Golden Grain Bowl — a plant-based Mediterranean recipe by BOSH!
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Golden Grain Bowl

This one's been on heavy rotation in our kitchens lately and honestly we can't stop making it. There's something about cauliflower shawarma that just hits different, those golden, spice-coated florets straight from the oven are absolutely incredible. You get warm cumin, turmeric and paprika all working together with a buttery richness that makes the whole bowl feel really special. Pile it all over grains and you've got something that feels like a proper restaurant meal but comes together in about 30 minutes. Make this tonight, trust us.

Cook: 30 min
Serves 3

Before You Start

  • Preheat oven to 200°C fan
  • Large baking tray lined with parchment
  • Small saucepan
  • Food processor
  • Mixing bowl

Ingredients

  • 40g plant-based butter
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • ½ tsp ground turmeric
  • ½ tsp paprika
  • ¼ tsp ground cloves
  • ¼ tsp ground ginger
  • ¼ tsp ground garlic
  • Salt & pepper
  • 1 cauliflower
  • 2 portions of bulgur wheat
  • handful of coriander
  • handful of parsley
  • handful of pomegranate seeds
  • ½ lemon
  • salt
  • 1 x 400g can of chickpeas
  • 80ml runny tahini
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 tsp salt
  • pitta bread

Method

1

For the cauliflower shawarma

  • Preheat the oven to 200*C fan setting
  • Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Once melted, stir in the coriander, cumin, turmeric, paprika, clove, ginger, garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper. Remove from heat and set to one size
  • Break the cauliflower into even sized florets and transfer to a lined baking tray. Pour the spiced butter over the cauliflower and mix so that each floret is coated. Bake in the hot oven for 15 minutes
2

For the bulgur wheat

  • Cook the bulgur wheat as per instructions on the packet
  • Roughly chop the coriander and parsley
  • Transfer the cooked bulgur to a mixing bowl with the chop herbs, pomegranate seeds and a squeeze of lemon. Taste and season with salt
3

For the turmeric hummus

  • Peel the garlic clove
  • Drain the chickpeas, saving the aquafaba
  • Add the chickpeas to a processor and blend with a big splash of reserved aquafaba until starting to break down. Add the tahini, turmeric, garlic, juice of 1 lemon and salt. Blend again until completely smooth. Taste and add more salt or lemon juice if you’d like. Set aside
4

Assemble and enjoy

  • Chop the fresh herbs
  • Serve the hoummous and bulgur in a bowl, topped with the cauliflower shawarma, before sprinkling over the fresh herbs and pomegranate seeds. Scoop up with warm and fluffy pitta

Tips & Variations

  • Get an even roast: Make sure your cauliflower florets are roughly the same size before they go in. If some are huge and some are tiny, you'll get uneven cooking and the small ones will burn before the big ones are done.
  • Grain swaps: We love this with bulgur wheat or freekeh for that proper Mediterranean vibe, but quinoa or even brown rice works brilliantly if that's what you've got in the cupboard.
  • Make it saucier: A big dollop of hummus or a drizzle of tahini loosened with a little lemon juice and water takes this bowl to another level. Henry basically considers this non-negotiable at this point.

Why This Works

The trick here is getting that spiced butter coating onto every single floret before it goes in the oven. It sounds simple but it's what transforms plain cauliflower into something that tastes genuinely complex and deeply savoury. Roasting at 200 fan means you get those gorgeous golden edges without the middle going soft and soggy, and that texture is everything in this bowl.