This spiced cauliflower shawarma with chickpeas for protein and a creamy red pepper, garlic, yogurt sauce is a delicious plant-based twist on the classic Turkish dish.
Ingredients You’ll Need
You’ll find the full ingredient list with measurements in the recipe card below, but here’s a quick look at everything you’ll need:
- Cumin
- Ground coriander
- Sumac
- Salt
- Cayenne pepper (optional, if you want a little extra zing)
- Cauliflower
- Red pepper
- Garlic
- Canned chickpeas
- Olive oil
- Lemon juice
- Raw cashews
- Natural yogurt (soy or coconut work best)
- Red onion
- Fresh parsley
- Pitas
Instructions
I’ve broken it down into easy steps with photos to help you make my Cauliflower Shawarma with Red Pepper Sauce — let’s dive in!
Step One: Preheat your oven and air fryer. Mix the spices in a small bowl — cumin, coriander, sumac, salt, and cayenne if you’re feeling spicy.
Step Two: Toss the chickpeas with some of the spice mix and olive oil. Pop them in the air fryer and cook, shaking halfway through.
Step Three: Coat the cauliflower florets with the rest of the spices and olive oil.
Step Four: Spread vegetables on a tray along with the red pepper and garlic, and roast. Flip everything and continue roasting until done.
Step Five: Peel the garlic and skin the pepper, then add them to a blender with the lemon juice, cashews, yogurt, and a pinch of salt.
Step Six: Blend until smooth.
Step Seven: To assemble, spread the sauce on your pitas, load them up with cauliflower, chickpeas, red onion, and parsley.
Cauliflower Shawarma with Red Pepper Sauce (Vegan)
Equipment
- Oven
- Air fryer
Ingredients
Spices
- 2 tsp cumin
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tsp sumac
- 2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper optional
Vegetables
- 1 medium head of cauliflower broken into large florets
- 1 large red pepper (capsicum)
- 3 cloves garlic unpeeled
- 800 g canned chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 3.5 tbsp olive oil
Sauce
- 2-3 tbsp fresh lemon juice juice from about 1 lemon
- 1/3 cup raw cashews soaked in boiling water for 15 minutes and drained
- 1/2 cup natural yogurt unsweetened – I use soy or coconut
- 1/2 tsp salt
To serve
- 8 large pitas warmed
- 1/2 red onion finely sliced
- fresh parsley leaves roughly chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F/220°C and air fryer to 390°F/200°C.
Spices
- In a small bowl, combine the spices: cumin, ground coriander, sumac, salt and cayenne pepper (optional).
Vegetables
- Add chickpeas to a medium size bowl and coat with roughly 1/3 of the spice mix and 1 tbsp olive oil. Transfer chickpeas to the air fryer basket and air fry for 12-15 minutes until golden and crispy, shaking the basket half way through. *See notes for oven option.
- Add cauliflower florets to a large mixing bowl and coat with 2 tbsp of olive oil and roughly 2/3 of the spice mix. Transfer to a large lined roasting tray. Place the red pepper onto the same tray, along with the unpeeled garlic cloves, use your hands to coat with 1/2 tbsp olive oil and a small sprinkle of salt.
- Place the tray into the oven and roast for 20 minutes. Flip, then continue roasting for an additional 15-20 minutes until pepper is blistered and cauliflower is tender.
- Wrap the pepper in aluminum foil and leave to sweat for 10 minutes. Being careful not to burn yourself, peel the skin from the pepper, remove the stalk and seeds, then roughly chop remaining pepper. Peel the garlic cloves.
Sauce
- Add the garlic cloves, pepper, and all other sauce ingredients to a high-powered blender. Blend for 30-60 seconds or until smooth.
Assemble
- Spread the sauce onto the pitas, then top with cauliflower, chickpeas, red onion and parsley. Serve immediately.
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