Cauliflower "Steaks"

Tonight, I finally got around to trying the Cauliflower "Steaks" that seem to be popular right now. While I have a button about using meat words for non-meat things (there is no such thing as a vegetarian hamburger for instance...but those boca--uhhhh--things can be quite tasty)...I haven't been able to think of a better word to use...so here we are.

I decided to cut them quite thick to help with holding together in the bath, then on the grill.


My spice mix: Cinnamon, garam masala, black salt, cloves, mace, cumin, coriander, turmeric (not pictured).


Ground, then bloomed in oil to bring out the flavors and help them penetrate a bit better.


After reading a number of recipes, consulting my non-existant experience with veggies in the water bath, and evaluating my schedule, I decided on 150F for 4 hours.


Bagged with the spice gravy...also did one with a more traditional treatment of butter, salt, pepper, and cilantro. And a little Tillman Niolox porn.


This being my first time to SV veggies, I didn't anticipate that they would float. *Facepalm* so I improvised a kind of blanket with a water-filled ziplock bag inside another ziplock bag. After a bit if jiggering, it worked well enough.


First side onto the grill....


Plated.


And a peek inside...mid-rare?


The stem didn't cook as fully as the rest...and I'm afraid it would have compromised structural integrity if it did (?)...so the firmer stem was a treat for my doggies...each of them got about 5 pieces this size and seemed to love it.


All-in-all I quite enjoyed it. I'd dial way back on the cinnamon next time...and ramp up the salt a good bit...and only serve myself 1/2 of a piece that big. They were quite filling. I'd happily forgoe meat in the meal for a whole piece next time.

Also, they weren't awful with chimichurri!

 

These look great! I suspect the texture at 150 might be more like what I'm used to pan roasting them then a higher temp I used sous vide. Would you stick with 150?

 

I've had several suggestions to go to 185 for 1 hour....I'm going to try that and compare. Will report back. I quite enjoyed these though.

 

id suggest a resting tray for baking, basically a thick wire sheet tray, for keeping things under water next time. but looks great!

 

I tried several of those brad....none would fit in my vessel. Now considering buying one and cutting to fit.

 

I've used the wire rack as brad suggested. I've also used an inverted v-shaped roasting rack. The shape helps hold things in place.

And by the way - I'm impressed your dogs eat cauliflower. Mine will eat carrots and broccoli, but that's about it on the non-disguised vegetable front.

 

Very interesting. I love cauliflower way too much. Once I ate an entire head of roasted florets then got on an airplane the next morning. Not a good move.

With that said, I have never cooked it SV. I might have to try something similar. Thanks for road testing the temp/time combos.

This summer I also tried a grilled cauliflower 'steak' and it turned out really good, but I found I had a lot of floret waste with cutting them into steaks as I could only get about two center cuts (sometimes one) that had any sort of structural integrity for the grill. Luckily for me, I just steamed the leftover florets in the microwave, drizzled with olive oil and salt, and fed to the kids.

Btw, last night I tried this cauliflower recipe (below), and my wife and I were amazingly impressed with it. It definitely graduated to the favorite recipe list in quick fashion. My only complaint is that the dish turns out to be quite expensive with all the cheese and almost a full bottle of wine. Next time, I would prepare two heads in the same cooking liquid.

http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/whole-roasted-cauliflower-with-whipped-goat-cheese

k.

 

That's a mighty good looking head of cauliflower, Drinky.

RE the yield question...I was/am worried about that too. got a great tip today: bag up all of the non-steak bits with the same seasonings as the rest, SV with the rest, but then puree to serve as a sauce or small soup, or to plate something on. If you have a charcoal grill, you can throw it in a pan and smoke it with a bit of hickory for a surprising flavor from cauliflower puree.