THE DISH
Roasted Cauliflower, Miso Cream, Cauliflower Leaf, Nori and Sesame Salad
FRESH IS BEST: Head to your local farmers market to source ingredients. Picture: Nicole Butler Photography
CHEF’S INSPIRATION
This is our delicious take on a cheesy cauliflower bake. All foreign ingredients are available in the Asian section of your local supermarket. Source your cauliflower from the local farmers market and get them to the leave the beautiful leaves on.
INGREDIENTS
1 whole cauliflower (with leaves on); 80g white miso paste; 140ml cream; 50g butter; 10g white sesame; 10g black sesame; 2 sheets of nori (roasted seaweed), cut roughly with scissors; 10g ginger, finely grated (using a microplane will achieve the best result); 20g rice wine vinegar; 10g mirin (sweet cooking sake); 20g sesame oil; vegetable oil to coat.
Troy Rhoades-Brown and Mitchell Beswick. Picture: Nicole Butler Photography
METHOD
Cauliflower preparation
1. Pre-heat a fan-forced oven to 190⁰C. Clean down the cauliflower by pulling off the leaves and washing, reserving the leaves. Cut the cauliflower in half. Place the two halves of cauliflower in a large pot of boiling water and cook for 3 minutes. Remove cauliflower from pot and submerge in a bowl of iced water for 10 minutes.
2. Blanch the cauliflower leaves in the pot of boiling water for 30 seconds and submerge in the bowl of iced water. Once the leaves are cooled, drain and squeeze out as much excess water as possible. Slice leaves into half-centimetre-thick ribbons.
3. Drain the two cauliflower halves and pat dry. Rub halves with vegetable oil and place on a baking tray with grease-proof paper. Roast in oven for approximately 40 to 50 minutes, checking if ready by piercing the cauliflower stalk, it should be soft and easy to cut. Allow the cauliflower halves to cool and rest. Turn oven down to 180⁰C.
Miso cream
Combine miso paste and cream in a pot, stir continuously and slowly bring to the simmer, removing from heat immediately if boiling occurs. Stir in butter in 3 parts until combined. Set aside to cool.
Dressing
Add the ginger, rice wine vinegar, mirin and sesame oil in a bowl and mix until combined.
Cauliflower and nori salad
Toss ribbons of cauliflower leaves through the dressing with ¾ of the roughly cut nori and ¾ of both the white and black sesame seeds.
To finish: Re-heat the cauliflower halves in the 180⁰C oven for 8 minutes. Place halves in a serving bowl, piling the salad on top and to the side. Pour miso cream into the bottom of the bowl, or serve on the side in a pouring jug if preferred. Garnish with remaining sesame seeds and the rough-cut nori.