Sweet cauliflower tossed in olive oil, garlic, thyme, and Parmesan cheese, then cooked until tender and golden. Roasted Cauliflower is a simple side dish with fantastic results and goes with just about everything!
Looking for more cauliflower recipes? Don’t miss our Roasted Cauliflower Parmesan, Mashed Cauliflower, and Cauliflower Curry Rice.
Easy Oven Roasted Cauliflower
Ah, roasted cauliflower. I’m in love with this stuff! It’s seriously like candy to me. Well, not quite. But close!
Sometimes I’ll throw this together and eat it for lunch – nothing else with it. Roasted (and grilled) vegetables are just the best.
This recipe for Roasted Cauliflower couldn’t be easier, too. You only need cauliflower, olive oil, garlic, thyme, Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper. You could also sprinkle additional seasonings on your cauliflower, but I just love it simple. Roasting vegetables brings out the absolute best flavor – they really don’t need anything else.
Roasted Cauliflower Recipe
Here’s what you’ll need:
(Scroll below to the printable recipe card for details and measurements.)
- Cauliflower: A whole head of fresh cauliflower, cut into small florets. If you’re in a crunch for time, some markets even sell it pre-cut.
- Extra-virgin olive oil: This will give the dish some moisture and richness.
- Garlic: Peeled and smashed, so buy it fresh.
- Thyme: Fresh thyme sprigs are ideal. Skip the dried herbs for this recipe.
- Seasoning: Simple salt and pepper, to taste
- Parmesan: Freshly grated Parmesan cheese off the block. Skip the pre-grated kind in the plastic tub.
How to Roast Cauliflower
Here are a few tips to ensure your cauliflower is roasted perfectly!
(Don’t miss the detailed printable recipe card below and the video.)
- Cut the florets into medium-sized florets. Too small and they’ll burn.
- Make sure the florets are uniform in size. Making sure they’ll all the same size, allows them to cook the same.
- Place them onto the baking sheet in a single layer. Vegetables let off moisture as they cook and if they’re piled on top of one another they will steam and not roast.
- Toss halfway through cooking. This allows the florets to roast evenly and brown on all sides.
- What temperature to roast cauliflower? Roast at 425 degrees F. High heat is best!
- How long to roast cauliflower? Roast until the cauliflower is tender and slightly crisp, about 25 minutes at 425. Don’t over-cook the florets or they’ll be mushy and fall apart. You want them to be al dente and nicely browned around the edges – the charred pieces are the most delish!
What to Serve with Cauliflower
Our roasted cauliflower recipe is perfect any time of year. Serve it with one of the following for a complete meal:
How to Make Roasted Cauliflower – Video
More Roasted Vegetables:
- The Best Roasted Broccoli
- Roasted Green Beans
- Roasted Eggplant and Cherry Tomatoes
- Rosted Parmesan Creamed Onions
I hope you love this delicious and simple recipe – be sure to give it a review below! Also don’t forget to follow Belly Full on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube!
Parmesan Roasted Cauliflower
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower , cut into florets about 1 1/2 inches each
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic , peeled and smashed
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Toss florets on a large rimmed baking sheet with the olive oil, garlic, and thyme until coated; season with salt and pepper.
- Roast for 15 minutes, tossing once until almost tender. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and toss to combine; roast for an additional 10 minutes, tossing once more, until fork tender and golden.
- Serve immediately.
Video
Nutrition
Other Notes
Hi,
I dont have fresh thyme. Can I use the store bought one? how much? Thanks, Renee
Absolutely. Fresh just means not dried…it doesn’t need to come from your own garden.
Great recipe for those of us who look for low carb dishes.
Cauliflower… <3
Cauliflower + Parmesan = <3 <3 <3
Gosh I love cauliflower. I tried to comment on the ranch and dill recipe without much success, Amy. :( I am obsessed with both dill and cauliflower btw and even if I don’t have small kids at home I have the song from Frozen on rewind on the computer.
I’ve always liked cauliflower. I was surprised at your comment that its trending right now. I wasn’t aware of that. Well its time for the often forgotten cauliflower get his 15 minutes of fame!!!! Cauliflowers of the World—-it’s time to unite! Laughing here of course.
LOVE roasted cauliflower!
Oh I love roasted cauliflower – and this recipe looks so good! Thanks for sharing!
This looks like the kind of side dish that I would end up eating so much of that I didn’t have room for the main dish. YUM!
well, I still would prefer candy :) but this look pretty damn good!
Cauli-trending sounds good to me! I mean, I was probably going to cook with it anyway and at least now that makes me cool!
i’m all about roasting veggies these days. these look great!
I just roasted cauliflower tonight! So yummy. Wish I had thought to add some parm!
My family loves veggie stir fries! We’d eat them for dinner all the time when I was in high school. Dad would pull out all of the random veggies in our fridge — a handful of carrots, a half-empty bag of broccoli florets, a stray potato — chop them up, and sauté them in a pan with lots of basil and garlic. And that was dinner! Your cauliflower brings back lots of fond memories. :)
Yummy! I need to make this soon!
I absolutely love this! I could eat this all day!
I’m a fool for roasted cauliflower!
I honestly don’t think I could get sick of cauliflower. I love to roast it up and adding some parmesan with it is a great idea!
Trend away, cauliflower. ;) And I agree – sometimes I can eat just a big plate of roasted vegetables for a meal and be perfectly content.
I know you even eat it raw… I made this 3x last week just for myself. Paul came into the kitchen and said, “Really? Again?” He’s not a fan. I shushed him ;-)
So simple! Next time I get cauliflower I will do this.
I second Linda with romanesco. That would be good as well. I’m sure purple cauliflower or “broccoflower” would be just as good.
Yes, this would work with any variety. I’ve also made broccoli with this method – converted my kids. #winning
My husband brought home some Romanesco cauliflower. (We had to look it up-didn’t know what it was.) I roasted it pretty much the same way minus the Parmesan. It was awesome!
My sister belongs to some CSA basket through work and last year she got a ton of Romanesco cauliflower. It was even sweeter than regular. Loved it!
Lordy, this looks so good!!!!
This cauliflower looks AMAZING! Now you’ve given me an excuse to try out this recipe!
YES, please. I’m seeing variations of cauliflower on so many menus lately. I will try this (easy!?) recipe at home. Thanks.
Love this recipe, my husband will be home Friday from a long job in Virginia. And he has been talking about how he just love the roasted cauliflower I fixed. Going to try yours when he comes in, it sounds a lot better than mine. Thank you so much for sharing.
My husband is the best eater, but sadly, not a fan of cauliflower. More for me! #brightside
I love cauliflower, too, but I’ve never roasted it. I love it raw, steamed, even microwaved (especially with cheese!) This recipe sounds scrumptious, Amy! Definitely another one of your wonderful recipes to add to my list to try!
Happy Spring!
I love it all those ways, too…but roasted is the best!