Flavors: Spicy Roasted Cauliflower (Zahra)
- Food
- Recipe
Reading time:1min
Recipe by Anas Atassi
Photograph by Jeroen van der Spek
Ma’aleh is usually deep-fried cauliflower, served in a sandwich with raw vegetables and tarator.
Most Syrians eat cauliflower this way, but any vegetable can be made into ma’aleh—just deep-fry it and make a sandwich as described above. But in my opinion, my mother’s oven-roasted cauliflower is even better; it’s a perfect side dish or sandwich filling.
Preheat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius (425 degrees Fahrenheit).
On a large baking sheet, toss the cauliflower florets and its leaves with the olive oil, cumin, paprika and some salt. Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown and just starting to char at the tips.
Take the cauliflower out of the oven, toss with the garlic, and bake for another 3 minutes.
Serve Zahra, street-food style, in a pita or flatbread sandwich, stuffed with fresh herbs and tarator, or as a snack or side dish with tarator dipping.
Reprinted with permission from
Sumac: Recipes and Stories from Syria
Anas Atassi.
Interlink Books, 2021.
interlinkbooks.com.
You may also be interested in...
Cracked Wheat and Tomato Kibbeh Recipe
Food
Simply cooked line-caught fish with this beautiful tomato kibbeh. I don't know how you could top it.
Muhalbiyat al-sagoo - Sago and Lychee Pudding
Food
Obtained from the trunks of various palms, sago is used across Asia as a thickener for soups and stews and to make pudding. You can substitute other soft, sweet fruit like plums or pineapple, but the sweet juice of the lychee blends very well with milk. This is an exotic take on the traditional sago pudding popular in Gulf cuisine, made with sago, sugar and spices.
Khobez Timur: A Date-and-Fig Recipe for Better Living
Food
A take on this date-and-fig bread-loaf recipe from the recent 10th-anniversary reissue of Sally Butcher’s New Middle Eastern Street Food does more than just satiate our sweet tooth. It offers a guide for savoring the simpler things in life.