Vegan cauliflower steaks are an eye-catching, vegetable-forward centerpiece dish.
Serve them with lentils and a romesco sauce that's made with roasted bell peppers, tomatoes, breadcrumbs, and almonds.
With protein from the lentils and a punch of flavor from the romesco, this is a satisfying, dinner party-worthy meal. Vegan & gluten-free.
Once viewed only as a side dish, nowadays cauliflower can be anything!
It’s used for everything from pizza crusts, to rice, and even as a main course – like this cauliflower steak recipe.
For this recipe, vegan cauliflower steak is served with lentils, which makes the dish filling & satiating. And it’s finished with a generous spoonful of romesco sauce.
Romesco is a roasted bell pepper & tomato sauce with breadcrumbs and almonds. Think of it as the bell pepper's answer to pesto.
It comes together really quickly in the food processor.
Vibrant romesco sauce gives the dish a flair of fanciness. But in reality, this cauliflower dish is weeknight and family-friendly. You could even pull it out on a Monday!
(Looking for more ideas for this cruciferous vegetable? Roasted cauliflower steaks are also great with cilantro chimichurri!)
In this post:
Why readers love this recipe
“This was delicious and a definite hit with my husband too!!” – Jane
The Meatless Monday Family Cookbook
This vegan cauliflower steak recipe is from the new cookbook by Jenn Sebestyen, The Meatless Monday Family Cookbook.
Jenn is the blogger behind the popular website veggieinspired.com.
She and I have been blogging buddies for years now. And I'm so excited to see her first cookbook out in the world.
The Meatless Monday Family cookbook includes over 100 plant-based recipes – including vegan mushroom stew, Thai sweet potato curry, and vegan chilaquiles.
Jenn is a mom. And that's reflected in her recipes. She shares how to get kids involved in the prepping and cooking.
Plus, she offers ways to serve vegetables in a manner that will appeal to little ones. Now, let's get cooking!
Step by step instructions
This section shows how to make this recipe at a glance with process photos of the steps. For complete ingredient amounts & instructions, keep scrolling to the recipe card below.
1. Oil and season cauliflower steaks. Then roast in the oven, stopping once to flip.
2. Put lentils, vegetable broth, and thyme into a pot. Bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat and cover with a lid. Simmer until tender, and drain. Then return cooked lentils to the pot and season.
3. Put drained roasted red peppers, drained diced fire roasted tomatoes, raw almonds, panko bread crumbs, garlic, smoked paprika, salt, and vinegar into a food processor. Process until it's mostly smooth.
4. Ladle romesco sauce onto four plates. Then top each one with lentils, and a cauliflower steak. Garnish with finely chopped almonds.
FAQ
Place a head of cauliflower stem-side up on a cutting board. Cut it in half, right through the middle of the stem. Then place one cauliflower half stem-side down. Cut a 1-inch slice off the middle. That's your first "steak."
Repeat with the other half. Then do the whole process over again with the second head of cauliflower.
(You will have cauliflower left over. Save it for another time.)
You will have cauliflower left over from this cauliflower steaks recipe.
Here are some ways to use it:
* Hummus bowl with roasted cauliflower
* Vegan cauliflower cheese soup
* Easy roasted cauliflower in the air fryer or oven
* Creamy cauliflower queso
* Mixed vegetable ginger & turmeric rice
If you try this recipe and love it, let me know! Leave a comment and ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating in the comment section below. It truly makes my day and is such a help!
📖 Recipe
Cauliflower steaks with lentils and romesco sauce
Ingredients
For the cauliflower steaks
- 2 heads cauliflower
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
For the lentils
- 1 cup French green lentils or brown lentils
- 3 cups low-sodium vegetable broth or water
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper or to taste
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
For the romesco sauce
- 1 (12-ounce) jar roasted red peppers drained
- 1 (15-ounce) can fire roasted diced tomatoes drained
- ½ cup raw almonds + additional finely chopped almonds for garnish
- ¼ cup panko bread crumbs or regular bread crumbs
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 Tablespoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Instructions
To make the cauliflower steaks
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Place a head of cauliflower stem-side up on a cutting board. Cut it in half through the middle of the stem. Carefully trim away all the green leaves from both halves, taking care not to cut the florets from the core. If the stem is rather long, cut the bottom half off, again being very careful not to cut too far up so the florets stay attached. Now place one half stem-side down and cut a 1-inch slice off the middle. This is your "steak." Repeat with the other half, and then repeat the whole process with the other head of cauliflower. Save the remaining florets that you aren't using for steaks for another time.
- Brush both sides of each "steak" generously with the olive oil. In a small bowl, stir together the salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Sprinkle on the cauliflower steaks; you likely won't use it all. Roast the cauliflower for 15 minutes, gently flip over, and roast for 10 more minutes until golden brown on both sides.
For the lentils
- Meanwhile, place the lentils, vegetable broth, and thyme in a pot on the stove. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce the heat to low. Simmer 20 minutes, or until tender. Drain and return the lentils to the pot. Add the salt, pepper, lemon juice, and parsley. Stir, taste, and adjust the seasoning, if necessary.
For the romesco sauce
To serve
- Ladle ¼ to ½ cup of romesco sauce on each plate, topped with one-quarter of the lentils, and one cauliflower steak. Garnish with finely chopped almonds.
Notes
Nutrition
Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of The Meatless Monday Family Cookbook, so that I could produce this review. As always, the thoughts & opinions are totally my own.
Bridget
I’ve been plant based for about two years, and still afraid to invite people over for dinner because I don’t know what to serve them. This recipe is perfect and delicious! It’s visually appealing/impressive, tastes great, and isn’t too hard to make. I plan to serve it with a hearty salad and thick bread. Thank you!
Cadry Nelson
That’s great to hear, Bridget. I’m so glad you enjoyed it. Best of luck with your dinner party!
Jane Martorana
This was delicious and a definite hit with my husband too!!
Cadry Nelson
I’m so glad that you and your husband enjoyed it! Thank you for letting me know!
Sue
Delicious! My nonvegan husband and I both loved it. Thanks for a delicious recipe.
Cadry
I’m so glad to hear it was a hit, Sue. Thank you for letting me know!
Bianca Phillips
I love me a good cauliflower steak! But I do typically need some sort of protein side to make sure I’m not hungry an hour later. This looks perfect with the lentils!!
Cadry
I agree completely! Roasted cauliflower is always so good, but there’s not a lot of fat, calories, or protein there. So having something protein-dense along with it really helps the meal to be satiating.
David
This was extremely delicious! Looking forward to trying more recipes from Jenn’s book. 🙂
Cadry
I agree! You’ve got to love a recipe that’s weeknight-friendly & tasty to boot!
Jenn
Cadry, thank you so much for your wonderful review! I’m so happy you loved this recipe and are enjoying the book!
Cadry
My pleasure! Thank you for making such a delicious recipe & beautiful book. I know it’s going to be a big success!