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Slice cut out from whole roasted cauliflower, topped with purple onions, yellow hollandaise, golden crispy potatoes and cilantro leaves.

Whole Roasted Cauliflower with Hollandaise, Shoestring Potatoes and Pickled Onions

In case you're really looking to impress someone with cauliflower, this whole roasted cauliflower doctored with creamy, crispy, pickle-y toppings is perfect.
Course Appetizer, Dinner, Lunch
Cuisine American
Keyword cauliflower, cilantro, eggs, hollandaise, onion, pickles, potatoes, vegetables, vegetarian
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Pickling Time 1 hour
Total Time 2 hours 5 minutes
Servings 4 people
Calories 398 kcal

Ingredients

Quick-Pickled Red Onions

  • ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
  • ½ tablespoon granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • ½ cup water
  • ½ red onion thinly sliced

Shoestring Potatoes

  • 1 russet potato scrubbed
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil

Roasted Cauliflower

  • 1 medium head cauliflower stem trimmed

Hollandaise

  • 2 large egg yolks room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
  • 1 stick unsalted butter
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Assembly

  • ¼ cup cilantro leaves

Instructions

  1. Quick-Pickled Red Onions

  2. Whisk vinegar, sugar, salt and water in a small bowl until sugar and salt dissolve. Place onion in a jar; pour vinegar mixture over. Let sit at room temperature for at least 1 hour.

  3. Shoestring Potatoes
  4. Use a spiralizer to cut out the fries (use the thinnest setting that you can). Toss them with the oil and a couple of shakes of salt, then spread onto a baking sheet.
  5. Roast the potatoes at 425F for 15-20 minutes on the bottom rack, flipping the potatoes halfway through so that they brown evenly. Check often during the last 5-10 minutes, and pull any potatoes off that are really dark.
  6. Roasted Cauliflower
  7. Sprinkle salt all over the cauliflower. Add 2 inches of water to a large pot, then add the cauliflower, stem side down. Cover the pot with a lid.
  8. Place over medium-low heat, then simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the cauliflower is fork-tender. If it looks like the water level is getting low, add more water as needed. Cool slightly, then transfer to a oiled rimmed baking sheet.
  9. Place an oven rack as close as possible to the heating element, taking into account how tall the cauliflower is. Preheat your oven to broil. Broil the cauliflower for 5-10 minutes, or until the florets are golden brown.
  10. Hollandaise
  11. Put the egg yolks, lemon juice and lemon zest in a blender. Pulse a couple times to combine.
  12. Put the butter in a microwave-safe container with a spout and melt in a microwave until melted and hot. With the blender running, gradually add the butter into the egg to make a smooth frothy sauce. If the sauce is very thick, blend in a teaspoon of lukewarm water to loosen it up. Season with the salt.
  13. Assembly
  14. Place the cauliflower on a serving plate. Drizzle the hollandaise over, then sprinkle the pickled red onions all over. Scatter the shoestring potatoes and cilantro on top. Serve immediately.

Recipe Notes

Hollandaise modified slightly from The Food Network Test Kitchen, quick-pickled red onions from Oliver Strand via Bon Appetit, June 2012.

It may be tempting to spiralize the potatoes ahead of time and then bake right before using, but I'd recommend against this, since the potatoes will oxidize and stick together. I'd recommend pickling the onions and steaming the cauliflower the night before, then finishing everything else close to serving time if you're trying to divide the work and time.

Your choice if you want to keep or remove the cauliflower leaves (I removed them off of the cauliflower pictured in this post).