Italian Cauliflower Salad
Italian Cauliflower Salad is incredibly delicious and incredibly light and couldn’t be more Italian. It’s loaded with tender cauliflower florets, kalamata olives, capers, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, garlic and red pepper flakes to give it some heat. A family recipe and one you will enjoy making often!
Our Mom’s Cauliflower Salad…
An easy recipe for cauliflower salad! This is our mom’s recipe for her cauliflower salad, and only requires a few steps to make. Then it is chilled for at least 2 hours before serving.
No need to add any salt! But we won’t mind if you do. The capers and Kalamata olives along with some Spanish olives give enough salt to this salad.
Reasons You Should Try Our Italian Cauliflower Salad:
- Using cauliflower in salads is not only smart, but it’s also a great way to get your family to eat more of this vegetable.
- Loaded with vitamin C and vitamin K, cauliflower is known to help lower cholesterol and even prevent certain forms of cancer.
- And because it’s 92% water by weight, it’s perfect for low-calorie diets.
The best part? It’s a great salad to easily whip up in 10 minutes, and you can make this ahead and chill before serving.
A perfect side dish to bring to any barbecue or gathering.
Ingredients Needed:
- 1 medium-size cauliflower, rinsed, cord and pulled apart florets
- juice of 1 lemon
- 3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves- diced
- 1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes
- 7 kalamata olives- sliced
- 2 Tbsp. non-pareilles capers
- 6 green olives- sliced (Spanish olives stuffed with pimento)
- 1/4 cup freshly chopped parsley
- fresh cracked pepper and salt to taste
How to Make our Italian Cauliflower Salad?
Let’s run through our directions below. Plus, our full recipe card is located at the bottom of this page.
FIRST: Insert a metal colander inside a large pot, filled with 1-inch of water, and place the pot over medium heat. Bring water to a boil and add the cauliflower florets and cover. Cook for about 2 to 3 minutes or just firm to the fork. Drain and remove from stove. Remain in the pot, covered and allow it to steam for about 3 minutes, or until it’s tender.
NEXT: Transfer the cauliflower directly to a large mixing bowl. Add all the rest of the ingredients and gently toss to combine. Taste and season with fresh cracked pepper and some salt to taste. Here is where you can add more red pepper flakes too.
LASTLY: Refrigerate for at least 1 to 2 hours, uncovered until it’s completely chilled, then cover with clear wrap. Transfer cauliflower salad to a serving bowl and serve.
Your family and friends will LOVE our Italian cauliflower salad!
This is such a delicious dish. And it will transform this everyday boring vegetable into something your whole family will enjoy!
ENJOY!!
Don’t forget! If you try our Italian Cauliflower Salad recipe, let us know and leave a comment and a star rating below. Or snap a photo and hashtag it on Instagram and on Pinterest; be sure to tag us @2sistersrecipes.
More Cauliflower Recipes:
- Cauliflower Kale Soup with Crunchy Kale
- Roasted Broccoli and Cauliflower with Wine and Cheese
- Potato-Cauliflower Soup
- Pasta with Creamy Cauliflower
Italian Cauliflower Salad
This recipe for Italian Cauliflower Salad is quick and easy and will transform this everyday vegetable into something spectacular!
Ingredients
- 1 medium-size cauliflower, rinsed, cord and pulled apart florets
- juice of 1 lemon
- 3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves- diced
- 1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes
- 7 kalamata olives- sliced
- 2 Tbsp. non-pareilles capers
- 6 green olives- sliced (Spanish olives stuffed with pimento)
- 1/4 cup freshly chopped parsley
- fresh cracked pepper and salt to taste
Instructions
- Insert a metal colander inside a large pot, filled with 1-inch of water, and place the pot over medium heat. Bring water to a boil and add the cauliflower florets and cover. Cook for about 2 to 3 minutes or just firm to the fork.
- Drain and remove from stove. Remain in the pot, covered and allow it to steam for about 3 minutes, or until it's tender. Transfer the cauliflower directly to a large mixing bowl.
- Add all the rest of the ingredients and gently toss to combine. Taste and season with fresh cracked pepper and some salt to taste. Here is where you can add more red pepper flakes too.
- Refrigerate for at least 1 to 2 hours, uncovered until it's completely chilled, then cover with clear wrap. Transfer cauliflower salad to a serving bowl and serve.
Notes
Cauliflower is best when under cooked a little, as it will continue to cook as it cools down. If you over cook, it will become mushy and it will ruin the salad. Allow the salad to cool completely before covering. You can make it one day ahead and the salad will last up to 4 days. Best chilled over night.
Happy Cooking!
xo Anna and Liz
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YUMMIE and healthy! Love the recipes and Liz of course.
Thank you Shakuntela!
What a lovely combination of ingredients and one I never would have thought of on my own! Love your new ‘look’ ladies!!
Thank you Susan! Hope you have a lovely week!