Cauliflower Gratin
Cauliflower baked under a cheesy bechamel.
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Join HomecookedIngredients
- 1 Cauliflower
- 50 g Butter
- 50 g 00 flour
- 500 ml Milk
- 120 g Gruyere cheese
- 1 tsp Salt
- ¼ tsp Nutmeg (optional)
Method
- Heat the oven to 200C (400F).
- Cut the cauliflower into florets and boil them in salted water until just tender, then drain well.
- Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan, stir in the flour, and cook for a minute. Whisk in the milk a little at a time to make a smooth sauce.
- Season the sauce with nutmeg and stir in most of the grated gruyere until melted and smooth.
- Layer the cauliflower in a baking dish, pour over the bechamel, and scatter the rest of the cheese on top.
- Bake until golden and bubbling.
- Rest a few minutes and serve.
Nutrition per serving
Estimated from ingredients; varies with exact portions and brands.
About Cauliflower Gratin
Cauliflower gratin, or gratin de chou-fleur, is a classic of French home cooking that treats the humble cauliflower to the full comfort of the kitchen's mother sauces. It's built on a béchamel, the flour-and-butter roux loosened with milk into a silky white sauce, here enriched with grated Gruyère and warmed with a whisper of nutmeg. The cauliflower is boiled just to tenderness first, then blanketed in the cheesy sauce and baked until the top turns golden and blistered. Draining the florets well matters more than it seems: excess water thins the sauce and keeps the gratin from setting into that spoonable, custardy state you want.
The pleasure of this dish is textural as much as anything, the soft yield of the cauliflower against the smooth, nutty sauce and the crisp, browned crust of Gruyère on top. Nutmeg is the quietly defining note, its warmth cutting the richness of milk and cheese so the whole thing doesn't read as heavy. In France this lands on the table as a vegetable side, especially in cooler months, and it pairs beautifully with a roast chicken or a Sunday joint. It's also substantial enough to stand as a vegetarian main with a green salad alongside, and it reheats well the next day.
Cauliflower Gratin: frequently asked questions
How many calories are in Cauliflower Gratin?
One serving of Cauliflower Gratin has about 380 calories, with 17g of protein, 23g of carbs, 25g of fat and 3g of fiber. These are estimates based on the ingredient amounts in this recipe and will vary with your exact portions and brands.
Is Cauliflower Gratin gluten-free?
As written, no — it contains 00 flour. You'd need a certified gluten-free swap for that ingredient to make it gluten-free.
Is Cauliflower Gratin dairy-free?
Not as written — it uses Butter, Milk, Gruyere cheese. Swapping those for a plant-based alternative makes it dairy-free.
How long does Cauliflower Gratin take to make?
About 45 minutes start to finish, but only around 26 of those are hands-on — the rest is largely unattended cooking time you can step away from. In the Homecooked app the timers and parallel steps are sequenced for you so the hands-on part feels even shorter.
Do I need every ingredient to make Cauliflower Gratin?
The core ingredients are essential, but you can leave out nutmeg — it's optional and mainly there for extra flavor or finish.
How many servings does Cauliflower Gratin make?
This recipe makes 4 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.