Roast spiced cauliflower and corn salad

By: Billy Law
From: Have You Eaten
Serves: 4
Photographer: Billy Law

Exciting all over again simply by changing the way you cook them. Cauliflower is probably not my favourite vegetable; no matter how I boiled, steamed or blanched them, these buggers were dull and flavourless. Then I discovered that cauliflower belongs to the same family as cabbage, brussels sprouts and broccoli, and the best way to bring out their sweet, almost meaty flavour is to roast them, similar to how I cook my brussels sprouts.

Ingredients

Quantity	Ingredient
2 slices	white bread, toasted, (see note)
2	corn cobs, with husks
1	red capsicum
3 tablespoon	olive oil, plus extra to drizzle
350g	cauliflower, cut into small florets
1 tablespoon	fennel seeds, toasted
1 teaspoon	cumin seeds, toasted
1 tablespoon	ground turmeric
	sea salt flakes
	freshly ground black pepper
small handful	flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Method

Preheat the oven to 220°C. Place the toasted bread in a small food processor and pulse a few times until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Set aside.
Preheat the barbecue grill to medium. Put the corn cobs in their husks on the grill and cook for 20–25 minutes, turning occasionally until all sides are cooked and the husks are blackened. Remove and set aside to cool. When the corn is cool enough to handle, peel the husks off and use a sharp knife to slice down the cob to cut off all the corn kernels. Transfer to a bowl and set aside for later use.
Meanwhile, place the capsicum on top of a gas hob over a naked flame or on the barbecue, turning frequently using kitchen tongs, and roast until the skin blackens and blisters on all sides. Put the charred capsicum inside a zip-lock bag and let it steam for 10 minutes until softened. Rub the capsicum against the plastic bag to peel the skin off. Remove from the bag and rinse under water to remove the remaining skin, then dry and dice into small chunks. Set aside.
Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium–high heat, add the cauliflower florets, placing them cut side down, and fry for 5 minutes, or until lightly browned, then flip them over and fry for a further 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and transfer the cauliflower to a roasting tin. Add the breadcrumbs, capsicum, fennel seeds, cumin seeds and turmeric, then season with a pinch of salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Give everything a quick mix with both hands, then bake for 25–30 minutes until the cauliflower is slightly wilted and browned on the edges. Remove from the oven, add the corn kernels to the tin, stir to mix well and then transfer to a serving plate. Season with extra salt and pepper and a sprinkle of chopped parsley.