This Curry Roasted Cauliflower and Sweet Potato Salad is nutrient dense and flavor packed. It's the perfect vegan, gluten free, and paleo dish that can be turned into a complete meal!
Sweet potatoes are one of my favorite foods, so I'm always thinking of new dishes to make with them. I really wanted to add them to some sort of hearty salad dish. A sweet potato cauliflower salad sounded perfect, but since plain roasted vegetables can get boring, I wanted to make these vegetables more fun and delicious. This roasted vegetable salad is filled with add-ins to bring some crunch and sweetness and then dressed with a robust and creamy dressing that has just the right amount of curry kick.
Although this big salad can be made any time of year, I think it's a fantastic spring transition salad from colder to warmer months. We have some hearty veggies while also bringing in lighter and sweeter flavors. This curry cauliflower salad with sweet potato makes a delicious dish to add to an Easter spread or to make for Mother's Day. It's warm, vibrant, and packs lots of delicious flavor!
Curry Cauliflower and Sweet Potato Salad Ingredients
- Cauliflower: make sure to use a big, fresh cauliflower.
- Sweet potato: I used orange sweet potato in this recipe, but it would also be delicious with white or Japanese sweet potato!
- Olive oil: or your favorite oil for making roasted veggies.
- Salt
- Golden raisins, toasted nuts, roasted chickpeas: these are all fantastic add-ins to amp up the flavor profile of this salad. Toasted walnuts and cashews are the best nuts for this salad.
- Cilantro: Adding some fresh herbs to this roasted cauliflower salad is a great way to get in some micronutrients and enhance the flavor profile of a salad. We do that with fresh chopped cilantro, but if you can use parsley if you prefer.
- Granola butter or nut/seed butter of choice: this is used to create a hearty dressing that stands up to the roasted veggies. If you have a nut allergy, use something like granola butter or tahini. If using granola butter, make sure it is certified gluten free to keep this recipe allergy friendly. If you tolerate nuts, you can pick your favorite nut butter like almond butter or cashew butter.
- Lemon juice: a little tang for the dressing.
- Curry powder: we add delicious curry spices the dressing to enhance the flavors in this recipe and make those taste buds happy!
- Grated ginger root: I love adding fresh grated ginger root to recipes for the anti-inflammatory and gut supporting benefits it contains. It goes perfectly in the dressing here!
- Maple syrup: be sure to use pure maple syrup, just a splash, for the dressing.
- Garlic infused olive oil: this is a low FODMAP option if you don't tolerate garlic. If you do, feel free to use regular olive oil and a little bit of fresh minced garlic.
How to Make This Roasted Cauliflower Sweet Potato Salad
This roasted sweet potato and cauliflower salad is easy to make!
- Chop cauliflower into florets and sweet potato into bite size pieces. Toss vegetables with olive and salt and spread on a parchment lined sheet pan. Bake for 40-45 minutes, until golden and fork tender.
- While vegetables are cooking, toast your walnuts in a frying pan over medium heat, mixing often until just beginning to golden and become fragrant.
- While vegetables are cooling, make your dressing by combining all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl or jar. Start with ½ teaspoon curry powder and increase based on taste. Add in water 1 tablespoon at a time until you get the right consistency that isn't too thick.
- Toss the roasted vegetables with add-ins and dressing and serve!
Substitutions and Variations
- Keep this gluten free salad fully paleo by using a nut or seed based butter for the dressing like peanut, almond, cashew, tahini, or sunflower butter. I use my homemade granola butter in this recipe as it is my absolute favorite and is allergy friendly!
- You can keep this recipe completely nut free by using roasted chickpeas instead of nuts for the add-ins. Or use both for an additional flavor and protein boost. You can also try adding sunflower seeds instead of nuts!
- Add-ins: switch up or customize the add-ins by trying different nuts, chopped dates, dried cranberries or cherries, pomegranate seeds, or add extra roasted vegetables like carrots or parsnips.
Storage
Keep leftovers stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days in the fridge. This salad tastes great for days after and you can enjoy it warm or cold!
Can I Make This a Complete Meal?
I love serving this vegetable dish with roasted chicken, but you can also make it a complete vegan meal by adding a can of roasted chickpeas. The chickpeas add the perfect crunch and a protein boost while keeping this recipe fully plant-based.
More Delicious Salads
Brussels Sprout Salad with Apples and Chickpeas
Curried Cauliflower and Sweet Potato Salad
Ingredients
- 1 large head of cauliflower
- 2 medium sweet potatoes
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup golden raisins
- ⅓ cup toasted walnuts or cashews *see notes below for nut free version
- ⅓ cup chopped cilantro
- Add-ins see notes above about other add-ins to make this a complete meal
Dressing
- ¼ cup granola butter or nut/seed butter of choice
- ½ a lemon, juiced
- ½-1 teaspoon curry powder
- 1 thumb grated ginger root
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon garlic infused olive oil or regular olive oil and 1 clove of pressed garlic
- 2-4 tablespoon water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F.
- Chop cauliflower into florets and sweet potato into bite size pieces. Toss vegetables with olive and salt and spread on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 40-45 minutes, until golden and fork tender.
- While vegetables are cooking, toast your walnuts in a frying pan over medium heat, mixing often until just beginning to golden and become fragrant. This will only take 5-10 minutes.
- When vegetables are done, set aside while you make the dressing.
- While vegetables are cooling, make your dressing by combining all ingredients except for the water in a small bowl or jar. Start with ½ teaspoon curry powder and increase based on taste. Miix well to combine, taste and adjust salt and curry powder as needed. Add in water 1 tablespoon at a time until you get a pourable consistency that isn't too thick.
- Toss vegetables, add-ins, and dressing together in a large bowl and serve! Leftovers can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Ann Marie Koshuta says
We made this dish last night for supper. It is outstanding! Such a delightful and interesting mix of tastes. I highly recommend!
Victoria Faling says
I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
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