By School is starting everywhere and even though Sofia's only two and won't be in school for years, there's a back-to-school energy in the air that makes me think about routine, structure, and what the fall is going to look like. Fall in Phoenix isn't like fall anywhere else — there are no leaves changing, no crisp air, no pumpkin spice anything (okay, there's pumpkin spice everything, but it's 100 degrees so it feels fraudulent). Fall here is just slightly less summer. But it's something. It's the turn.
The state championship is in October. Seven weeks away. I'm qualified, I've won a competition, and I need to decide what to cook. State-level competition is a different beast — four categories: brisket, pork ribs, pork shoulder, and chicken. You submit all four. Judged blind. I need to practice all four simultaneously, which means I need a weekend where I can run four meats at once, which means I need Jessica's permission to turn our backyard into a smokehouse for fourteen hours. She granted it, with conditions: I handle all cleanup, I save her a plate of each, and I don't talk about smoke rings at dinner for the rest of the week.
Meanwhile, on shift, I've been thinking about the firehouse kitchen differently. I've been cooking at Station 19 for eleven years and I've never repeated a recipe unless someone specifically requested it. I keep a log — a spiral notebook, handwritten — of every meal I've cooked for my crew. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, every shift. The notebook is almost full. Over 2,000 meals. Ruiz saw me writing in it this week and said "Chef, you should publish that." I laughed. But I looked at the notebook later, alone, and thought about what it represents: eleven years of feeding people who might not come home. Eleven years of making the kitchen the warmest room in a place built to fight fire. I'm not going to publish it. But I might not throw it away, either.
Made a new thing this week: elote-style grilled cauliflower. Take a head of cauliflower, cut it into thick steaks, grill it over high heat until it's charred and tender, then dress it with mayo, cotija cheese, chili powder, lime, and cilantro — same as elote but on a vegetable. I made it for my dad, who is supposed to be eating more vegetables per his doctor's orders for the diabetes. He looked at it like I'd presented him with a foreign object, took one bite, and said "this is not corn." I said "no, Dad, it's cauliflower." He said "I can see that." He ate the whole thing. Progress.
Feeding people who might not come home has a way of making you think hard about what ends up on the plate — it should matter, it should mean something. This one meant something because it meant getting my dad to eat a vegetable without a fight, which after eleven years of feeding a firehouse feels like its own kind of victory. Here’s how I put it together.
Elote-Style Grilled Cauliflower Steaks
Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 15 min | Total Time: 25 min | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 large head cauliflower, cut into 3/4-inch steaks (about 4 steaks)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon sour cream
- 1/2 cup cotija cheese, finely crumbled
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- Zest of 1 lime
- Juice of 1 lime (about 2 tablespoons)
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
- Pinch of cayenne (optional)
Instructions
- Prep the cauliflower. Remove the outer leaves from the cauliflower and trim the stem flat. Slice the head from top to stem into 3/4-inch steaks. The two center cuts will hold together best; the outer pieces may break into florets — grill those too.
- Oil and season. Brush both sides of each steak with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
- Grill over high heat. Heat a gas or charcoal grill to high (450–500°F). Grill the cauliflower steaks with the lid closed for 5–6 minutes per side, until deep char marks form and the thickest part is fork-tender. Do not move them early — let the grill do its work.
- Mix the elote dressing. While the cauliflower grills, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, lime zest, and lime juice in a small bowl until smooth.
- Dress and finish. Transfer the grilled steaks to a platter. Spread a generous layer of the mayo mixture over each steak. Sprinkle with cotija cheese, chili powder, smoked paprika, and cayenne if using. Finish with cilantro.
- Serve immediately. Elote-style cauliflower is best hot off the grill, while the char is still warm and the cheese is slightly melting. Serve with extra lime wedges on the side.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 210 | Protein: 6g | Fat: 16g | Carbs: 12g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 480mg