Oven Roasted Cauliflower Florets with Tahini Sauce

This roasted cauliflower with tahini sauce is an easy & healthy side dish recipe that takes 30 minutes or less to make. Cauliflower florets are seasoned simply and roasted the oven until caramelized, then drizzled with a delicious homemade lemon tahini sauce. Serve tahini cauliflower with any weeknight meal!

As a Registered Dietitian, I’m happy to see all the love and creativity surrounding cauliflower these days. From cauliflower rice, to raw cauliflower salad, to mashed cauliflower, there are a myriad of ways to prepare it!

But, my favorite way to enjoy this vegetable is oven roasted cauliflower florets that get deeply golden brown and caramelized in a hot oven. Roasting cauliflower florets under high heat enhances the flavor and makes each piece perfectly crispy.

A generous drizzle of homemade lemon tahini sauce tastes amazing on roasted cauliflower florets. This sauce takes under five minutes to prepare, which you can do while the cauliflower is cooking in the oven.

Tahini cauliflower is bound to be one of your new favorite healthy vegetable side dishes! This recipe is vegan, gluten free, nut free, soy free, and dairy free.

Ingredients in roasted cauliflower with tahini sauce

Here is everything you need to make this recipe:

• Cauliflower: When shopping for cauliflower, look for a vegetable that has no brown spots and is heavy and quite firm to the touch. I prefer to buy a whole head of cauliflower and cut it into florets, but you could also buy a bag of pre-cut cauliflower florets for convenience.
• Salt: A pinch of salt helps enhance the natural sweetness of cauliflower as it roasts in the oven.
• Sumac: Sumac is a spice that is popular in Middle Eastern cooking. It has a lemony, sweet and tart flavor. If you can’t find sumac, you can just use black pepper in its place.
• Olive oil: A generous amount of olive oil (two tablespoons) is essential for perfectly crispy roasted cauliflower florets.
• Tahini: Tahini is a creamy paste made from ground sesame seeds. It’s common in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cooking. Tahini is a delicious base for a sauce for vegetables, falafel, and more. Read about the nutrition benefits of tahini below.
• Lemon juice: Fresh lemon juice is best for tahini sauce.
• Garlic and herb seasoning: This dry seasoning blend is used to make the homemade lemon tahini sauce. You can also just use garlic powder.
• Cilantro or parsley: Chopped fresh herbs garnish this roasted cauliflower recipe and add a fresh, zesty flavor.

Kitchen tools needed

You need a cutting board and a good knife to cut the cauliflower into florets, a sheet pan for roasting, a small mixing bowl, and a small whisk or fork.

How to make tahini cauliflower

Recipe tip: Place cauliflower florets cut side down onto the baking sheet. You want as much surface area as possible in contact with the hot pan. This allows the maillard reaction to occur – which is a fancy term for browning. It gives oven roasted vegetables their delicious caramelized flavor and aroma.

Storing tahini cauliflower

If you have tahini cauliflower leftovers, you can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat it in the microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute, or until the cauliflower is warmed through.

Leftover roasted cauliflower is a delicious addition to salads or wraps, either cold or hot!

You will likely have some leftover tahini sauce. Store it in a jar in the fridge for up to two weeks. You can use leftover tahini sauce in a variety of ways: use it as a salad dressing, drizzled onto a grain bowl, spread onto sandwiches, or as a dip for veggies and pita!

Serving suggestions

This cauliflower recipe is a delicious and healthy side dish with any meal. Here are some protein-rich pescatarian and vegetarian mains that you could pair this cauliflower with:

• Honey garlic salmon
• Baked tofu
• Cilantro lime shrimp
• Lemon caper baked cod
• Greek yogurt marinated salmon
• Air fryer tempeh

Cauliflower nutrition benefits

Cauliflower is a nutrition powerhouse! One cup of raw cauliflower provides:

• 2.1 grams of dietary fiber (8% of your daily needs)
• 2.1 grams of plant-based protein
• 60.99 mcg folate (15% of your daily needs)
• 0.714 mg pantothenic acid (14% of your daily needs)
• 0.197 mg Vitamin B6 (12% of your daily needs)
• 51.6 mg Vitamin C (57% of your daily needs)
• 16.6 mcg Vitamin K (14% of your daily needs)

In addition to fiber and micronutrients, cauliflower is rich in a plant compound called sulforaphane. This beneficial compound has potent anti-inflammatory effects, protecting our cells against certain diseases.

Other cruciferous veggies that have sulforaphane include kale, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and cabbage.

Looking for more healthy cauliflower recipes? Try my turmeric roasted cauliflower, cauliflower piccata, cauliflower baked ziti, lemon roasted cauliflower with capers, vegan cauliflower alfredo sauce, and cauliflower & kale pasta.

Tahini nutrition benefits

Tahini is a super healthy food to include in your diet. It has a similar nutrient profile to nut butters, like peanut butter or almond butter. A one ounce serving of tahini (about two tablespoons) provides:

• 4.8 grams of plant-based protein
• 2.6 grams of dietary fiber (9% of your daily needs)
• 0.346 mg thiamine (29% of your daily needs)
• 0.134 mg riboflavin (10% of your daily needs)
• 1.545 mg niacin (10% of your daily needs)
• 9.75 mcg selenium (18% of your daily needs)
• 120.77 mg calcium (9% of your daily needs)
• 2.54 mg iron (14% of your daily needs)

Because it is a source of plant-based protein, calcium, and iron, tahini is particularly beneficial for those on a vegan, vegetarian, or plant-based diet.

A one ounce serving of tahini has about 15 grams of fat, but a majority of the fat comes from heart healthy mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids.

Let me know if you love this post by leaving a comment or star rating below, and check out Instagram and Pinterest for more healthy lifestyle inspiration. Thanks for stopping by!

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