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This harissa cauliflower recipe can be made in the oven or your air-fryer. It’s impressively flavorful, ready with less than 10 minutes of actual prep time, and makes cauliflower the best thing in your bowl. Plus, it’s 200% vegan and gluten-free without even trying!
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Harissa, a North African chili paste that's a big part of Tunisian and Moroccan cooking, is like having instant flavor on tap. The kind of heat that makes this veggie side rock some pretty effortless yum. Different brands of harissa offer different levels of spiciness (or you can make your own!), so adjust accordingly to your preference.
Serve it up as a full meal with mutabal, Turkish green beans, and some flavorful Turkish bulgur. No matter if you're loading it into a pita with creamy hummus or tossing it in bowls with grains and greens, dripping with harissa tahini sauce, this cauliflower is about to make you super happy with yourself as a cook. Lots of people discover that roasted cauliflower becomes their favorite way to enjoy this versatile vegetable!
Grab your harissa and let’s get upgrade your cauliflower game!
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🥰Why you’ll adore this Harissa cauliflower recipe
✊ Vegan AF & GF: Just like all my vegan Middle Eastern recipes, no animals products or honey up in here. And if you’re hunting for gluten-free vegan recipes, you’ve found the good stuff right here!
🧂 Minimal Ingredients, Max Flavor: Using only a few simple pantry staples, this dish packs a punch of flavor with no need for complicated ingredients or prep.
⏱️ Weeknight Win: This recipe comes together in under 40 minutes, with only a few minutes of actual hands-on prep. Most of the time you are just waiting for it to finish roasting, so you can get the rest of the meal together.
✅ Tested and Approved Worldwide: Like all of the vegan recipes I share, after tweaking and perfecting it, I shared it with a massive team of recipe testers who made it and loved it all over the world.
🤘Learn to make killer vegan Middle Eastern food
This guide to my most popular plant-based Middle Eastern recipes is 100% FREE, & you'll love the actual heck out of it 🥰
🥦Harissa cauliflower ingredients
Smoked paprika
If you can get your hands on it, use Spanish smoked paprika which is smooth and never has the odd "burnt rubber" backbone flavor I sometimes find cheaper paprikas have. Good quality paprika makes all the difference in achieving that perfect smoky flavor.
I especially adore the smoked paprika from Burlap & Barrel. Order it through my link, and you'll score a free jar of this seriously bangin' cumin!
Get my fave cumin seeds for free!
Using this link, add the wild mountain cumin to your cart, spend at least $15 on some of the other absurdly good spices from Burlap & Barrel (they all seriously slap) and the bottle of this bangin' wild mountain cumin becomes FREE, and you will love it so much.
Harissa
You can use storebought spicy harissa paste, but my harissa recipe gives you chili paste heat, garlic cloves, ground spices, and just the right amount of citrus. If you're looking for a harissa paste substitute, you could combine tomato paste with red pepper flakes and a touch of maple syrup for natural sweetness. If you want to make this even spicier, use fermented shatta sauce instead. All you spicy freaks will appreciate the authentic African cuisine flavors.
Tahini sauce
Nope, I am not talking about using the unseasoned paste here. If you're looking for a somewhat hilariously-easy, flavorful creamy tahini sauce, check out my tarator recipe. A thick sauce like this brings everything together. To make a special tahini harissa sauce, simply mix your favorite tahini with a bit of harissa paste in a small bowl.
*See the recipe card at the bottom of the page for exact quantities, nutritional info, and detailed cooking directions.
🤯Variations
Aloo Gobi
My aloo gobi recipe is all about those tender potatoes and cauliflower florets simmered in a spiced-up tomato gravy, with turmeric, cumin, and coriander bringing that signature Indian flavor. A little garam masala to finish it off, and over some vegan biryani with some mango pickle, you have one of my family’s fave meals ready to go.
Zhoug Roasted Cauliflower
Use Yemeni zhoug sauce in place of harissa, and baharat in place of the paprika in this recipe. The result will be green instead of reddish, and with more of a garlicky sumac flavor. It's a great cauliflower to wrap up in a pita for a sandwich.
📖 How to make Harissa cauliflower
Master this cauliflower recipe on your first shot by following these step-by-step photos with helpful tips. Or scroll down to the bottom of this page for the easy-to-print recipe card.
Step One
Get Set:
Set the oven to 375°F (190°C) or the air fryer to 400°F (205°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut your cauliflower into small, slightly larger than bite-size pieces.
✅ Remember, the cauliflower will reduce in size a lot as it cooks, so don’t cut the pieces too darned tiny, OK?
Step Two
Mixing Impossible:
Add cauliflower florets to a large bowl. Add lemon juice, smoked paprika, harissa, olive oil, and salt. Mix until evenly coated.
Step Three
Bake to the Future:
Spread the florets in a single layer and roast for 30–35 minutes, flipping halfway through.
Step Four
Optional: Air-Frying Method:
Place florets in the air fryer basket in a single layer. Work in batches if necessary. Cook for 15–18 minutes, shaking the basket halfway through.
Step Six
Mac Cauli Culkin:
This is even better topped with a little extra harissa, and garnish with lemon zest, parsley, dill, and/or mint.
💡Serving Ideas
This makes a great veggie side to go with vegan kofta and taboule. Want more protein in your life? Serve your cauliflower up alongside some Moroccan loubia, vegan shawarma, or barbunya pilaki.
👉Top tips
- Be Reasonable with Florets: Larger florets can get dark on the outside without cooking internally, and that sucks! Make sure the pieces are just about bite size, so they get crisp and cook internally when baked.
- Batch Friendly: Meal prepping or cooking for a team of gladiators, or whatever? Just multiply the recipe and use more than one sheet pan so everything still bakes in a single layer. It’s an easy way to make a bigger batch, and when you reheat it in the oven, the crispiness comes right back.
🤷♀️ Recipe FAQs
Come on, don’t even think about it. It’ll turn mushy and awful and make 100 ponies cry real tears of disappointment.
Keep that frozen cauliflower, make something like daliya instead, where it will be welcomed with open arms.
You can, but the texture will be a lot less crispy. Use veggie broth instead of oil, but keep in mind that most harissa contains a small amount of oil in it anyway.
❄️ Refrigerating:
Let the cauliflower cool completely, then transfer it to an airtight container. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
🔥 Stovetop Reheating:
Add the cauliflower to a skillet over medium heat. Cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until hot and slightly crisp again. Add a splash of water or oil if needed to loosen it up.
🥵 Oven Reheating:
Place in a preheated oven at 400°F (205°C) for 6-8 minutes until reheated and lightly crisp. Garnish with fresh herbs to bring it back to life a little.
⚡️ Microwave Reheating:
Place a portion in a microwave-safe dish, cover loosely with a lid or small plate, and heat on high for 1-2 minutes. Stir halfway through for even heating. Add a spoonful of water if it looks dry.
Freezing harissa cauliflower? You might just be single-handedly responsible for the next 9-11. That is the wrong thing to do, and you know it. Don’t make your dad super-disappointed in you…
✌️You'll love these vegan Middle Eastern recipes too:
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Harissa Cauliflower
Equipment
- Air Fryer optional
Ingredients
- 1 medium cauliflower cut into bite sized florets
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 tablespoons harissa
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
Optional For Serving:
- Tahini sauce
- Additional harissa
- Fresh lemon zest
- Parsley leaves
- Dill Sprigs
- Mint leaves
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C) or preheat an air fryer to 400°F (205°C).
- In a large bowl, combine the cauliflower florets with the lemon juice, smoked paprika, harissa, olive oil, and salt. Toss until the cauliflower is evenly coated.
- For oven roasting: Spread the cauliflower in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Roast for 30–35 minutes, flipping once halfway through, until browned in spots and tender.
- For air frying: Arrange the cauliflower in a single layer in the air fryer basket, working in batches if necessary to avoid overcrowding. Cook for 15–18 minutes, shaking the basket halfway through, until the edges are crisp and the florets are cooked through.
- Serve hot, with tahini sauce, and additional harissa, and garnish with lemon zest, parsley leaves, dill sprigs or mint.
Notes
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Linda says
The harissa was the secret ingredient!! I air-fried mine, and it came out delicious! Thank you!!