I had a large head of cauliflower and wanted to make another cauliflower mash but we’d had that recently. I might be obsessed with that dish but my P.S. is not. In the back of my mind I remembered the pickled beets I’d made with a quick pickle recipe last summer and wondered if I could pickle cauliflower as well. Just a quick pickling, overnight, should work for cauliflower too. They would be a nice, chilled side dish!
I searched my blog for the recipe for pickled beets. It was a very simple recipe and I only slightly modified it to accommodate a different vegetable. I wanted just a touch of heat, so I added cayenne to the ingredients.
I cut the cauliflower up into edible-sized pieces. I tried to keep them mostly in little “tree” shapes, for cuteness. I put on a pot of water, added about a teaspoon of salt and brought it to a boil, before adding the cauliflower.
I let the cauliflower florets bubble away for about 5 minutes, when they were beginning to turn fork tender. I drained the pot of cauliflower and left the florets in the pot.
In a bowl I measured the vinegar, water, honey, garlic powder, salt, pepper and cayenne. I whisked until the mixture was smooth then poured it into the pot.

Drain cauliflower and add vinegar liquid. Bring to a boil then remove from heat. Let sit until room temp. Pour into a container and store overnight in fridge.
I let the pot come to a boil again then turned the heat off and let the cauliflower sit until it was room temperature. I poured the contents of the pot into a container, covered with a lid and put it in the refrigerator.
The next day I tasted a floret and it was amazing! Already nicely pickled, I loved the flavors! I deemed the cauliflower florets were spiced enough so I drained off the liquid and put them into a smaller container.
When we had dinner that evening the cauliflower pickles were a nice addition to our grilled steak and potato salad meal. We loved them! My P.S. said a hint of turmeric next time would be nice, and the color of the florets would be more interesting. I might try that, will update you if I do!
Pickled Cauliflower

Quick pickled cauliflower with a hint of heat.
- 1 large head cauliflower; cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne (or more if you like heat)
Drain pot and leave cauliflower in the pot.
In a bowl, whisk together the rest of the ingredients. Pour into pot and bring to a boil.
Turn off the heat and set the pot on a rack or back burner until the cauliflower is room temperature. Pour into a container and cover. Refrigerate overnight.
The next day drain the cauliflower and place in smaller container. Eat within 6-7 days.

Looks good- I’m thinking// using
Beet juices to color them pink..
‘Pink pickens’… – 🙃😀
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Adorable! Send me a picture if you do, please?
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Love cauliflower- will give this a try!! L
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Sounds interesting. The only pickled foods in my memory are beets and cucumbers. Hubby is not a fan of cauliflower so I will have to give this recipe a pass.
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Aww they don’t taste much like cauliflower after pickling but I understand.
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I love all things pickled except for beets. My mom pickled beets when I was a kid and I remember how they stunkup the kitchen for days. I’ll try this as soon as I can get cauliflower.
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It was so easy, I’ll be making them often!
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