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Cauliflower Shawarma

Cauliflower Shawarma

Cauliflower is often the veg of choice for meatless shawarma, with a satisfying crispy, hearty texture that's ideal for loading up with flavor. Dressed with tangy sumac and creamy yogurt—all tucked into tender pita breads—it’s pretty amazing

By Courtney HillSeptember 1, 2021

  • Makes
    4 servings
  • Cook Time
    35 minutes
  • Active time plus cooling
    15 minutes active
  • Rating

Traditional Levantine shawarma is meat, commonly lamb, that’s seasoned and spit-roasted. Modern meatless riffs opt for cauliflower because it pairs well with nearly any type of spicing and cooks up with a satisfying texture. Shawarma Bar in London boosts richness in their cauliflower shawarma with butter, and we agree it’s a flavorful addition, but we also include a little olive oil for better browning. Tangy, deep-red sumac is made by grinding the dried berries of the sumac bush; look for it in the spice section of the supermarket or Middle Eastern grocery stores. If it’s not available, use lemon zest; zest alters the flavor profile but the cauliflower still will taste great.

Tip

Don’t stir the cauliflower more than once during roasting so the florets brown deeply. The best tool to use is a wide metal spatula to scrape up and flip the pieces.

Ingredients
  • 4

    tablespoons salted butter, melted

  • 2

    tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

  • 3

    medium garlic cloves, finely grated

  • 1

    tablespoon ground coriander

  • 1

    tablespoon plus ½ teaspoon ground sumac OR grated lemon zest

  • 2- to 2½-pound head cauliflower, trimmed and cut into 1-inch florets

  • Kosher salt and ground black pepper

  • ⅓

    cup plain whole-milk yogurt, room temperature

  • Pita bread rounds, halved, to serve

  • Sliced onion OR sliced tomato OR sliced cucumber OR a combination, to serve

Step 1

Heat the oven to 500°F with a rack in the middle position.

In a small bowl, stir together the butter, oil, garlic, coriander and 1 tablespoon of sumac. On a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle the cauliflower with ¼ cup of the butter mixture and sprinkle with salt and pepper; toss to combine.

Roast until well browned and tender, 18 to 24 minutes, stirring once about halfway through.

Step 2

Into the remaining butter mixture, stir the yogurt, then taste and season with salt, pepper and the remaining ½ teaspoon sumac. Tuck the cauliflower and sliced vegetable(s) into the pita and serve with the yogurt sauce.

Step 3

Fresh flat-leaf parsley OR fresh mint OR lemon wedges OR a combination

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