I’ve chosen to honor the mighty cauliflower in this Cauliflower Steak recipe. To show how much I value this underrated vegetable, I’ve used it to replace a prime cut of beef steak, making it the centerpiece of the meal, rather than just a side. Cauliflower’s versatility and unique flavor make it a perfect candidate for this innovative dish, proving that plant-based alternatives can be just as satisfying and delicious as traditional meat options.
The inspiration is World Meat Free Week, which takes place in June every year. The idea is for meat-eaters to take just one week off to show how easy it is to give up our obsession with flesh.
The main motivator is the fact that it is unsustainable to keep eating meat on the scale that we currently do. As stated on the World Meat Free Week website. With the population set to rise by over 30 percent by 2050, the demand for meat simply cannot be met. Providing the land, water, and feed needed to rear enough meat to feed the human population is having a devastating effect on our planet with major issues like deforestation for grazing and arable land and a global water shortage.
The World Meat Free Week website states that by giving up meat for just one meal, you will save:
- Enough carbon emissions to boil a kettle 388 times
- The daily water usage of nine people
- Up to 11 grams of fat, equivalent to two whole teaspoons of butter
- Up to 90 calories, about as much as two rich tea biscuits
The latter points highlight the health issue. Much is said and written about healthy eating. But most people agree that eating a balanced diet is the healthiest way. Many people have a diet too focused on meat and having just one week off can be a good way of breaking the habit and gaining a new perspective.
Consuming excessive amounts of meat can cause our bodies to mount an inflammatory response. While meat is a valuable source of protein, it also tends to have high-fat content, so we should consume it in moderation and with due respect.
Some people will tell you that meat is full of flavor and that vegetables just don’t pack the same punch. This is nonsense. It’s all in the preparation. As you’ll see when trying this cauliflower steak recipe, you can still achieve all the lovely caramelization that is characteristic of a good steak. The cauliflower is seared in a hot pan so that you’ll still get that smoky, charred flavor.
It’s true that cooking with meat is an easy way to produce a tasty meal, but at what cost? Meat is expensive. This is because you have to rear, look after, feed and slaughter a sentient being to get hold of its meat. This shouldn’t be taken lightly.
Chicken, turkey, beef, pork and lamb are widely available but, other than these meats, you’re down to other poultry and game, which are far harder to find. This selection is narrowed even further if you are looking to buy good quality, sustainably produced and ethically reared meat. Which is what I would advocate. So, there is not a huge choice in the range of meats available.
With vegetables, however, it’s a different story. The brassica family of vegetables alone offers a greater variety than the entire world of commercially reared meat. Plus, it’s easy to get hold of and relatively cheap to buy. Then, there’s roots, fruit, alliums, leaves and salads, a whole world of mushrooms and fungi, coastal plants and seaweeds. The list continues, with each member offering distinct and captivating flavors and aromas that can be discovered in the kitchen.
With meat, you have a limited range of tastes that you can utilize. However, with vegetables, the differing sweetness, tartness, range of textures, and colors are near unlimited. As a chef, this makes cooking with vegetables far more appealing and challenging than cooking with meat and is why I’ve chosen to honor the exhilarating world of vegetables with this cauliflower steak recipe for World Meat Free Week.
This recipe is all about the wonderful cauliflower. The once out of favor brassica has risen to the status of trendy veg of the moment, although it is still often overcooked, which renders it bland in flavor and unappealingly soft in texture.
I treat it like a prime piece of steak, browning it in a pan before roasting in the oven to medium-rare (soft enough to eat but still with a bit of firmness). Moreover, this Cauliflower steak recipe takes on flavors fantastically well, and I generously drizzle on olive oil, lemon juice, and plenty of salt and cracked black pepper.
Out of respect for the star of this show, the leaves on the outside of the cauliflower are not going to waste either. They pack just as much flavor as the rest of it and can be added to the salad that accompanies the main event.
Along with the leaves go capers and gherkins to liven things up, parsley and toasted buckwheat, which is nutty and crunchy.
Buckwheat is also gluten-free ― even though the name might suggest otherwise ― so it’s ideal for those who are intolerant to gluten. If you can’t find buckwheat, quinoa would be a good alternative, or if gluten is OK with you, then couscous or cracked wheat are good alternatives.
Toss these ingredients with additional lemon juice, olive oil, and chopped tomato to create a fresh and zingy salad that balances the richness of the meaty yet meat-free cauliflower steak.
You can’t have a steak without a sauce, and this is where the vegetable magic comes in. Onions, filled with savory flavors and natural sweetness, serve as the ideal ingredient for replacing meaty gravy.
I roast them in the oven until almost burnt to unlock the sweet and bitter flavors, then infuse them into vegetable stock and red wine to make a sauce that perfectly complements the roasted cauliflower steak.
DIRECTIONS
- 1 cauliflower head
- 1 white onion
- 1 1/2 cups vegetable stock
- 1 cup buckwheat
- 2 tablespoons chopped capers
- 2 tablespoons chopped gherkins
- 1 handful parsley
- 1 large tomato
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 1/2 cups red wine
- Salt, to taste
- Cracked black pepper, to taste
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 355 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Remove the leaves from the cauliflower and reserve them for the salad. Cut cauliflower across its width into thick steaks ready for cooking.
- Slice the onions thinly and place them on baking tray with a small amount of oil. Roast them in the oven until they are brown, nearly burnt, about 20 minutes.
- When the onions are done, pour the vegetable stock over them and leave to infuse.
- Meanwhile, toast the buckwheat in the oven until brown and crunchy, about 15 minutes.
- Add the gherkins and capers to the cauliflower leaves and buckwheat.
- Pick the leaves from the parsley stalks and chop the stalks finely and add these to the salad. Dice the tomato and add to the salad. Refrigerate salad until ready to serve.
- Brown the cauliflower steaks in a very hot pan with some olive oil.
- Transfer the browned steaks to a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and black pepper.
- Roast in the oven for about 20 minutes or until slightly firm.
- While roasting the cauliflower, deglaze the pan with the red wine. Bring to a boil to cook off the alcohol.
- Strain the onion-infused stock into the wine and discard the onions. Reduce the sauce to intensify the flavor, then add honey and season with salt and black pepper.
- Finish the salad by dressing it with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and black pepper.
- Serve the cauliflower steak with sauce and salad on the side.
Serves: 4
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
If you want to know what foods will help you restore your natural vitality and get slim and stay slim, then check out the Best Foods That Rapidly Slim & Heal in 7 Days program, here!
Take care!
Rick Kaselj, MS