My blog has been getting a small makeover!
Five Spice tends to lend a sweeter taste which I think will be even better- I think it would be the cloves- Try and add a tad more salt though to compliment!
I love cauliflower and this sounds great! Would love to have you share it at Gluten Free Fridays link up! Its live now at vegetarianmamma.com! Cindy 🙂
Very interesting idea. I can’t believe how far down I had to scroll to get to this box…you are such a popular guy! =) I do love roasted brussel sprouts and butternut squash…taters of any kind too. Love this post. Thanks for sharing with us at Weekend Potluck.
Stop making me so bashful! 😉
I think I have the best recipe coming up for you- A cold brussels and butternut salad 😉
Thanks for hosting Marsha!