I bought a big cauliflower this week that had leaves intact to them, an unusual sight in the stores around here. It looked like it was freshly plucked from a garden! I could not use all of it in one preparation, so decided to try few different recipes.

I modified the usual Gobhi Musallam recipe and came up with Gobhi Tikka Masala – a rich, yet delicate dish that has flavors mild enough not to hide the taste of the cauliflower. Tikka Masala is everyone’s favorite sauce in Indian cuisine. It is more commonly used in Chicken and Paneer preparations. This is my take on this recipe and it was absolutely loved by everyone who had a chance to try it!!

I paired these with baked baby potatoes, which went so well together – just like the popular Aloo Gobhi but with separate flavor profiles!

Recipe                                           Servings: 4                               Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

Cauliflower – 4 big florets

Marinade

• ½ cup Greek or thick yogurt
• ½ tsp. garam masala
• ½ tsp. red chili powder
• 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 tsp. ginger garlic paste
• 2 tsp. tikka masala (any brand)
• 1 tsp. paprika
• 2 tsp. chili garlic sauce (I used Maggi brand)
• 1 Tbsp. oil
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• Salt to taste

Tikka sauce

• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1 tsp. cumin powder
• 2 green cardamoms
• 8-10 cashews
• 2 cloves
• 1 small cinnamon stick
• ¼ tsp. nutmeg powder
• 2 tsp. ginger garlic paste
• 4 Tbsp. crushed tomato or puree
• ½ tsp. turmeric powder
• ½ Tbsp. dry fenugreek leaves/kasoori methi
• 1 tsp. red chili powder
• ½ cup half and half
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 2 tsp. oil
• Salt to taste

Method

1. Marinate cauliflower florets in the marinade mix. Keep covered for 4 hours or overnight.
2. Preheat the oven to 475 F.
3. Bake the marinated cauliflower florets for 15 minutes.
4. Turn them and bake for another 15 minutes.
5. Heat a tsp. of oil in a pan and add sliced onions and cashews and fry until golden brown. Keep aside.
6. In the same pan, dry roast the cloves, cinnamon stick, and green cardamoms.
7. Grind the fried onions, cashews, cardamoms and cloves into a smooth paste.
8. Melt butter in a pan; add the crushed tomatoes, salt, turmeric powder, chili powder, cumin powder and fry for couple minutes.
9. Add the ground onion-cashew paste, kasoori methi, and nutmeg powder and fry until oil separates.
10. Add half and half and let it simmer on low heat for about 5 minutes.
11. Add little bit of water if the sauce is too dry.
12. Turn the heat off. Tikka sauce is now ready.
13. Brush the baked cauliflower with the tikka masala sauce. Make sure to add sauce in between the florets.
14. Serve with naan, chapati, paratha or rice!

Notes:

• You can substitute half and half with 2 Tbsp. of heavy whipping cream and some water.
• Add more water if you want to make the tikka sauce more like a gravy. Pour gravy all over the baked cauliflower and serve.