Sheet Pan Cauliflower Curry with Raita
This easy cauliflower curry, inspired by Indian Aloo Gobi, is prepared on a sheet pan and bulked up with canned chickpeas!
Aloo Gobi has always been one of my favorite dishes.
If you’ve never had it, Aloo Gobi is a traditional Indian dish made with cauliflower and potatoes and sautéed on the stovetop. It is boldly spiced, comforting, and hearty.
Today’s Sheet Pan Cauliflower Curry is loosely inspired by the flavors in Aloo Gobi. Bulked up with canned chickpeas, it has all of the essential elements, but is prepared entirely on a sheet pan for maximum ease.
Served with homemade raita (recipe included), a simple cucumber yogurt sauce, and coconut rice or toasted naan, it makes for a delicious, flavorful, and easy plant-based dinner.
How to Make Sheet Pan Curry Cauliflower:
While you’ll need several ground spices to prepare this dinner, the entire dish comes together with just one large mixing bowl and a standard rimmed half sheet pan.
Medium cauliflower florets (be sure to reference my guide on how to cut cauliflower!) and cubed red potatoes are generously tossed in a spiced oil marinade and spread into an even layer for the first stage of roasting. Carefully follow my preparation instructions in the recipe box below to ensure even cooking.
In the last 10-15 minutes of roasting, we’ll add our drained, rinsed, and patted dry canned chickpeas to the pan. Just before serving, we will deglaze the pan with a touch of hot water and garnish everything with lemon zest, mint, and cilantro.
Equipment Note: If you’re looking for sheet pan recommendations, I strongly recommend USA Pan or Nordic Ware (affiliate links).
Step 1: PREPARE SPICED OIL MIXTURE
Whenever I’m roasting vegetables with a variety of seasonings or aromatics, I like to first combine the oil and spices in a large mixing bowl.
This allows you to mix everything thoroughly and ensures the vegetables and potatoes are evenly seasoned and coated before roasting.
For this dish, we’ll combine extra virgin olive oil, finely minced jalapeño pepper, fresh ginger, garlic, lemon juice, garam masala, turmeric, cumin, coriander, garlic powder, and salt.
Step 2: ADD THE CAULIFLOWER AND POTATOES
Add your cauliflower florets and cubed red potatoes to the bowl.
Toss the mixture together gently (*I like to use my hands, but if you’re sensitive to spices or heat, use disposable kitchen gloves or mixing spoons) until the spiced oil mixture is well distributed and evenly coats everything.
I like to allow the mixture to marinate for 15 to 20 minutes at room temperature as the oven preheats, but you can skip this step if you’re short on time.
Step 3: ROAST AT 450F
Spread the cauliflower and potatoes in an even, thin layer – leaving space between the pieces to encourage even caramelization during roasting – on a rimmed half sheet pan.
Roast for 25 minutes, rotating the pan and flipping the vegetables halfway through.
Step 4: ADD CHICKPEAS TO THE PAN
Remove the sheet pan from the oven, distribute the canned chickpeas (drained, rinsed, and patted dry) evenly onto the sheet pan, and roast for an additional 10 to 15 minutes or until the vegetables are caramelized and fork tender.
Step 5: DEGLAZE THE PAN
Remove the sheet pan from the oven and deglaze the pan with 1/3 cup water, gently tossing the vegetables and scraping the bottom of the pan to pick up any caramelized bits. You can skip this step, but I like that it adds a little bit of sauciness and moisture. Garnish with lemon zest, torn mint leaves, and cilantro!
How to Serve Sheet Pan Cauliflower Curry:
During roasting, we’ll prepare the raita sauce.
Combine the greek yogurt, grated cucumber (*be sure to squeeze it out to remove any moisture), garlic, lemon juice, salt, cumin, black pepper, and mint leaves in a medium bowl. Stir to combine. Season to taste, adding more salt, lemon juice, or fresh mint as you like.
This dish is hearty enough to be enjoyed on it’s own, but I like serving it with homemade coconut rice or toasted naan. Garnish generously with fresh mint and cilantro and eat up!
Sheet Pan Cauliflower Curry with Raita
Equipment
Ingredients
Cauliflower Curry Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup (60 mL) extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small jalapeno pepper (optional) ribs and seeds removed, and finely minced
- 1 tablespoon finely minced fresh ginger
- 1 garlic clove pressed or grated with a microplane
- zest of 1 lemon, plus 1 teaspoon lemon juice divided
- 2 teaspoons garam masala (see notes for substitution ideas)
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground turmeric
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon ground coriander
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 large head cauliflower (roughly 2 - 2½ lbs) trimmed into medium florets
- 2-3 medium red potatoes (roughly ¾ lb) cut into 3/4-inch cubes, rinsed, and patted dry
- 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas drained and rinsed well, and patted dry
- ⅓ cup warm water
- fresh torn mint leaves for garnishing
- fresh cilantro leaves for garnishing
Homemade Raita:
- ¾ cup (175 grams) whole or low-fat Greek yogurt
- ½ small English cucumber coarsely grated and squeezed to remove moisture (*or 1 small zucchini)
- 1 small garlic clove pressed or grated with a microplane
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cumin
- freshly ground black pepper
- 3-4 fresh mint leaves torn
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F (232°C)with a rack in the center position.
- Prepare the Cauliflower Curry: In a large mixing bowl, combine the extra virgin olive oil, jalapeno, ginger, garlic, lemon juice, garam masala, turmeric, cumin, coriander, garlic powder, and salt. Mix together throughly.
- Add the cauliflower florets and cubed potato to the bowl.
- Gently toss the cauliflower and potato in the spiced oil marinade (*note: I use my hands, but if you're sensitive to spices or heat, use disposable kitchen gloves or two large mixing spoons) until they're evenly coated. Allow the mixture to marinate for 15 to 20 minutes at room temperature as the oven preheats (*if you are short on time, you can skip this step).
- Spread the cauliflower and potatoes in an even, thin layer on a rimmed standard half sheeet pan - leaving space between the pieces to encourage even caramelization during roasting. *Note: I prefer to use an unlined sheet pan for better caramelization, but please know that turmeric is stain-prone.
- Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the pan and flipping the vegetables halfway through. Remove from the oven, distribute the chickpeas evenly onto the sheet pan, and roast for an additional 10 to 15 minutes or until the vegetables are caramelized and fork tender.
- Prepare the Raita: During roasting, prepare the raita sauce. Combine the greek yogurt, grated cucumber (*be sure to squeeze it out to remove any moisture), garlic, lemon juice, salt, cumin, black pepper, and mint leaves in a medium bowl. Stir to combine. Season to taste, adding more salt, lemon juice, or fresh mint as you like.
- Just Before Serving: Remove the sheet pan from the oven and deglaze the pan with ⅓ cup warm water, gently tossing the vegetables and scraping the bottom of the pan to pick up any caramelized bits. *Note: You can skip this step, but I like the added moisture it provides.
- Garnish with reserved lemon zest, torn mint leaves, and fresh cilantro. Serve with raita alongside coconut rice or toasted naan.
Tips for Success:
- If you don't have garam masala spice blend on hand, you can try making your own or substituting it with a good-quality curry powder. Please note that curry powders vary tremendously in heat level and ingredients, so please start with a very small quantity and adjust by taste.
10 Comments on “Sheet Pan Cauliflower Curry with Raita”
I have made this many times and thoroughly enjoy it every time. Thank you, Laura!
Can this be made with frozen cauliflower?
Hi! I prefer fresh cauliflower because it just roasts better (the moisture from frozen vegetables, not to mention that they are blanched prior to being frozen, makes it difficult to get the same texture or results), but you can definitely try it out. They might struggle more with gaining color, so you might want to increase the oven temperature even further or roasting the vegetables and potatoes separately to be sure. Sorry I can’t give more specifics, as I haven’t personally tested that version!
I made this with regular green peas, so delicious like that also! Thank you for the recipe 🙂
I made a bigger batch, and while spreading the cauliflower and potatoes on the sheet pan, I realized the amount is too big to roast at once, so I preserved about half of the whole mixture (vegetables with the curry sauce) in a container. I was going to roast it once the first batch comes out, but it was getting a bit late so I decided to put it in the fridge.
I’m asking you, do you think it’s best to roast it asap ( = tomorrow evening), or can I just wait ’til I’ve finished the first batch in a few days, and then roast the second batch?
This was amazing! The spice mix was delicious. Thanks for a great recipe.
Curry and Cauliflower go together like peanut butter and jelly! I’ve never made riata before but it sounds so interesting I’m going to have to try it!
You have given our traditional aloo Gobi dish a really new twist and I am going to make it. I love the idea with raita as well. Overall an excellent dish.
I just finished eating this for dinner and wanted to quickly pop in and thank you for the recipe! It was so good and flavourful!
Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review! We actually made it again the other night and it is one of our favorite easy dinners, so I’m so glad you agree and enjoyed it. Thanks Hannah!
cauliflower can always use some help, can’t remember seeing it in a curry, and with the raita sauce even better, thank you