Lemony Cauliflower With Hazelnuts and Brown Butter
- Total Time
- 20 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 1small head cauliflower, broken into larger florets
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 4tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¼ cup skin-on hazelnuts, chopped
- 2tablespoons olive oil
- 2tablespoons fresh lemon juice, plus 1 lemon, halved for serving
- ¼ cup finely chopped chives
- Flaky sea salt
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
228 calories; 23 grams fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 12 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 6 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 2 grams sugars; 3 grams protein; 263 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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- Step 1
Place cauliflower in a steamer basket set over a large, lidded pot (preferably wider than taller) of boiling water. Season with salt and pepper. Cover the pot and steam until cauliflower is totally tender, 8 to 10 minutes. (You can check the doneness by piercing it with a paring knife or fork.)
- Step 2
Meanwhile, heat butter and hazelnuts in a small pot over medium heat. Cook, swirling the pot occasionally, until the butter has melted and begins to brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Using a wooden spoon or small whisk, stir the butter, making sure all the milk solids and hazelnuts are browning evenly. Add olive oil and continue to cook until both the butter and hazelnuts are deeply golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes more.
- Step 3
Once the cauliflower is done, use a potato masher or large fork to gently crush it into bite-size pieces. Transfer cauliflower to a large serving platter or plate, and drizzle with 2 tablespoons lemon juice. Spoon hazelnut mixture over the cauliflower, and top with chives and flaky salt. Serve alongside lemon halves for squeezing.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Su
Except that steamed cauliflower is delicious, and completely different than roasted cauliflower, and the point of the dish is the contrast between the soft, simple cauliflower and the robust, crunchy topping. You might not like steamed cauliflower, which is fine, but that means that you don't like the recipe, not that the recipe is broken.
Katie
Steaming the cauliflower will allow it to absorb the brown butter sauce. Roasted veggies form a crust which won't allow the same results.
Jim
I can’t imagine why you wouldn’t roast the cauliflower instead. Do everything else in the recipe but roasted. I imagine it’s the difference between a 3/10 and an 9/10
Donna
I can’t eat hazelnuts so would put for pine nuts. This is Keto as well.
Dal
Someone mentioned the Keto diet which can rely heavily on cauliflower as a substitute for multiple starches. Regardless of whether you subscribe to its science, many websites devoted to it are a good source for cauliflower cooking methods. Microwaving your cauliflower uncovered is a low-er mess method than steaming and can produce superior results IMO. NYT Cooking should do an article about diets and the useful recipes/methods/ingredients they have mainstreamed.
JC
I've made this steaming the cauliflower and roasting the cauliflower, keeping everything else as is, and find that roasting it gave the whole dish a little more complexity. Lots of meyer lemon juice and zest also helped lift the flavor. I subbed italian parsley in for the chives tonight and loved it.
EmEl
Seriously delish - my new favorite side. We had it with potatoes for an excellent vegetarian meal. I made it basically according to the recipe except that I forgot to chop the hazelnuts. They looked and tasted great whole, and I think I'll do that in the future. I'm thinking of subbing these for mashed potatoes at Thanksgiving as my "white" dish (gotta have all the colors on the table!).
Susan Alexander
Liked the lemon with the cualiflower. Added the rind of the lemon for good measure. Think it owud be fine without the hazelnuts and just be mashed cauliflower with lemon.
Maureen/Mich
Roast cauliflower instead and then do rest of recipe.
Bryant
I agree with the commenters recommending roasting the cauliflower, especially if you'd rather have a nutty, caramelized, complex vegetable flavor. I made this as written last night and, even with the topping, found it to be one-note, boring, and bland.
Robin Palley
I made a few modifications and we thought it was great. I added one diced carrots to the cauliflower. I added a little bit of anchovy to the brown butter to make it taste butterier, And I added some chopped sage to the brown butter. It was a big homerun
Rachel in Nashville
Lovely for summer. The steamed cauliflower is easy, fast, and light. The crunchy, nutty topping is just the right amount of richness and nicely offset by the citrus.
Brigitte K.
Delicious
TDM
This turned out very well just as written. For those wanting to punch it up a bit, try adding a dash of crushed red peppers. Great recipe.
Sue Welty
This recipe is also yummy using broccoli rather than cauliflower !
Jessie
Super fast and completely delicious.
Robin Palley
I made a few modifications and we thought it was great. I added one diced carrots to the cauliflower. I added a little bit of anchovy to the brown butter to make it taste butterier, And I added some chopped sage to the brown butter. It was a big homerun
Crystaltune
Just stunning!
JC
I've made this steaming the cauliflower and roasting the cauliflower, keeping everything else as is, and find that roasting it gave the whole dish a little more complexity. Lots of meyer lemon juice and zest also helped lift the flavor. I subbed italian parsley in for the chives tonight and loved it.
Ellenista
I didn't have hazelnuts so I used walnuts. Skipped the chives out of laziness. The rest of the dinner was rather bland so this fit right in. Great winter night comfort food.
Susan Alexander
Liked the lemon with the cualiflower. Added the rind of the lemon for good measure. Think it owud be fine without the hazelnuts and just be mashed cauliflower with lemon.
Anna
Any suggestions for a main dish to accompany this?
MOTchicago
I've paired it with the NYT salt & pepper roasted chicken and citrus oil poached salmon fillets. Yummy!
Samantha
Is there an option for making ahead?
Blake
I cooked this and it was just “ehh”. I had to substitute hazelnuts with pine nuts but it was still mediocre, imo. And the sauce topping was not really saucy, its just melted butter with a few other ingredients. Next time, I would tighten the sauce with a tablespoon of cornstarch, or I just won’t make this dish. Other reviewers praise it but I found it lackluster. It could be so much better.
Joyce
Just steam it whole. So beautiful!
EmEl
Seriously delish - my new favorite side. We had it with potatoes for an excellent vegetarian meal. I made it basically according to the recipe except that I forgot to chop the hazelnuts. They looked and tasted great whole, and I think I'll do that in the future. I'm thinking of subbing these for mashed potatoes at Thanksgiving as my "white" dish (gotta have all the colors on the table!).
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