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Whole cauliflower shawarma with pistachio yoghurt
Serves 2-3 Starters and mains
Ingredients
- 1 large cauliflower
- mixed grains, couscous, pittas or flatbreads, to serve
- pomegranate seeds (optional), to garnish
For the shawarma paste
- 50ml melted butter
- 50ml olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1tsp sweet smoked paprika
- 1tsp cayenne pepper or Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1tsp ground coriander
- 1tsp ground cumin
- 1tsp ground turmeric
- 1tsp ground allspice
- 1/2tsp ground cinnamon
- juice 1/2 lemon
For the pistachio yoghurt
- 75g coriander stalks and leaves
- 40g shelled pistachios
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2tbsp lemon juice
- 250g Greek yoghurt
For the salad
- 1/4 red cabbage, shredded
- 2 little gem lettuces, sliced
- 2 carrots, grated
- 1 red onion, finely sliced
- handful mild Lombardi pickled peppers from a jar
- handful mint leaves
- 1/2 lemon, to squeeze
- tahini, to drizzle
Method
Preheat the oven to 200C/ 180C F/ Gas 6. Remove the outer leaves from the cauliflower, reserving a few. Bring a large pan of water to the boil, add the cauliflower and blanch for 5 minutes, then drain and leave for 5 minutes to dry out and cool a little.
Mix all the ingredients for the shawarma paste together in a bowl and rub it all over the cauliflower. Put it on a baking tray with the reserved leaves and roast for 40 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the pistachio yoghurt. In a food processor, blitz the coriander and pistachios (reserving a few leaves and pistachios, chopped, to garnsih), garlic, lemon juice and yoghurt together. Season with salt to taste and set aside.
Mix together the salad vegetables and mint in a bowl, squeeze the lemon over, then drizzle some tahini over.
Heat the grains, soak the couscous in vegetable stock, or warm the pittas or flatbreads. Put the cauliflower on a platter along with the roasted outer leaves, top with a drizzle of the pistachio yoghurt, the reserved coriander leaves and chopped pistachios and the pomegranate seeds, if using. Serve with the grains, couscous, pittas or flatbreads and the salad
COOK’S NOTE To make in advance, prepare all the elements, then roast the cauliflower for half the given time, finishing the cooking once your guests arrive.
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