Cauliflower Shawarma With Spicy Tahini
Adapted from the New York Times
Servings: 4 as a side dish, 2 as a main dish, or 1 if you're me and really hungry
Ingredients
Cauliflower:
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1-1/4 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1-1/4 teaspoons sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt, plus more as needed
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Pinch of ground cayenne
- 1 large head cauliflower, about 2 1/2 pounds, trimmed and cut into bite-size florets
- 1 large red onion, cut into 1/4-inch wedges
- 1/4 cup coarsely chopped parsley
Tahini Sauce:
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon harissa paste, gochujang, or other hot sauce
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup tahini
- 1/3 cup ice water
Instructions
- Heat oven to 425 degrees.
Prepare the cauliflower:
- In a large bowl, whisk together olive oil, cumin, paprika, salt, coriander, turmeric, black pepper and cayenne. Add cauliflower and onion, and toss until well coated. Spread mixture in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet -- but don't crowd the baking sheet or the veggies will steam instead of roast. Use two if your vegges are overlapping each other.
- Roast vegetables until they are golden brown, slightly crisp and tender, 30 to 40 minutes, stirring once or twice.
As they cook, prepare the tahini sauce:
- Whisk together lemon juice, harissa or gochujang, garlic and salt in a small bowl, and let sit for a minute or two to mellow the garlic. Whisk in tahini. Whisk in ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the sauce is smooth and thin enough to drizzle. You may not need all of the water or you may need to add a little more. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more harissa, lemon juice and salt if you like. The sauce should taste zippy and creamy.
- Scatter the parsley on top of the roasted vegetables and serve with the tahini sauce.