Cauliflower steaks with couscous and red cabbage salad

After we came back from our holiday in Krabi, we’ve been kind of lazy with our work. It’s nice to chill out every once in a while, but when it’s too long of a lounge you feel a bit frustrated with your lack of progress. And on the fifth day of sluggishness productivity came to light! We managed to write like 6 pieces of work, sort through hundreds of photos, and make this beautiful meal out of nowhere – cauliflower steaks…

So, okay, this is vegan, and quite healthy. It’s too easy to make, and you can adjust the spiciness. For the protein-heads out there (including myself), just chuck a few pieces of firm tofu in the pan with the cauliflower.

For one person you’ll need:

A cauliflower

50 g dry couscous (more if you’re hungry) – replace with quinoa for gluten free version

4 cloves of garlic

A few fresh chillies

Salt, pepper, 1 tbsp oil

Ground coriander (optional)

For the salad:

1/5 of small red cabbage

½ of small carrot

Handful of sunflower sprouts

1 garlic clove

Juice of ¼ of a lime

Salt, pepper, 1 tsp oil

Directions:

1. Cut the cauliflower in half, making sure each side has a bit of the centre stem left. Then cut a ‘steak’ about 1 cm thick from each side of the cauliflower. Make sure all pieces hang on to the stem so it doesn’t fall apart.
2. Heat a pan with a tablespoon of oil, throw in your steaks together with a few smashed garlic cloves and a chilli or two (I removed the chillies from the pan this time, but the hot air in the kitchen still made me cough).
3. Turn over once the bottom gets a bit of a char. If you have a grill – all the better, as you can use less oil.
4. While waiting for the steaks just put a tiny bit of salt, pepper to the couscous, and pour hot water to cover it. The water level should be just above the grains. I also put a sprinkle of ground coriander as it gives it a nice aroma. Two minutes in, it should be ready.

To make the salad:

1. Grate the carrot and garlic, slice the cabbage and cut the sprouts. (Sunflower sprouts work well for me because they are even crunchier than the carrots and are not too bitter or sweet).
2. Squeeze the lime, add a tiny bit of oil, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. When I cut the lime, I just cut the side of it, as you can see in the picture with the red chillies. This way you don’t have to worry about the lime seeds, as they’re all in the center, which we’re not touching!

There you have a nice and quick meal which you can take to work the next day. However the salad won’t taste as good even if you keep it in the fridge. Bon apetit!