15 Easy Weeknight Cauliflower Recipes (Crispy, Curried, Cheesy, and More)

With the right recipes, it's the star of the meal.

By
Devan Grimsrud
Devan Grimsrud
Devan Grimsrud

Devan Grimsrud is a Berlin-based writer, editor, and recipe developer originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota. After working in television production with James Beard Award-winning chef Andrew Zimmern, she relocated to Berlin and became the managing editor at Kitchen Stories, an international digital cooking platform with millions of active users. 

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Published September 11, 2025
Devan Grimsrud
Garlicky Air Fryer Cauliflower on a plate with a wooden spoon

Simply Recipes / Coco Morante

When I think of my favorite cauliflower dishes, they're almost always crispy, curried, or cheesy. That's because with the right recipes, this sometimes quiet vegetable becomes a star performer. With that in mind, I've collected our best cauliflower recipes for making the most of this seasonal vegetable. They’re all ones you can pull together on a weeknight, because timing is everything and we tend to not have so much of it.

One tip before you dive in: although buying pre-cut or even frozen cauliflower can save time and be convenient, it can also be more expensive. If you lean on the bagged stuff because you're unsure how to prep a whole head of cauliflower, check out our easy-to-follow guide.

  • Cheesy Baked Cauliflower

    Scooping Easy Cauliflower Bake out of a glass casserole dish.

    Simply Recipes / Coco Morante

    "To make this a loaded baked cauliflower recipe, add crumbled bacon, sprinkle with chives, and stir in a cup of chopped ham, chopped spinach, or both. To add some texture, top the casserole with buttered panko breadcrumbs."—Coco Morante, Recipe Developer

  • Roasted Cauliflower with Sesame Seeds

    roasted cauliflower

    Simply Recipes / Robin Asbell

    "This recipe is vegan and dispels Bourdain's earlier belief that all vegan food is tasteless. He teases maximum flavor from a vegetable, and it’s worth making."—Robin Asbell, Writer

  • Crispy Air Fryer Cauliflower Buffalo Wings

    Air Fryer Cauliflower with Buffalo Sauce on a platter with dip and vegetable sticks.

    Simply Recipes / Nick Evans

    "Baking this cauliflower is absolutely an option. It takes longer and the cauliflower, honestly, doesn’t get quite as crispy, but it’ll work and turn out great."—Nick Evans, Recipe Developer

  • Gholpi (Afghan Stewed Cauliflower)

    Gholpi (Afghan Stewed Cauliflower)

    John Robinson / Simply Recipes

    "Gholpi is typically made in a ghablama, a wide pan with curved sides that looks like a wok. You can use a wok or a large sauté pan."—Khadija Hemmati, Recipe Developer

    Continue to 5 of 15 below

  • 4-Ingredient Roasted Cauliflower Soup

    Angled view of a white bowl of cauliflower soup next to a small bowl of paprika oil, a blue striped napkin and two clear drinking glasses

    Simply Recipes / Jazzmin Kaita 

    "I love frozen vegetables for their ease, but they don’t belong in this soup. Frozen cauliflower exudes a lot of water during roasting, which prevents it from browning so make sure to use fresh cauliflower here."—Megan Scott, Former Senior Editor

  • Cauliflower Rice

    A bowl of cauliflower rice, cooked and ready to serve and eat

    Simply Recipes / Jessica Gavin

    "The simplest way to enjoy cauliflower rice is sautéed with some olive oil or butter, and seasoned with salt and pepper, but I’m also a fan of substituting cauliflower rice in risottos, grits, and fried rice. It can also be eaten raw, so try tossing it into salads for extra crunch—or use it like you would in a grain salad instead of farro or quinoa."—Jessica Gavin, Recipe Developer

  • Cauliflower Pasta with Bacon and Parmesan

    A bowl of pasta with cauliflower and bacon, ready to eat

    Simply Recipes / Elise Bauer

    "In this dish we are browning some bacon and onions, cooking small cauliflower florets in the bacon fat, and tossing everything together with pasta, lemon zest, and freshly grated Parmesan cheese."—Elise Bauer, Founder

  • Cauliflower Chickpea Curry

    A bowl of cauliflower chickpea curry

    Simply Recipes / Elise Bauer

    "For those of you who simply cannot tolerate cilantro, I would recommend slicing some arugula and adding that to the curry as it cooks, or toss with fresh chives or thinly sliced onion greens. It won't be the same, but the greens will help brighten the dish."—Elise

    Continue to 9 of 15 below

  • Simple Cauliflower Soup

    Simple Cauliflower Soup

    Simply Recipes / Elise Bauer

    "This soup is easily adaptable. Add some cream, and you have cream of cauliflower soup. Melt in some cheese, and you have cheesy cauliflower soup."—Elise

  • Air Fryer Crispy Cauliflower

    A plate of air fried cauliflower with dip, ready to serve and eat

    Simply Recipes / Nick Evans

    "Cauliflower will get a little crispy if you just fry or bake it without any breading, but to get it super crispy, a light breading is key."—Nick Evans, Recipe Developer

  • Roasted Curried Cauliflower

    Roasted, curried cauliflower

    Simply Recipes / Elise Bauer

    "If you don't have yellow curry powder, you can substitute with a mix of ground cumin, ground turmeric, ground ginger, and ground coriander. The turmeric is what gives yellow curry powder its yellow color. Watch out, it stains!"—Elise

  • Pasta with Cauliflower, Tomato, and Parmesan

    Pasta Cauliflower Tomato Parmesan
    Elise Bauer, Sheryl Julian, Lisa Lin, and Sally Vargas

    "Variations to this recipe include adding some toasted pine nuts or walnuts, a few raisins, and or some saffron."—Elise

    Continue to 13 of 15 below

  • Cauliflower Curry

    Shahi Cauliflower Curry

    Simply Recipes / Sally Vargas

    "Serve this easy vegetarian curry with naan bread, cucumber raita, and a salad, and dinner is done!"—Sally Vargas, Recipe Developer

  • Easy Roasted Cauliflower

    Roasted Cauliflower

    Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

    "Toss the florets generously with oil, making sure they are truly well coated, before putting them in the oven. The oil will help the cauliflower edges brown and help keep the florets from drying out."—Elise

  • 2-Ingredient Crispy Air Fryer Cauliflower

    Garlicky Air Fryer Cauliflower on a plate with a wooden spoon

    Simply Recipes / Coco Morante

    "Just a little garlic salt is all that’s needed to take your air-fried cauliflower from good to great. I toss the cauliflower with oil and garlic salt in a large, lightweight mixing bowl to make sure the seasonings are evenly distributed."—Coco Morante, Recipe Developer

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