The BEST oven-roasted cauliflower and it’s so easy. The flavor and texture are perfect with just some simple seasoning, oil, and butter.
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Roasted Cauliflower Recipe
This baked cauliflower recipe is a go-to side dish like Corn on the Cob and Roasted Brussels Sprouts. It’s a dish you’ll make over and over.
This oven-roasted cauliflower is easy and excellent. The combination of butter and olive oil caramelizes the florets and they are baked to crisp-tender perfection. The best thing about this recipe is that you can customize the seasoning with what you have on hand with great results.
The Best Seasoning for Cauliflower
Cauliflower goes well with just about any seasoning. Even a simple salt and pepper seasoning works well. These are the seasonings we love most:
- Salt – we love fine sea salt
- Black Pepper – freshly cracked
- Garlic Powder – or try garlic salt
- Paprika – adds color and flavor (a little goes a long way)
Can I add cheese? we love to add cheese to cauliflower. Sprinkle cauliflower with 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese in the last 5 minutes of cooking for a parmesan roasted cauliflower.
How to Roast Cauliflower
This roasted cauliflower recipe is so easy to make and uses ingredients you most likely already have on hand
- Preheat the oven to 425˚F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper for easier cleanup.
- Slice the cauliflower into traditional florets or into flat cauliflower steaks.
- Seasoning- Add the cauliflower to the center of your baking sheet, drizzle with oil and butter, and toss to coat. Season the cauliflower and toss again then spread into a single layer.
- Bake cauliflower for 15-20 minutes, or until desired tenderness and golden at the edges. The baking time may vary depending on the size of your pieces.
How to Slice Cauliflower into Steaks: Slice the cauliflower head into 4-5 wedges. Then, cut the wedges into even 1/2″ thick steaks and break them apart into bite-sized pieces. As they are roasted, the flat sides caramelize against the baking sheet adding a depth of flavor. It also results in evenly browned pieces.
How Long to Bake Cauliflower?
The bake time for roasted cauliflower will depend on the size, thickness, and desired doneness of your pieces.
- Smaller pieces – you only need about 15-20 minutes.
- Larger florets – bake 20-25 minutes. Until the cauliflower is caramelized and golden.
Air Fryer Instructions:
Cooking cauliflower in an air fryer is quick and easy. When air frying, I skip the butter and just use 2-3 Tbsp olive oil. Air fry cauliflower at 375˚ for 10-15 minutes, flipping every 5 minutes, until golden and tender.
Make-Ahead
- Meal Prep – you can pre-chop your cauliflower a few days ahead, cover and refrigerate then add seasoning before roasting.
- Refrigerate – once cooled to room temperature, you can cover and refrigerate leftover roasted cauliflower for up to 3 days.
- Reheating – You can reheat the cauliflower on the stovetop, oven, or air fryer just until heated through.
More Side Dish Recipes
If you loved this roasted cauliflower, be sure to try these fail-proof side dish recipes:
- Easy Roasted Carrots
- Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes
- Easy Vegetable Stir Fry
- Tomato Mozzarella Salad
- Creamy Mushroom Asparagus
Oven Roasted Cauliflower Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 medium cauliflower, sliced in small florets, or 1/2" thick steaks
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp salt, or to taste
- ¼ tsp ground paprika
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper, or to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425˚F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Slice the head of cauliflower into 1/2" thick steaks, breaking up wedges into even, bite-sized pieces.
- Add the cauliflower to the center of the baking sheet. Drizzle with the oil and melted butter and toss to combine.
- In a small bowl, combine garlic powder, salt, paprika, and pepper for the seasoning. Sprinkle onto caulliflower and toss to evenly coat.
- Spread the cauliflower evenly on the baking sheet and bake at 425˚F for 15-20 minutes, until cauliflower reaches desired crispiness.
Notes
You may substitute oil instead of butter if you don’t want to use any butter.
Nutrition Per Serving
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Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
Excellent. Just happened to have a broccoli crown and tossed with the cauliflower and both came out delicious. Thanks for the recipe
I made this because I wanted a simple recipe for cauliflower. I wanted a potato substitute. This was a good choice. Thank you Natashsa.
I’m so glad to hear that, Brian!
This was the best cauliflower I have ever had. This will be my new favorite way to cook cauliflower.
Wonderful! Thanks for your awesone feedback, Juliana.
I made this and cooked it longer than directed to make it look browned like in the picture. It was not very good. Kind of bland.
HI Lynn, there are several things that can affect browning when roasting vegetables – if the oven was fully preheated, distance to the heating element and not all ovens heat equally. You can broil them at the end to get a little more browning but be careful not to burn the cauliflower. Also, alot of the color comes from the paprika so you can add more of that to taste.
I make this recipe all the time. It is my go to for roasted cauliflower. Turns out beautifully every time.
I’m so glad you found a favorite on my blog, Sherry! Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
I made this for dinner tonight and everyone loves it!!! Even my daughter asked for more. Great recipe!! Thank you
That’s great to hear, Vina!
Absolutely delicious!! I could easily have eaten a whole head of cauliflower made this way. Simple and quick recipe. This will be the last time cauliflower goes bad in my fridge! 🙂
I’m so happy you loved the recipe, Tracey! Thank you for sharing.
This recipe is absolutely delicious! I didn’t have any paprika, so substituted turmeric for the color and it was still delicious! And so easy!! This is definitely my go to recipe for cauliflower. I may even buy cauliflower more often. 🙂
So glad you loved it! Thanks for the feedback.
I made this last night and ate almost the entire pan myself but forced myself to save a few for hubby! Quick and tasty. I used a bag of florets which I don’t recommend. I think cutting them into slabs as the recipe says is the right way. And don’t overcrowd the pan. They don’t stay hot long so be ready to serve immediately. So yummy!
Thank you so much for sharing that with us! I’m
glad you loved it.
Tasty.
I’m doing WW, so I made the following adjustments.
Toss in a bowl, so that the extra oil/butter are left behind.
Transfer to paper towel, again so that excess oil/butter are left behind.
I calculate (less than) 2pts per serving, assuming a medium cauliflower provides 4 servings.
Delicious!
In the pictures there are little green flakes, but nothing green in the recipe. What are those herbs?
We love to add garnish for presentation. Often times parsley but you can use any herb that you prefer.
Hmm…. I tried this and found it a bit bland? Not really enough spices imo. Also took way longer than 25 minutes for me at 425.
I made this recipe today, and it was awesome. I used regular butter so reduced the amount of salt by a little less than half. I first cut the cauliflower into 1/2″ slabs and then each slab into smaller pieces. Now I have all these cut sides. I put the butter and olive oil in a small bowl, covered it, put it in the microwave for about 20 seconds. I then added the dry seasonings and whisked it all into a warm dressing. I put the cauliflower pieces into a gallon storage bag and poured the warm dressing over it. I gently moved the cauliflower pieces around until they were well coated. I sealed the bag, lay it flat on my counter and let it sit at room temperature for about 3.5 hours. When it was time to put it in the oven, I first put the bag in the microwave for 30 seconds to remelt any coagulated butter. I then emptied the bag onto parchment papered tray as directed and squeezed out any of the excess marinade over the tray. I roasted it for a solid 20 minutes. There were only 3 of us eating dinner and we were bemoaning the fact that I didn’t have 2 heads of cauliflower. We ate it all. Just want you to know this is the first recipe I have ever reviewed…I was that impressed!
It sounds like you’re going to double it up next time, Maggie! Thank you for sharing this with me!
This looks like your own recipe, not Natasha’s with all you wrote and alot of wok to me!
Your website is so hard to navigate. On you email promo you show a veg soup. I click on it to get the recipe and I’m taking to china (so to speak)
Thank you for sharing your concerns and feedback, James. The only way we can continue providing free recipes is by having ads on our site so we are not able to remove those at this time. We find that most people would rather see the ads than pay to see the recipes. I appreciate your feedback and I hope you love every recipe you try.
I made this in our convection oven and it turned out great. I used hot paprika.
That’s great, Andy!
Made this today and loved it. Will be adding to our menu often.
Nice to know that, Deb!
Made this for the family, it was a hit! I added broccoli. My husband says this is the only way he will eat cauliflower in the future. Thank you
That’s wonderful, Teri!
I made this recipe, I mixed all in a bowl and added a little more paprika and also cubed up a sweet potato. Turned out great
That’s wonderful, Cindy!
This is the best, tastiest, easiest roasted cauliflower recipe I have ever tried. I have made it several times, and there is never a crumble left. Delish!
Hi Sher! That’s awesome. So glad you enjoy this recipe.
This was good will have to make this again. I added shredded cheese put in microwave for a minute or so. Really good
I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe, Rene.