Coconut cauliflower not-steaks with lime leaf sauce

Crispy cauliflower slices with an endlessly useful makrut lime leaf dressing. Just don't call them 'steaks'.

My lime tree has its own chair

It lives in the kitchen, on a dining chair, making no fuss, asking for little attention besides the odd dusting and an annual prune, and produces masses of fragrant leaves.

Only the occasional lime though

Makrut limes are small and thick pithed. Great in a G&T. But they have a similar flavour to the leaves, which are abundant, so the I find little culinary disappointment in my tree’s lack of fruit, only the slight regret that I rarely experience that little horticultural shiver of glee when you spot a fruit forming. A livid green little pullet of life, all the more special for its rarity.

I freeze the leaves

The pruning of crossed branches or wayward stems results in so many leaves that I freeze them. I find they keep their fragrance and softness in the freezer, unlike dried leaves. Fresh or frozen they are easily chopped to a fine powder for cooking with, unlike the dried ones which I find to leathery for chopping. Frozen, I can whip them out as needed for curries and stir fries.

But what else?

It’s easy to think lime leaves are for infusing coconut milk and little else. But that would be missing an opportunity. A visit to Jikoni last year presented me with a new pairing – tomatoes and lime leaves – which I recreated here.

Buy today I’m exploring the coconut pairing some more with these cauliflower not-steaks which I fry in coconut breadcrumbs and dress with a fist full of lime leaves whizzed in my (increasingly rickety) Nutribullet. They are not, for the record, ‘steaks’. They are not a meat replacement. They are not even trying to be a meat replacement. They don’t need to try to be anything other than the glorious vegetable they are. So there.

The dressing I serve them with is fragrant and sharp and will keep in the fridge for a few days. It is the absolute business for enlivening a chopped salad or bag of limp leaves.

More lime leaf recipes to come

Stay tuned because I have an idea brewing about Basque cheesecake and lime leaves. And if you’ve any other ideas for me, and the prolific lime tree, we would be love your recipe tips.

Crispy coconut cauliflower with makrut lime leaf sauce

Some supermarkets would call these cauliflower ‘steaks’, but not me. In fact, if you prefer individual florets which you breadcrumb and fry then be my guest. But don’t call them nuggets either. The point is the coconutty crunch of fried breadcrumbs again buttery cauliflower and the fragrant, sharp citrus of the lime leaves to set it off. The sauce will keep a few days in the fridge but the cauliflower needs serving straight from the fryer.

Serves 2

• 1 whole cauliflower, leaves removed

• 2 tbsp plain flour

• 1 egg, beaten