Could I add meat to this?

I think some roughly chopped or shredded boneless skinless chicken thighs could tuck in that sauce nicely with the cauliflower and chickpeas. Or, just go straight for a meat instead of the veggies in the sauce - like these butter chicken meatballs .

How can I make this dairy-free?

Use coconut cream, coconut milk, cashew cream, and/or ghee to make it nice and creamy!

Could you skip roasting the cauliflower and just simmer it in the sauce to cook?

Yes! I will say, I love the roasty bits on the caulfilower and I feel like it adds a lot of flavor, texture, and color. That said, absolutely yes - save yourself some time and just throw that cauliflower right in the pan if you're not feeling too precious about it.

Butter Cauliflower and Chickpeas with Mint Cilantro Sauce Recipe

Description

This Butter Cauliflower and Chickpeas is a weeknight staple! Roasty spiced cauliflower, a jar of butter sauce, a can of chickpeas, and a pile of steamy rice with a waterfall of mint sauce on top.

Ingredients

Units Scale

Butter Cauliflower and Chickpeas:

1–2 tablespoons avocado oil
1 head cauliflower, cut into florets (about 3 cups)
1 teaspoon each cumin, garam masala, and curry powder
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 jar of butter chicken sauce (24.5 ounces) or homemade

Mint Cilantro Sauce:

1/4 cup packed mint leaves
1/4 cup packed cilantro
1/2 cup mayo or plain Greek yogurt
1 clove garlic
1 small chunk of jalapeño, optional
1/2 teaspoon salt
juice of 1 lime

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Instructions

Roast the cauliflower: Toss the cauliflower with the avocado oil, cumin, garam masala, curry powder, smoked paprika, and salt. Roast at 425 / 20 minutes in the air fryer, or 425 / 30 minutes in the oven until nice and roasty and golden.
Make the mint sauce: Blitz everything up until it’s nice and smooth. I like to really blend this one so it’s less chunky and more of a smooth green sauce.
Butter sauce time: Add butter sauce and chickpeas to a large skillet. Smash the chickpeas lightly with a potato masher to give a more interesting texture if you want (I do want). Add cauliflower back in.
Serve: Serve the butter cauliflower on rice and top with the mint sauce. Add pickled onions if you want. ENJOY!

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Category: Dinner
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Indian-Inspired

Keywords: butter chicken, butter sauce, cauliflower, chickpeas, easy dinner