Smoked Whole Cauliflower with Tahini, Pomegranate and Herbed Bulgur

Ingredients

• 1 large whole cauliflower (around 1.2kg), outer leaves trimmed but stem intact
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp garlic granules
• 1 tsp fine sea salt
• ½ tsp black pepper
• 2 chunks oak or apple smoking wood
• 4 tbsp tahini (well-stirred)
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 small garlic clove, grated
• 3-5 tbsp ice-cold water
• ½ tsp fine sea salt
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 200g coarse bulgur wheat
• 400ml hot vegetable stock
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small red onion, finely diced
• 30g flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 15g mint leaves, chopped
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 50g pine nuts
• 80g pomegranate seeds
• 1 tbsp pomegranate molasses
• small handful parsley leaves, picked
• pinch of Aleppo pepper or chilli flakes

Method

1. Set up the kettle BBQ for indirect smoking at 160°C — coals banked to one side, drip tray with a splash of water on the other. Add one chunk of oak or apple wood to the coals when they're glowing white with grey ash. You want thin, almost-invisible blue smoke, not thick white billows — white smoke means the wood is smouldering rather than burning cleanly and will leave the cauliflower bitter.
2. Trim the cauliflower's outer leaves but leave the stem intact so the head holds together through the smoke. Sit it stem-down and rub all over with the olive oil, working it into every crevice — the oil is what carries the spices into the florets and helps the smoke cling.
3. Mix the cumin, smoked paprika, coriander, garlic granules, salt and pepper, then massage the rub all over the cauliflower, pressing it into the gaps between florets. Don't be shy with it — a lot will fall off as it cooks, and the bare patches are where you lose flavour.
4. Place the cauliflower on the cool side of the BBQ, stem-down, and close the lid with the top vent above the cauliflower (this pulls smoke across the food). Smoke for 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours, adding the second wood chunk after 45 minutes. It's done when a knife slides into the thickest part of the stem with no resistance and the outside is deep mahogany with charred tips.
5. While the cauliflower smokes, make the bulgur. Tip it into a heatproof bowl with the olive oil and a pinch of salt, pour over the hot stock, cover tightly with a plate or cling film and leave for 20 minutes — no stirring, no peeking. The grains steam in their own heat and stay separate; stir them while they're still cooking and they go gluey.
6. Toast the pine nuts in a dry frying pan over medium heat, shaking constantly, until golden — about 3 minutes. They go from pale to burnt in seconds, so tip them straight onto a cold plate the moment they smell nutty.
7. Make the tahini drizzle: whisk the tahini, lemon juice, grated garlic and salt in a bowl. It will seize and turn pasty — this is normal. Add ice-cold water a tablespoon at a time, whisking hard, and it will suddenly turn smooth, pale and pourable. Loosen until it ribbons off the spoon, then whisk in the olive oil.
8. Fluff the bulgur with a fork, then fold through the red onion, parsley, mint, lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil. Taste and adjust salt — bulgur drinks salt, so it usually wants more than you think.
9. Rest the smoked cauliflower for 5 minutes on a board — this lets the residual heat finish softening the centre. Spread the herbed bulgur across a large warm platter, sit the whole cauliflower on top, and pour the tahini drizzle generously over the head so it pools into the bulgur.
10. Scatter the pomegranate seeds and toasted pine nuts over the top, drizzle with pomegranate molasses, finish with picked parsley and a pinch of Aleppo pepper. Bring the whole platter to the table and break it apart at the stem with a large spoon — it should fall into smoky florets with barely any pressure.