This Roasted Cauliflower Salad is a simple yet special dish. Made with caramelized cauliflower, peppery arugula, juicy tomatoes, red onion, and Manchego, it has the perfect mix of texture and flavor for everything from weeknight dinners to holiday tables. If you love easy vegetable-forward sides like this Roasted Cauliflower With Tahini, this is another one worth keeping in rotation.
Roasted Cauliflower Salad At A Glance
- 🕒 Total Time: 45 minutes
- 🍽️ Servings: 6 🥗 Course: Side Dish / Salad
- 🌍 Cuisine: Mediterranean-inspired
- 🌿 Dietary Info: Gluten-free, vegetarian
- ✨ Flavor Profile: Roasted and savory with fresh arugula, juicy tomatoes, sharp Manchego, and a simple tangy vinaigrette
- 📦 Make-Ahead Friendly: You can roast the cauliflower up to 3 days ahead and prep the tomato-onion mixture a day in advance
- ⭐ Why You'll Love It: This roasted cauliflower salad is fresh, flavorful, and just a little unexpected. It works as an easy side dish for dinner, a holiday table, or a simple lunch when you want something satisfying but not too heavy.
Save And Summarize This Recipe
Roasted cauliflower is one of those ingredients that can go in so many directions, which is part of what makes this salad so useful. If you love finding new ways to cook with it, recipes like this Healthy Cauliflower Tabbouleh and this Mushroom Cauliflower and Garlic Skillet are two more easy cauliflower recipes that work beautifully as sides or lighter meals.
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This salad also fits right in with the kind of fresh, Mediterranean-inspired sides that are easy to serve alongside dinner or add to a spread for entertaining. If that is your style, it would pair nicely with this Italian White Bean Salad, this Cold Asparagus Salad, or this Arugula Salad With Dates, Feta, and Pistachio.
Key Ingredients
You can't go wrong with taking one simple ingredient and creating a delicious healthy side dish that can be served with most main courses.
- Cauliflower: Cauliflower is the heart of this salad, so you want it roasted until it is golden and caramelized rather than just soft. In testing, giving it enough space on the pan made a big difference because crowded florets steamed instead of roasting and did not develop the same depth of flavor. If you enjoy roasted vegetable dishes, this Roasted Carrots With Tahini is another great option.
- Manchego Cheese: Manchego adds a salty, nutty bite that gives the salad a little more richness and makes it feel more complete. I tested this with the cheese folded into the salad instead of sprinkled just on top, and it worked better because the flavor came through in every bite.
- Rice Vinegar: The rice vinegar helps brighten the roasted cauliflower and keeps the salad from feeling too heavy. In testing, I found the dressing tasted even better when I slightly increased the vinegar and olive oil, especially if the cauliflower was roasted a little darker or the salad sat for a bit before serving.
See the recipe card for quantities.
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Variations
- Spicy - add red pepper flakes while roasting to gain some heat into the dish, or use Aleppo pepper.
- Cheese - if you cannot find manchego cheese, you can use any mild firm white cheese, even a white cheddar will work fine.
- Almonds - if you cannot find Marcona almonds, you can use regular almonds. Just roast and salt them before adding them to the top of the salad.
Such a tasty and unusual salad! Both adults and kids loved this. And it is so healthy. I plan to make it often and certainly will bring it to our holiday pot luck where both taste and presentation matter.
- Barb
How To Make A Roasted Cauliflower Salad: Step-By-Step
Step 1: Heat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large bowl, combine the onion, tomatoes, rice wine vinegar, olive oil, cheese, and a pinch of salt. Set aside.
Step 2: Chop the cauliflower head into florets and place them into a bowl. Add olive oil and salt to the bowl. Place the florets in a single layer on a foil-lined sheet pan.
Step 3: Roast until the cauliflower has golden edges and is caramelized, about 30 minutes.
Step 4: When the cauliflower is done, set it aside to cool for 10 minutes. Add to the onion mixture and toss. Garnish with arugula and Marcona almonds.
Hint: Cut the florets into bite-sized pieces. Don't leave them too large as they won't cook all the way through.
Gwen's Pro Tip
Don't throw away the green outer leaves from your cauliflower, or even the stalk. These can be used in soups so there is no waste. I store mine in the freezer until I'm ready to make a soup. I also love using roasted cauliflower from previous dinners by turning it into another salad for another meal.
Roasted Cauliflower Salad FAQ's
When it comes to nutrition, cauliflower is a superstar. It's high in Vitamin C and K and is also a good source of folate, which supports cell growth. Cauliflower is fat-free and cholesterol-free. And it's low in sodium.
Roasted cauliflower can become soggy or mushy when you overcrowd the florets on the baking tray. Also, you can cut back on the amount of olive oil you use to make sure the florets don't become soggy.
Roasting will caramelize the cauliflower and bring out that hidden sweetness. It really is the best way to cook cauliflower, as well as so many other vegetables, especially root vegetables.
Other Salads
Let me know your thoughts on this Roasted Cauliflower Salad by leaving a star rating below or by sharing it on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Thank you!
Gwen
Roasted Cauliflower Salad
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Ingredients
Roasted Cauliflower
- 1 head cauliflower cut into florets
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Salad
- ⅓ cup red onion julienned
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 3 oz Manchego cheese cubed
- 3 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 3 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
Garnish
- 2 cups arugula
- ¼ cup Marcona almonds chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400℉.
- In a large bowl, combine the onion, tomatoes, cheese, rice wine vinegar, olive oil and a pinch of sea salt. Set aside.
- Cut the cauliflower into florets. Place them into a bowl.
- Add ¼ cup of olive oil and toss.
- Prepare a sheet pan by lining it with foil.
- Add the cauliflower in a single layer on the sheet pan.
- Sprinkle with kosher salt.
- Roast for 30 minutes or until golden brown and carmelized.
- Let the cauliflower cool for 10 minutes.
- Combine the cauliflower with the salad and toss.
- Place the salad into a bowl or on plates garnished with the arugula and marcona almonds. Serve.
Anna says
I made this as a side dish for a BBQ and everyone loved it! I could not find manchego so I used some cubed aged parmesan and it was delicious. We will make this one again.
Barbara Asher says
Such a tasty and unusual salad! Both adults and kids loved this. And it is so healthy. I plan to make it often and certainly will bring it to our holiday pot luck where both taste and presentation matter.
Anonymous says
Yum!