This Roasted Cauliflower with Chipotle and Lime is an easy and healthy recipe made with only 6 clean, real food ingredients. It's the perfect plant-based side-dish, appetizer, or snack that everyone will love!

Here's Why This Recipe Works

My top 3 favorite reasons:

Versatile Plant-Based Recipe - Use as a side dish, appetizer, snack, or even as a filling in cauliflower tacos!
No Special Equipment Needed - No food processor or Vitamix needed - just a couple of mixing bowls cookie sheet for baking!
Made With Only 6 Clean, Real Food Ingredients - Nutrient-dense and healthy ingredients such as cauliflower, avocado oil, lime juice, chipotle, garlic, and Himalayan pink salt.

You can feel good about making this recipe because it's plant-based, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, alkaline, lectin-free, paleo-friendly, and Medical Medium compliant.

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

Before beginning, preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Prepare a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, then set aside.

The preparation for this recipe is really easy and the hardest/longest part is just waiting for it to roast in the oven.

Step 1: Prepare the Cauliflower

Firstly, prepare the cauliflower:

Whole Cauliflower - remove the leaves and stem, then cut the cauliflower into small bite-size pieces.
Fresh Cauliflower Pieces - this is the quickest option if you're in a hurry, just skip over to Step 2.
Frozen Cauliflower Pieces - I've used both frozen cauliflower pieces and although frozen works, the fresh seems to come out better.

Whichever type of cauliflower you use, place it in a medium-size mixing bowl.

Next, toss the cauliflower pieces with the avocado oil until they are all covered, then set aside.

Step 2: Prepare the Seasoning

Secondly, mix the seasonings together in a small bowl until well combined.

Spices: The great thing is you can customize them to your preference. For example:

Medium Heat: Use ½ teaspoon ground chipotle + ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder
High Heat: Use 1 teaspoon (or more!) of ground chipotle + ½ teaspoon of garlic powder

Himalayan Pink Salt: I recommend using between ¼ - ½ teaspoon of Himalayan pink salt, according to your preference.

Step 3: Assembly

Thirdly, sprinkle the seasoning over the cauliflower pieces and gently toss to make sure it's evenly distributed and all pieces are covered.

Step 4: Roast the Cauliflower

Lastly, place the seasoned cauliflower pieces onto the prepared cookie sheet and roast at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for approximately 60-90 minutes, tossing them about halfway through.

Although it seems like a long time to roast the cauliflower in the oven, it's worth the extra time and it is "inactive" time.

The "slow + low" heat method will give the best results.

You ideally want the cauliflower to be soft on the inside and slightly crispy on the outside.

It only takes a few minutes to prep the recipe and get it in the oven so it's a good recipe to make on a day when you have other things to do and can just leave them in the oven to slowly roast...there's not really any hands-on time needed once they're in the oven.

Karielyn's Expert Tips + Ingredient Substitutions

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

Cooking Time: The secret to making the cauliflower soft on the inside and crispy on the outside is to use the "slow + low" heat method. Roasting the cauliflower for a longer period of time (60-90 minutes) on low heat (325 degrees Fahrenheit) will give the best results.

Cauliflower: You can use a whole cauliflower, cut into floret-size pieces, or use pre-cut cauliflower pieces. In addition, I've also used frozen cauliflower pieces when I didn't have fresh on hand, although fresh comes out better.

Whole Cauliflower - remove the leaves and stem, then cut the cauliflower into small bite-size pieces.
Fresh Cauliflower Pieces - this is the quickest option if you're in a hurry, just skip over to Step 2.
Frozen Cauliflower Pieces - I've used both frozen cauliflower pieces and although frozen works, the fresh seems to come out better.

Avocado Oil: When roasting veggies in the oven, I prefer to use avocado oil since it will be roasting at high heat for a long period of time, but it can be substituted with organic extra-virgin olive oil.

Lime Juice: Freshly squeezed lime juice will give the best flavor and nutrients since it hasn't been pasteurized, but you could also use organic store-bought lime juice.

Chipotle + Garlic: Adjust these to your taste preferences. You can start with the lower amounts shown in the recipe for a milder spice combination or use the higher amounts for a more spicy flavor.

Medium Heat: Use ½ teaspoon ground chipotle + ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
High Heat: Use 1 teaspoon (or more!) ground chipotle + ½ teaspoon garlic powder

Himalayan Pink Salt: This is my salt of preference, however, you can always substitute with sea salt. I recommend using between ¼ - ½ teaspoon according to your preference.

Serving Size: This recipe will make approximately (2) cups of cauliflower bites, depending on the size of the cauliflower you use. Nutritional information is for ½ cup which is (1) serving.

Frequently Asked Questions:

What Else Can I Make With Cauliflower?

There are so many plant-based recipes you can make, for example:

There are even recipes for mashed cauliflower, cauliflower pizza crust, cauliflower buffalo "wings" and even cauliflower smoothie bowls!

Is Cauliflower A Starchy Vegetable?

No! And it's a perfect substitute for high carb foods such as potatoes and even rice.

Want More Healthy Plant-Based Cauliflower Recipes?

Check out these:

Black Pepper + Turmeric Cauliflower Rice
Roasted Cauliflower "Steaks" with Lemon Dill Tahini Sauce
Chocolate Cauliflower "Nice" Cream
Or my CLEAN EATING Cookbook with an entire chapter of 20 healthy, clean eating meal + entree recipes 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 with Chipotle and Lime

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

5 from 4 votes

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Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 1

Total Time: 1 10

Yields: 4 servings

Calories : 123

Equipment

Ingredients

For the cauliflower:

▢ 1 large organic cauliflower
▢ 2 tablespoons 100% pure avocado oil

For the seasoning:

▢ ½-1 tablespoon organic ground chipotle powder
▢ ¼-1/2 teaspoon organic garlic powder
▢ ¼-1/2 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt

For the garnish:

▢ 1 organic lime (freshly squeezed)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
Prepare a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, then set aside.

Prepare the seasoning:

Add all the ingredients for the seasoning to a small bowl and stir until well combined, then set aside. Start off with a lower amount of each seasoning and adjust up to the higher amount, depending on your preference.

Prepare the cauliflower:

Remove the stem and leaves from the cauliflower, cut it into small bite-sized pieces, then add them to a medium-size mixing bowl.
Drizzle the avocado oil over the cauliflower pieces and gently toss until the oil is evenly distributed and all the cauliflower pieces are covered.

Assembly:

Sprinkle the seasoning mixture onto the cauliflower pieces and gently toss, making sure the seasoning is evenly distributed and covering all the cauliflower pieces.
Transfer the seasoned cauliflower pieces to the prepared cookie sheet and bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for approximately 60-90 minutes, or until the cauliflower is soft on the inside and slightly crispy on the outside, tossing them halfway through.
Remove from the oven and squeeze the lime juice over the top of the cauliflower pieces.
Optional: garnish with fresh chopped cilantro.
Best when served hot from the oven.

Recipe Notes

Recipe lightly adapted from: https://remcooks.com/2012/02/02/roasted-cauliflower-with-red-chile-cilantro-lime/

Whole Cauliflower - remove the leaves and stem, then cut the cauliflower into small bite-size pieces.
Fresh Cauliflower Pieces - this is the quickest option if you're in a hurry, just skip over to Step 2.
Frozen Cauliflower Pieces - I've used both frozen cauliflower pieces and although frozen works, the fresh seems to come out better.