Thai-Inspired Cauliflower Steak

With a creamy, spicy peanut sauce as well as a tangy lime sauce, this Thai-Inspired Cauliflower Steak is always a crowd-pleaser! It makes a great weekend dinner, and it’s the perfect dish for special occasions such as date night or a dinner party. It's vegan and gluten-free. 

Cauliflower Steak

Cauliflower is so amazingly versatile. It can be baked and made into “wings”, roasted and added to salads, breaded and used as a taco filling, mashed like potatoes, pureed for a creamy sauce, or simply added to a curry or a pizza. I also like to “rice” it and serve it with stir-fries. One of my favorite ways to make cauliflower is to slice it and serve it as a “steak.”

This Thai-Style Cauliflower steak is based on a recipe from the Rouxbe Plant-Based Professional course, which I took a few years ago. I’ve simplified their dish and used my own spicy peanut sauce. The mix of creamy peanut sauce and tangy lime sauce in this dish is quite heavenly.

What You Need

• Cauliflower
• Vegetable stock
• Garlic
• Lemongrass
• Kaffir lime leaves
• Vegetable oil
• Shallots
• Ginger
• Thai chile
• Scallions
• Cilantro
• 
peanuts
• Lime juice
• 
Tamari
• 
Agave
• Spicy Peanut Sauce

See the recipe card for exact amounts.

How to Slice Cauliflower

To cut the cauliflower, you need to keep the stem intact, and you need to slice it as if you were slicing a loaf of bread. The slabs should be about an inch thick or so. I usually get two or three “steaks” from a head of cauliflower.

There will be some florets leftover. You can cook them the same way you would the cauliflower steaks, or you can use them to make buffalo cauliflower or cheese sauce.

How to Make Thai-Style Cauliflower Steak

Simmering the cauliflower slices in broth with aromatics is the key to getting it nice and tender. Once it has softened, it’s seared in a pan to get it nice and brown, and to crisp up the edges a bit.

• First you preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Then you mix together the vegetable stock, garlic, lemongrass, and kaffir lime leaves in a 9x12-inch baking dish.
• You place the sliced cauliflower in the dish with the stock mixture and cover it tightly with foil. Bake your cauliflower for about 40 minutes, or a knife can go into it easily. It should be cooked throughout but still a little firm.
• While the cauliflower is cooking, you make the sauce. You heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a pan and add the shallots. Cook them for about 5 minutes, until they begin to brown. Next you add the ginger, garlic, and chilies. Cook them for a minute or two and then add the scallions and the lime juice, tamari, and agave. Again, cook for another minute or two, and then remove the sauce from the heat and add the cilantro and peanuts.
• When the cauliflower is ready, you heat the remaining teaspoon of oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Gently place the cauliflower steaks in the pan and let them cook for about 4 to 6 minutes on each side, until they turn golden brown. Don’t fuss with them too much, or they will fall apart.
• To serve your cauliflower steaks, you place a spoonful or two of the Spicy Peanut Sauce at the bottom of a shallow bowl or plate. Place one of the cauliflower steaks in the center and then top it with the shallot-lime sauce.

Recipe Notes

I use my own spicy peanut sauce for this recipe, but you can use store-bought sauce if you prefer.

If you don't like cilantro, you can use parsley instead.

Kaffir lime leaves infuse a little bit of citrus flavor into your cauliflower. They can sometimes be found dried in the spice aisle. Jars of sliced leaves in brine can be found in the Asian aisle of some grocery stories. If you're using dried leaves, use 2. If you're using sliced leaves, use about a teaspoon. You can leave them out if can't find them. You can also use your lime leaves in curries, soups, and stir-fries.

Serving Your Cauliflower Steak

This dish makes a great weekend dinner, and it's perfect for date night or a dinner party.

I like to serve it with steamed brown rice and a salad. It it’s also great with other whole grains or rice noodles.

Thai-Inspired Cauliflower Steak

Dianne

With a creamy, spicy peanut sauce as well as a tangy lime sauce, this Thai-Inspired Cauliflower Steak is always a crowd-pleaser! It’s the perfect dish for special occasions such as date night or a dinner party.

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 55 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Asian, Thai

Servings 3 servings

Calories 183 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

For the Cauliflower

• 1 large head cauliflower leaves and stem trimmed (do not core)
• 3 cups vegetable stock
• 2 cloves garlic coarsely chopped
• 1 stalk lemongrass cut in half lengthwise
• 2 kaffir lime leaves optional

For the Sauce

• 2 teaspoons neutral-flavored vegetable oil divided
• 2 shallots thinly sliced
• 1-inch piece ginger peeled and minced
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 Thai chile thinly sliced
• 2 scallions thinly sliced
• ⅓ cup cilantro coarsely chopped
• 2 tablespoons toasted peanuts roughly chopped
• ¼ cup lime juice
• 3 tablespoons tamari
• 1 tablespoons agave

For Serving

• 1 recipe Spicy Peanut Sauce

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• With the cauliflower sitting on its stem, slice it into large slabs, about 1-inch thick. Slice it the same way you would slice a loaf of bread. You’ll get two or three large slabs.
• Mix together the vegetable stock, garlic, lemongrass, and kaffir lime leaves, if using, in a 9x12-inch baking dish.
• Place the cauliflower in the dish with the stock mixture and cover tightly with foil. Bake for about 40 minutes, or a knife can go into it easily. It should be cooked throughout but still a little firm.
• While the cauliflower is cooking, make the sauce. Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a pan and add the shallots. Cook them for about 5 minutes, until they begin to brown. Add the ginger, garlic, and chilies. Cook for a minute or two and then add the scallions and the lime juice, tamari, and agave. Cook for another minute or two, remove from the heat, and add the cilantro and peanuts.
• When the cauliflower is ready, heat the remaining teaspoon of oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Gently place the cauliflower steaks in the pan. Let them cook for about 4 to 6 minutes on each side, until they're golden-brown. Don’t fuss with them too much, or they will fall apart.
• To serve, place a spoonful or two of the Spicy Peanut Sauce at the bottom of a shallow bowl or plate. Place one of the cauliflower steaks in the center and then top with the shallot-lime sauce. Repeat with the rest of the cauliflower.

Calories: 183kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 1041mg | Potassium: 848mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 728IU | Vitamin C: 107mg | Calcium: 83mg | Iron: 2mg

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Other delicious cauliflower steak recipes include:

• Roasted Cauliflower Piccata from Veganize It!  by Robin Robertson
• Cauliflower Marsala
• Roasted Cauliflower Cutlets with Lemon from Laura Theodore's Vegan-Ease
• Cauliflower Steaks with Romesco Sauce