Gluten-Free Vegan Roasted Cauliflower "Steaks" with Lemon Dill Tahini Dressing

This Gluten-Free Vegan Roasted Cauliflower "Steaks" with Lemon Dill Tahini Dressing recipe is an easy, healthy, recipe made with clean, real food ingredients. You'll love how this plant-based dish is perfect as a side dish or even a meal and only needs about 5 minutes prep time!

Here's Why This Recipe Works

My top 3 favorite reasons:

1. Perfect As A Side Dish Or As A Small Meal
2. Can Be Prepped In About 5 Minutes
3. Made With Clean, Real Food Ingredients

My healthy plant-based recipe is vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, lectin-free, soy-free, nut-free, keto-friendly, paleo-friendly, and Medical Medium® compliant.

How To Make This Recipe: Step-by-Step Instructions

I'll show you how easy it is to prepare this healthy plant-based side dish recipe in just a few steps below:

Step 1: Prepare The Cauliflower

Firstly, to prepare the cauliflower, you'll want to use a large head of fresh cauliflower for this recipe.

With the crown of the cauliflower facing upward and the stem facing downward, you are going to slice the cauliflower from the top to bottom to get about 4 thick slices.

Don't worry if you have some small florets that fall off or break off - just save them to roast separately (see tip below). After you've cut the cauliflower into slices, you'll place them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and lightly brush both sides with avocado oil.

Step 2: Prepare The Seasoning

This is the second step and should take just a few minutes.

You're going to add all the seasonings for the cauliflower to a small bowl and stir together. Feel free to adjust the number of seasonings to your preference.

Once you're finished, you'll sprinkle the seasoning on both sides of each cauliflower slice before roasting them.

Step 3: Prepare The Lemon Dill Tahini Dressing 

This is the third step of the recipe and should take just a few minutes to prepare.

While your cauliflower is roasting in the oven, you can mix up the ingredients for the dressing and set it aside.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is A "Cauliflower Steak"?

Don't worry - it's not meat-related! 🙂

A "cauliflower steak" is another way to enjoy roasted and seasoned cauliflower by slicing it into thick strips instead of the traditional floret pieces.

In my roasted cauliflower steaks recipe, they are lightly coated with pure avocado oil, generously sprinkled with a dill spice combination, then roasted in the oven for about 60 minutes.

Once they come out of the oven, both soft on the inside and golden + slightly crispy on the outside (!!!), they are drizzled with a homemade lemon dill tahini dressing that is tangy and goes perfectly with the dill seasoning on the cauliflower.

How Do You Cut A Cauliflower "Steak"?

Normally, cauliflower is cut off the stem into bite-sized "florets". To make cauliflower "steaks", you will cut the cauliflower into thick slices, resembling a slab of "steak", hence the name "cauliflower steak".

1. First, remove the outer leaves and trim the base.
2. Second, set the base of the cauliflower on your cutting board, with the crown (top) of the cauliflower facing upward.
3. Thirdly, cut into the cauliflower from the top all the way down to the bottom, like you would if you were cutting a loaf of bread into slices. They should be thick enough that they hold together well after they've been cut and you should get at least 4 slices from a large head of cauliflower.

How Long Does It Take To Roast The Cauliflower Steaks?

The secret to getting the cauliflower steaks to be soft on the inside and crispy on the outside is to roast them at a low temperature for a longer time. Although you can roast them at a higher temperature for a shorter period of time, roasting the cauliflower steaks at 350 degrees for about an hour is perfect and so worth the wait!

What Do I Do With Leftover Cauliflower Pieces:

One large head of cauliflower will make about 4 "steaks" and you'll more than likely have enough leftover floret pieces to make an 8 x 8 pan of roasted cauliflower using the same instructions. 

See my "Expert Tips" below.

What Can I Serve With The Dish?

You can enjoy them as a meal or as a side dish with a vegan soup recipe Vegan Cream of Asparagus Soup or Creamy Vegan Tomato Basil Soup and even with a vegan salad like my Clean Eating Vegan Greek Salad.

Can I Use Different Seasonings?

Yes! If you like seasoned roasted cauliflower as much as I do, make sure you try Roasted Cauliflower with Chipotle and Lime recipe...it's really good too!

You can also make this recipe as cauliflower "steaks" using the chipotle and lime seasonings instead.

Karielyn's Expert Tips + Ingredient Substitutions

Here are some of my expert tips to make this recipe perfectly:

Cauliflower: The size of a head of cauliflower will vary, so you will need to visualize the size to be able to cut at least (4) somewhat thick slices to make the steaks. Try to get a medium-large size if possible.

Leftover Cauliflower Pieces: If you have any extra cauliflower pieces (example: floret pieces or pieces that broke off when trying to cut a slice), save them and prepare the same way you did the cauliflower steaks. Add them to a medium-sized bowl and toss with a little avocado oil. Sprinkle the seasoning and toss to distribute the seasoning evenly. Add them to a baking pan lined with parchment paper and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 60 minutes. Drizzle with the Lemon Dill Tahini Dressing.

Avocado Oil: This can be substituted with organic extra-virgin olive oil. 

Lemon Juice: Freshly squeezed lemons will give the best flavor and nutrients since it hasn't been pasteurized, but you could substitute them with store-bought organic lemon juice.

Dill: You can use either fresh or dried dill, either will work fine.

Himalayan Pink Salt: This is my salt of preference, however, it can always be substituted with sea salt.

Seasoning Ingredients: Feel free to adjust the amount of each of these to your preference.

Tahini Dressing Consistency: You can make either a "dip" or "sauce". As the recipe is written, the dressing will be a little thicker for dipping. If you prefer a thinner dressing to drizzle, add about a teaspoon of water at a time until it gets to the consistency you prefer.

Serving Size: This recipe will make approximately (4) "steaks". Nutritional information is for (1) "steak" which is (1) serving.

Want More Healthy Plant-Based Side Dish Recipes?

Check out these:

• Spicy Turmeric Twice Baked Potatoes 
• Roasted Potatoes with Habanero and Basil Pesto 
• Lectin-Free Vegan Basil Pesto and Cauliflower Rice Dip 
• or my CLEAN EATING Cookbook with 100+ plant-based vegan + gluten-free recipes made with clean, real food ingredients just like this one that you will love!

Did You Make This Recipe?

I'd love to hear about it! Please give it a rating and leave a comment below...it would make my day! 🙂

Gluten-Free Vegan Roasted Cauliflower Steaks with Lemon Dill Tahini Dressing

This healthy Gluten-Free Vegan Roasted Cauliflower Steaks with Lemon Dill Dressing recipe is tangy and full of flavor! It's super easy to make and takes about 5 minutes to prepare!

{ Plant-Based | Vegan | Gluten-Free | Dairy-Free | Lectin-Free | Soy-Free | Nut-Free | Keto-Friendly | Paleo-Friendly | Medical Medium® Compliant }

5 from 7 votes

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Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour

Total Time: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Yields: 4 slices

Calories : 121

Equipment

• Unbleached Parchment Paper
• Cookie Sheet

Ingredients

For the cauliflower:

• ▢ 1 large organic cauliflower
• ▢ 2 teaspoons 100% pure avocado oil

For the seasoning:

• ▢ 1 tablespoon organic dried dill
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon organic ground cumin powder
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon organic garlic powder
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon organic ground black pepper
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt

For the tahini dressing:

• ▢ 2 tablespoons organic lemon juice
• ▢ 2 tablespoons organic tahini
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon organic dried dill
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon organic ground black pepper
• ▢ 1/8 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
• ▢ water (filtered/purified) (as needed)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Prepare a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, then set aside.

Prepare the cauliflower:

• Place the cauliflower on a cutting board with the stem down and the crown facing upward. Carefully slice the cauliflower from the top (crown to the stem, taking care to keep the slices intact. You should get at least 4 thick slices.
• Place the cauliflower slices on the prepared cookie sheet.
• Rub the avocado oil on both sides of the cauliflower slices, then set aside.
• See "Tip" below regarding leftover cauliflower pieces.

Prepare the seasoning:

• Add all the ingredients for the seasoning to a small bowl and stir so all the ingredients are well combined.
• Taste and adjust the seasonings to your preference.
• Sprinkle the seasoning on both sides of each cauliflower slice.

Roast the cauliflower:

• Place the cookie sheet in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit and roast for approximately 60 minutes, or until the outside edges of the cauliflower are golden and the inside of the cauliflower is soft.

Prepare the tahini dressing:

• While the cauliflower is roasting, add all the ingredients for the dressing to a small bowl and whisk together until well combined. As the recipe is written, the dressing will be a little thicker for dipping. If you prefer a thinner dressing to drizzle, add about a teaspoon of water at a time until it gets to the consistency you prefer.
• Taste and adjust the seasonings to your preference.
• Once the cauliflower is finished, transfer the slices to your serving dishes and serve with the tahini dressing.

Recipe Notes

Cauliflower: The size of a head of cauliflower will vary, so you will need to visualize the size to be able to cut at least (4) somewhat thick slices to make the steaks. Try to get a medium-large size if possible.

Leftover Cauliflower Pieces: If you have any extra cauliflower pieces (example: floret pieces or pieces that broke off when trying to cut a slice), save them and prepare the same way you did the cauliflower steaks. Add them to a medium-sized bowl and toss with a little avocado oil. Sprinkle the seasoning and toss to distribute the seasoning evenly. Add them to a baking pan lined with parchment paper and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 60 minutes. Drizzle with the Lemon Dill Tahini Dressing.

Avocado Oil: This can be substituted with organic extra-virgin olive oil.

Lemon Juice: Freshly squeezed lemons will give the best flavor and nutrients since it hasn't been pasteurized, but you could substitute them with store-bought organic lemon juice.

Dill: You can use either fresh or dried dill, either will work fine.

Himalayan Pink Salt: This is my salt of preference, however, it can always be substituted with sea salt.

Seasoning Ingredients: Feel free to adjust the amount of each of these to your preference.

Tahini Dressing Consistency: You can make either a "dip" or "sauce". As the recipe is written, the dressing will be a little thicker for dipping. If you prefer a thinner dressing to drizzle, add about a teaspoon of water at a time until it gets to the consistency you prefer.

Serving Size: This recipe will make approximately (4) "steaks". Nutritional information is for (1) "steak" which is (1) serving.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1slice | Calories: 121kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 7g | Sodium: 284mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 4g | Calcium: 61mg

Course:Main Course,Side Dish

Cuisine:American

Recipe Author: Karielyn Tillman

Did You Make This Recipe?Leave a Rating + Comment Below!

Karielyn Tillman

Hi, I'm Karielyn! I'm the published cookbook author of CLEAN DESSERTS and content creator of The Healthy Family and Home™ website since 2012. I specialize in creating easy, healthy plant-based and Medical Medium® compliant recipes that are gluten-free + vegan and made with clean, real food ingredients that you can feel good about eating.