A simple and delicious roast cauliflower recipe featuring bacon and garlicky goodness. A super side dish!
Why This Roast Cauliflower Recipe Is So Good
- Sprinkled with crispy bacon and garlic.
- A super easy side dish.
- Great for serving a big crowd – double the batch
Ingredients
- Cauliflower
- Garlic cloves
- Bacon
- Olive
- Salt and pepper
How To Make This Roast Cauliflower Recipe – Step By Step
- Preheat oven to 375F. On a baking sheet, toss together the cauliflower, garlic slices, bacon and olive oil.
- Roast for 20-25 minutes until bacon is crisp and cauliflower is cooked through.
- Season with the roasted cauliflower with salt and pepper to taste.
Great Side Dish For A Big Crowd
When a recipe calls for bacon, I instinctively double the amount to cook, because in our household, just-cooked bacon sitting on the counter (even those waiting to be incorporated into a yet unfinished dish) is fair game to steal. Even I can’t resist the urge to take a little nibble here and there, and pretty soon there’s no more bacon for the meal.
Cooking an extra batch solves the problem, doubles the delight and allows me to finish the dish properly. The unfortunate consequence is, of course the extra calories consumed, though I think some of you would reason that nibbles and crumbs don’t really count.
A Delicious And Simple Side Dish
This recipe for Roasted Cauliflower with Bacon and Garlic is so simple that I even hesitate to write out a recipe. Toss cauliflower florets with olive oil, bacon and garlic. Roast for 20 minutes at 375F and then season with salt.
The bacon crisps the same time as the cauliflower cooks and the garlic get a nice toasting as well – easy!
Cheesy Roast Cauliflower
If you want, you can even finish the roasted cauliflower off with a good snowfall of freshly grated parmesan cheese or even put some blue cheese in top of the cauliflower while it bakes.
But I think it’s perfect as it is!
Top Tips For This Roast Cauliflower Recipe
- The smaller you cut the cauliflower, the faster this cooks.
- The oven temp needs to be high enough to get crispy, golden edges. Not so high that the olive oil burns, which both smells and tastes bad – 375 is good.
- Don’t stop too soon, or you’ll miss out on some of that caramelization that I keep talking about. Roast until the florets are deeply golden on the undersides, with some brown spots on top.
- Flip over all the pieces halfway through baking, so each side gets a chance to caramelize.
Want More Ideas?
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Sweet Chili Sauce
- Very Best Mashed Potatoes
- The Pioneer Woman’s Buttermilk Fried Chicken
Have you tried this Roast Cauliflower with Bacon and Garlic? Feel free to leave a star rating and I’d love to hear from you in the comments below!
Roasted Cauliflower Recipe with Bacon and Garlic
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower cut into small florets
- 6 cloves garlic sliced thinly
- 3 strips bacon cut into bite sized pieces
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F. On a baking sheet, toss together the cauliflower, garlic slices, bacon and olive oil.
- Roast for 20-25 minutes until bacon is crisp and cauliflower is cooked through.
- Season with the roasted cauliflower with salt and pepper to taste.
Did you try this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the recipe card below and leave a review in the comment section! I always appreciate your feedback and I know other readers do, too!
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LOVE CAULIFLOWER BUT WILL TRY FOR MY HUSBAND !
I love roasting cauliflower or any veggie actually but have never added bacon. Hubby & son are allergic to bacon so I’ll just add a few wedges of onion.
Made this this evening, so good!!! We’ll make again!!
Easy to make
Your cooking times are full of shit. Bacon takes longer than 20
Min to cook at 275.Â
You must have mis-read. The recipe states 375F for 20 minutes
Jaden, I love anything roasted/caramelized! I don’t have any bacon avail but I had a large head – very large – head of cauliflower. I do have some bacon drippings I keep refrigerated. So I melted some and added to some olive oil. I hope it turns out tasty because it looks delish!. Thanks for the ideas. I also think the idea to use pre-cooked cut up potatoes would be divine, from someone in your comment area. Thanks for sharing.
I’m going to try this tonight I hope my husband likes it we’ve getting bored with just plain cauliflower so hopefully we like this. Will let u know if it’s a hit thanks for the recipe.
Hope he loves it! Even if you don’t have the bacon and garlic – just make the roasted cauliflower – it’s delicious!
Don’t you just love how versatile cauliflower is? I made this last night as an appetizer and it was delicious! But as I love cheese, I sprinkled some mozzarella and cheddar too just on the cauliflower florets while it baked – perfect for cheese lovers, really good.
I have been making this for several years, never added bacon though! We eat this like popcorn at our home!
Yum! Everything is better with bacon!
I followed the recipe as read but we added one tablespoon Red Boat Fish Sauce.
I feel like it gave the side a perfect savory/salty addition.
Thanks for the recipe! Now will be the perfect side to bring to BBQs 🙂
Found this on Pinterest and it is a huge hit! My husband says he doesn’t care if it’s healthy, it’s his new favorite side dish. And I grew up eating very few vegetables, but this recipes opened my eyes and has me trying others. Thank you
So good!! I only used one clove of garlic because six seemed like way too much (and I didn’t have that on hand). I added about a half of a small onion and some bread crumbs, mixed it all together in a bowl before roasting. Then added it to whole wheat pasta. My boyfriend and I loved it! Thanks for the great recipe!
I may be missing something, but do you cook the bacon first, THEN put it in the dish with the cauliflower and garlic, or just allow it to cook in the oven? This looks fantastic and can’t wait to try and get my vegie-phobic, bacon-loving hubby to try this!
Hi Laura – the bacon cooks the same time as the cauliflower in the same pan in the oven.
I have been making this at least 2-3x a month for over a year! Just googled it to send a friend the link and wanted to say “Thank you!”. We really enjoy this recipe and it is my fave “go to” when the none-paleo crowd is coming over for dinner.
Thanks Andi!! jaden
i know this is blasphemy, but could i substitute turkey bacon?
Yes, of course!
ooooohhhhh maaaannnnn, this was bomb.com. so worth the gas in my belly afterwards! this didn’t even have a chance, husband and i ate/finished it straight from the oven. we just started picking at it and ended up finishing it! thanks for the recipe.
We just had this tonight. I cooked a bit longer and added extra garlic. Se are in seventh heaven. I never thought I would say that about cauliflower. Wow! Wow! Wow!
I mixed in fresh broccoli florets too . very good.
This is a SPECTACULAR paleo meal! I flipped everything about 10 mins in and finished after a total of 25 mins at 375. A little nutritional yeast made it INSANE! Thank you!
Thank U so much for this very simple recipe. Even my picky nine year old son ate it… and liked it. It’s delicious!
Can’t go wrong with cauliflower and bacon. . yummm! love this!
Witth havin so much written content do you ever run into any issues of plagorism or copyright
violation? My site has a lot of completely unique content I’ve
either written myself or outsourced but it seems a lot of it is
popping it up all over the web without my agreement.
Do you know any methods to help prevent content from being ripped off?
I’d truly appreciate it.
This was delicious. I only used 2 strips bacon. I also baked at 400 for about 25 minutes. Super yummy!
Just checked on mine after 20 minutes and it wasn’t enough time to crisp the bacon, so I’m letting it roast for another 15 minutes
Oh my! This is truly the BEST cauliflower recipe. Ultra easy and super yummy. I could eat this as a main course!
So excited to eat this for dinner tonight! We usually eat it about once a month as a meal and it is FANTASTIC. Thanks for the recipe!
Made it for tea with steak, was gorgeous will deffo have it again
My new favorite side dish! So good! Even my veggie hating husband will eat it!
ooh, I JUST made roasted cauliflower with garlic but this looks even better!! I love cauliflower.
Mine took a long time, too. Perhaps it was because I cooked mine in a casserole pan – how about you?
I really love cauliflowers and these look greate, I will surely use this recipes thanks alot
I made this recipe for Thanksgiving and everybody thinks I’m a genius. So, me thinks, why don’t I combine cauliflower with Jaden’s brussels sprouts with cranberry pesto. Well, you guessed it. I’m still a genius. Everyone wants the recipe so I’m directing everyone to the steamykitchen.com. Ugh! The secret is out and everyone will now know who the real genius is.
Monica! You are too funny. What a great idea too, using the cranberry pesto for cauliflower!
Just made these last night. Turned out great! Added some sliced shallots to the mix. Everyone agreed it was the best cauliflower dish they ever had.
I just had this for dinner tonight. It was really delicious! I probably shouldn’t have eaten it all at once but it was my main meal not a side dish, so I guess it’s okay. This is your first recipe I’ve made and can’t wait to try the many others I’ve bookmarked. Thank you for this recipe!
I bet this would be amazing made with either brussel sprouts or red cabbage. Mmmm..can’t wait to try it!
Hi Jaden,
I just made this tonight and I LOVED it. Thanks for this easy and delicious recipe!
Mrs. Q
That sounds absolutely DELICIOUS! I love cauliflower but my kids don’t. They LOVE bacon, though. I have to try this one. Thank you
This was delicious!! Had to bake it a bit longer to get the bacon as done as I like it, but DELICIOUS!!!
Oh boy! This looks way yum! It will be on the Thanksgiving menu ;p
Thank you, Jaden, for a great tip on how to tune the traditional roasted cauliflower recipe! We had this for dinner last night, and everybody enjoyed it a lot!
This looks so yummy, delicious and easy! I see myself using it on a bowl of hot soup in the winter. Yum!
Can this be made using back bacon? I’ve recently become a big fan of back bacon. Same lovely flavor and less fat. Any suggestions? This recipe looks awesome!
Yes! You can use as much back bacon as you want! 😉
Mmmm..thanks, this recipe is perfect for those of us doing the low carb/hcg diet! Bacon does a body good-hehe!
Interesting! I think I could actually eat cauliflower with bacon. Bacon makes everything better!
I agree with your posting…you can never go wrong with bacon,…morning, lunch, or dinner. This looks like an awesome dish as a side. Should give it a try soon as I LOVE bacon, cauliflower, and garlic.
ryan
HMMM…I need to add bacon to my oven roasted potatoes. I make the oven roased potatoes with out the bacon. I cut them up, cover them with plastic wrap and microwave them 5 to 7 minutes on high. That way they cook faster in the oven. All they need is bacon.
I could add bacon to the garlic, carrots parsnips onions and potatoes that I roast to go with chicken.
Thanks for the tip about cutting the garlic in half.
I am so excited. More bacon in my life!!!!
Dana
I hear ya on the extra bacon. Is there anything better than sneaking bites while cooking? I’m a huge fan of cauliflower and can’t wait to give this recipe a try.
i can only imagine how delicious this is, i love cauliflower and then of course bacon you know… love the color on the cauliflower, perfect
What do you think of the possibility of adding par-boiled potatoes to the mix…could that work for an aloo gobhi kind of dish, minus curry but add (lots of) bacon?
Sounds fabulous! Let me know how it goes!
I love roasted cauliflower. I’ll definitely toss in some bacon with tomorrow night’s batch.
Hi Liza! Timing really depends on how small (or large) you cut your florets!
Hi Jaden, I just made this recipe and it is SO GOOD! For some reason, mine took way longer than 20 minutes. It was in the oven for an hour. The worst part was smelling that amazing bacon/garlic combo and not being able to dig in!
I added a splash of sherry vinegar at the end for some acidity. The dish is so good. Thank you for the simple recipe!
I’ve heard all about roasted cauliflower but haven’t tried it yet. Add bacon? Of course I will!
All my favorite food in one dish. And roasted ! Even better! I’m making this tonight for sure : )
You had me at bacon! 🙂 I can’t wait to try this recipe, Jaden! Thank you!
You could put garlic and bacon on an old shoe and I’d probably eat, but cauliflower is probably easier on the teeth ;-). Looks fab, will try it soon.
I love roasted cauliflower! This looks amazing.
Beautiful how sometimes the most simple things are often the best. What a wonderful combination, will definitely be trying this one.
i LOVE roasted vegetables with bacon, but sadly the husband won’t eat cauliflower. Even with bacon. Not even dusted with curry powder. Nope, smoky pimenton won’t do it either. So there’s more for me to enjoy, and he gets to shake his head in disbelief.
My apologies, Jaden! I was so excited about this recipe and having it for dinner tonight, that I spelled your name wrong.
I’ll be making this again really soon. So easy. So tasty.
No problem, Jay. Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
I had tried roasted cauliflower and its real nice. I rubbed in curry powder, salt and olive oil. But will definitely try this recipe of yours one day 🙂 Thanks for the extra recipe to roast cauliflower 🙂
I am not a big cauliflower fan but bacon and garlic….I’m a slave to them! Nice looking snack or side dish, Jaden.
Oh man, I just made this for dinner! Fantastic, and easy! I upped the bacon and onions a bit because I had a GIANT head of cauliflower, and I always burn my garlic, so I roasted a full head of garlic wrapped separately. Tossed it with the rest, topped with fresh parm, and my buddies wolfed it down.
Note: Jayden, this recipe makes an AWESOME soup. I have a broken jaw that’s wired shut and healing, so I’m on liquids only for six weeks. For myself, I just added a portion of this recipe to some homemade veggie stock and a bit of milk, and threw it in the blender for a while. Seriously, it was the best thing I’ve “eaten” in three weeks! Thanks!
I love roasted cauliflower… the addition bacon would make it even more irresistable in my house!
This looks so tasty!
Would you please clarify the garlic prep? Ingredients say “halved” but photo and directions say “slices”. Can I just smash and roughly chop?
Sorry for confusion. It’s best to halve, chopped would result in burnt garlic. I sliced in photo but prefer halving the cloves.
Yum- this looks Amazing!! Love Cauliflower. Love Bacon. ‘Nuf said~
I have a head of cauliflower that was going to be soup. But I don’t have the leeks I need. So I will be making this instead. Although I will make it veggie by leaving out the bacon.
Sounds amazing! I think I might just have to go get some cauliflower in the morning… if I weren’t so worn out from all the baking I’ve done tonight (pumpkin muffins and two kinds of soda bread) I’d be tempted to make it right now!
Sounds Amazing, I am sooo making this tonight! 🙂
I just made it for a late lunch, to go with the last of my tomatoes from my garden and a piece of leftover green chili quiche. My garlic brown too much and was bitter, next time I will use onion pieces instead!
Sometimes the simplest things are just the best! Roasted cauliflower, bacon, and garlic sounds perfect! I’ve got all of the ingredients for tonight…thanks for the idea.
Great, have some cauliflower in the fridge. I will try this tonight. I am sure it will taste wonderful. Thanks.
That is seriously amazing! I’m pretty sure I could live on that combo!!!
Add a nice yogurt curry dipping sauce with that and I would be in heaven
Bacon and garlic! I’m in.
Sounds and looks delish.
Peace, Love and Chocolate
Tiffany
This looks so yummy! I have that same issue with bacon, by the way! It just seems to disappear . . .