Our Purple Cauliflower Salad is packed with aromatic flavours and looks sensational with its vibrant violet hues. Ideal for impressing guests at a dinner party.
What makes it purple?
Just like all purple hued fruits and vegetables, like red cabbage and blueberries, purple cauliflower gets it gorgeous violet hues from anthocyanin a flavonoid rich in antioxidants.
What’s the difference between the white and the purple?
Purple cauliflower is higher in antioxidants than regular white cauliflower it is milder tasting with a sweeter and nuttier taste without any of the pungent aroma or bitter taste than the white has.
Did you know that the edible flower florets of cauliflower are referred to as the “curd” 😲
How to Keep youR cauliflower bright purple
Like other coloured veggies such as beans or cabbage the best way to ensure that you keep it’s gorgeous colour is by adding some acid such as lemon juice or vinegar while cooking.
Where to buy coloured cauliflower?
As cauliflower is in season during autumn/fall and winter you are more likely to find it at a farmers market or specialty green grocer.
I stumbled across mine at a farmers market during the summer months a d then ran across a stack at my supermarket 🤷🏻♀️.
Can I use a white cauliflower instead
Not a problem at all, if you can’t find a coloured caullie then by all means you can replace it with a white or even with romanesco instead. As they are so similar there is nothing to change in the recipe apart from cooking times.
What to serve it with
This is a great salad for cooler weather, it pairs well with roasts, stews casseroles and ravines. Try it with…
You Will Need:
How to Make it
1PREPARE CAULIFLOWER
Wash the cauliflower, remove the core and leaves and cut into small florets, then pat dry. You don’t want it to spit at you when you add it to the frypan.
WASH & REMOVE THE CORE CUT INTO FLORETS
2COOK CAULIFLOWER
Heat a large non-stick frypan on medium heat, add the olive oil and heat until warm, then add the cauliflower with a squeeze of lemon juice and sauté until golden brown. (Approximately 10-15 minutes, you will notice it darken in colour).
ADD CAULIFLOWER TO HOT PAN COOK TILL GOLDEN BROWN
3ADD AROMATICS & HERBS
In the meantime, roughly chop the green olives and almonds.
Add the coriander seeds and stir through until well distributed throughout the cauliflower, cook the seeds until golden and fragrant.
Add green olives, chopped almonds, lemon zest and lemon juice, stir through the cauliflower and cook until the cauliflower is tender. (Approximately 5-10 minutes).
Meanwhile, wash the parsley, shake or pat dry and roughly chop.
Remove from the cooked cauliflower from the heat add the chopped parsley toss through and if it is looking a bit dry add 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil.
Arrange in a salad bowl, drizzle with some oil and serve either hot or cold.
CHOP THE GREEN OLIVES & ALMONDS ADD THE CORIANDER SEEDS ADD OLIVES, ALMONDS & ZEST ROUGHLY CHOP PARSLEY ADD LEMON JUICE & ALLOW TO SIZZLE ADD THE PARSLEY
Can i make it ahead
It all depends, if you want to serve this as a hot side then no it really cannot be made ahead. However, if you are going to serve this as a cold side then it can be made several hours in advance or even the day before.
Keep it in an air tight container in the fridge and bring it to room temperature before serving. Also, add the parsley just before serving so that it does not wilt or discolour.
What about the leftovers?
Any leftover salad still tastes great after several days in the fridge.
To change it up you can chop it up and use it as a filling in a frittata with some crumbled feta. Or even stir it through some cooked pasta with cream, Parmesan cheese and minced garlic.
Looking for more brassIca salad inspiration.
Ingredients
- 900 grams purple cauliflower (approximately 6 cups, 32oz)
- ¼ cup olive oil
- Sea salt and cracked pepper
- 2 tbsps coriander seeds
- ½ cup almonds roughly chopped
- ½ cup green olives roughly chopped
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- ⅓ cup lemon juice fresh
- 3 tbsps olive oil
Instructions
- Wash the cauliflower, remove the core and leaves and cut into small florets, then pat dry. You don’t want it to spit at you when you add it to the frypan.
- Heat a large non-stick frypan on medium heat, add the olive oil and heat until warm, then add the cauliflower a squeeze of lemon juice and sauté until golden brown. (Approximately 10-15 minutes, you will notice it darken in colour).
- In the meantime, roughly chop the green olives and almonds.
- Add the coriander seeds and stir through until well distributed throughout the cauliflower, cook the seeds until golden and fragrant.
- Add green olives, zest and lemon juice, stir through the cauliflower, and cook until the cauliflower is tender. (Approximately 5-10 minutes).
- Wash the parsley, shake or pat dry and roughly chop.
- Remove from the cooked cauliflower from the heat add the chopped parsley toss through and if it is looking a bit dry add 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil.
- Arrange in a salad bowl and serve when you are ready.
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.
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