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Adam Liaw’s cauliflower and ricotta spaghetti

Adam Liaw
Adam Liaw

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Cauliflower and ricotta spaghetti.
Cauliflower and ricotta spaghetti.William Meppem

Getting some good browning on the cauliflower – even to the point where it looks a little burnt – is key to developing the savoury characteristics of this wonderful vegetable.

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Ingredients

  • 500g spaghetti

  • ¼ cup olive oil

  • ¼ cauliflower, finely chopped into very small florets

  • salt and black pepper, to season

  • 375g smooth ricotta

  • 100g grated parmesan, plus extra to serve

  • zest and juice of ½ lemon

  • 2 tbsp finely shredded parsley

Method

  1. Step 1

    Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil for the pasta and add the spaghetti. Heat a large frypan over medium heat and add the oil. Add the cauliflower and season well with salt. Fry, stirring occasionally, until well browned. Turn off the heat but leave the cauliflower in the hot pan.

  2. Step 2

    When the spaghetti is al dente, add it to the cauliflower with about ½ a cup of the pasta water. Add the ricotta, parmesan, lemon zest and juice and parsley and toss everything together until the ricotta and parmesan form a creamy sauce. Season well with black pepper, then serve with extra parmesan.

Adam’s tip: The reason vegetarian pastas work so well for meat-eaters is usually cheese. Meat and cheese are high in umami – savoury tastes that help us feel satisfied. With a non-meat cheesy pasta, those umami tastes remain.

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Adam LiawAdam Liaw is a cookbook author and food writer, co-host of Good Food Kitchen and former MasterChef winner.

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