Superba's Jason Neroni Cooks Cauliflower Like Steak

Cauliflower has made a move to the main course, after being relegated to bland crudité platters or drenched in Velveeta and shoved to the side of dinner plates.

Take, for instance, chef Jason Neroni of Superba Snack Bar in Los Angeles: He puts the cruciferous vegetable front and center with his cauliflower "T-bone" (see the recipe).

Neroni, whose focus on locally grown ingredients keeps meat to a minimum on the restaurant's menu, essentially treats the vegetable like a steak, splitting a full head in half to create two portions. First oven-braised in an aromatic white-wine broth, the halves are then patted dry and seared in a cast-iron skillet until caramelized.

Served fork-tender, each steak is topped with a briny green-olive pistou made with chopped oranges, lemon juice, golden raisins, garlic and parsley–a nod to Superba's house-made pickles and brines.

The final dish hits sweet, sour, salty and bitter notes beautifully. Each substantial steak is pleasantly filling, making this cauliflower–dare we say–downright meaty.