Vegetables are a staple for just about any kind of diet, but if you are not used to cooking with vegetables, getting great flavor from them can be challenging. Sauces and spices can turn vegetables into something you look forward to on a daily basis however. Try this chimichurri sauce with roasted cauliflower- it will stimulate more creativity with vegetables when you taste how good it is.
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Low Carb Sauces to Pair with Roasted Vegetables
While roasted cauliflower (or any roasted vegetable actually) with a little oil and salt is fine on its own, it pairs perfectly with a range of sauces to add variety to your meals.
Mustard sauces, tahini sauces, romesco sauces and chimichurri sauces all work to dress up roasted vegetables and make them into flavor bombs.
The recipe below involves a twist on a chimchurri sauce, with the addition of almonds. This traditional chimichurri sauce served with pan-seared skirt steak does not include the almonds.
Low carb Romesco sauce or low carb harissa sauce are two other flavor-packed sauces to liven up your roasted vegetables. They are all robust low carb sauces that can go with just about any other protein or vegetable on a slow-carb diet. Eggs too (of course).
Roasted Cauliflower as Popular Low Carb Vegetable
Cauliflower definitely rose in popularity with the rise of Paleo, low-carb and slow carb diets. It’s a non-starchy vegetable with loads of fiber and very little carbohydrates, but its star status comes from its versatility.
Cauliflower is one of those low carb vegetables that can be pureed into mock mashed potatoes, baked into mock tortilla shells, shredded into cauliflower “rice” and roasted into all kinds of crusty deliciousness.
Who knew? I certainly didn’t, but now cauliflower is one of our go-to low carb vegetables. I am a particular fan of the mock mashed potatoes on busy week nights, but I love pairing roasted cauliflower with chimichurri sauce when my schedule is a bit more relaxed.
Cauliflower is sometimes referred to as one of the world’s healthiest foods. That’s an anecdotal reference of course, but there is no doubt that cauliflower is a low carb vegetable with many nutritional benefits!
Serve with your favorite protein dish and you have a special slow carb Sunday Dinner.
Low Carb Roasted Cauliflower with Chimichurri Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 large cauliflower
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 to 2 tsp salt
- ½ cup almonds toasted
- 3 garlic cloves peeled
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ Cup red wine vinegar
- ½ cup coarsely chopped parsley
- ½ Cup Cilantro Coarsley chopped
- ¼ Cup Oregano leaves
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes or your favorite hot chile spice
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400-425 degrees F.Tear off the cauliflower leaves and cut the stem to be flush with the base of the cauliflower. Cut out the core of the cauliflower, and remove florets and place on sheet pan.1 large cauliflower
- Sprinkle florets heavily with salt and then drizzle with oil. Using your hands rub in the salt and oil so all florets are covered.1 to 2 tsp salt
- Roast for 20-30 minutes, or until browned and crispy. Roast longer if you prefer them more crispy.
For the chimichurri sauce:
- Toast the almonds in a small skillet over low heat for a few minutes until they just start to brown and get a fragrance (don't burn).1/2 cup almonds
- In a blender or food processor combine almonds and garlic cloves and blend until finely chopped. Add oil and vinegar and pulse to combine. Blend in the parsley, cilantro, oregano and red pepper flakes (and any other optional herbs). Season with salt and pepper.3 garlic cloves, 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, 1/4 Cup red wine vinegar, 1/2 cup coarsely chopped parsley, 1/2 Cup Cilantro, 1/4 Cup Oregano leaves, 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to taste
- Drizzle some of the chimichurri over cauliflower and serve rest on the side in small bowls. The sauce should keep (covered) and in the refrigerator for several weeks.
Notes
Nutrition
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The list of ingredients did not have almonds. Could you please add it with the quantity?
1/4 cup of almonds has been added to the ingredient list and a new nutritional analysis done. Thanks!
Hi Christiane, So I checked over the recipe and did the nutritional analysis using 1/4 cup of almonds. It is an older recipe of mine and I didn’t have access to nutritional calculators at that time. Hope this helps!