Why is cauliflower so expensive, when it's in season?!
It was in boiling water, but maybe I left it in for too long? I don't remember...
Boiling cauliflower is like boiling cabbage -- it can really stink up the house. Stories about Irish immigrants living in NYC tenements often mention the smell of boiled cabbage permeating the halls.
too long in boiling water and it's the same as stinky overdone cabbage.
You can overcome the risk with a little fresh lemon juice added to the water, and not too much water, so you're virtually steaming it. The trick is to keep it firm then turn the heat off, so the trapped heat will continue cooking the veg without spreading noxious odours.
I do not like boiled cauliflower. But roasted with garam masala ans sunflower seeds? Yes, please!
not at all. I cook it all the time, but generally roast it. I also have a good exhaust fan.
I feel like boiling vegetables is very...err...retro...
In the late '80s My (now) mother-in-law used to be known for using a PRESSURE COOKER to cook broccoli. It would come out so soft you could spread it like butter. One time. My father in law, who had started doing some of the cooking, rinsed it under cold water to, as he said, stop it from overcooking. That ship had sailed.
rinse it. Place in microwave container. Zap. Done!
Or:
Rinse it. Add 2 tablespoons water (or broth of choice), season, in suitable braising or saucepan with good lid. Place on heat for 2 mins, TURN OFF HEAT and allow pot to cool enough to handle without burning your hands. Cauli should still be warm, and nutty-sweet, firm.
OR:
Rinse it. Break into very small florets, season.
Toss into wet stir fry. Ready in 5 mins, only odour is stir fry.
Soups are a whole different story, and shouldn't stink because they shouldn't boil. Try not to use a steel pot, enamel is better. (Something about the bare metal and the cabbage family. Fishy can explain better, I'm sure)
Roasted, baked or bbq'd - yum. Sooooo many ways to use this veg! Mash it into patties. Turn it into pie crusts. Do it Greek style as a warm salad...
I think it has more to do with the scent receptors of individuals and how it is perceived, than with the vegetables themselves. I have an excellent exhaust fan, too @shh, and I never boil veggies---they are roasted or steamed--but pardon me, cauliflower stinks to me. Broccoli ,less so and cabbage always reminds me of my college cafeteria, yet I can never recall it having been served. It is the nature of perception of cruciferous vegetables---just like cilantro either tastes revolting and soapy (to me) or delicious, to others.
@calliope, I wasn't referring to you boiling, just previous posts talking about it. A whole bunch of posts came in between when I started writing and when it posted.
Yes, PeggyC it does stink up the house. I'm not sure if you bake it that the smell is as strong as when you steam or boil.
Calli, my father loved cauliflower and cabbage but couldn't stand broccoli. Hated the smell, the taste, everything
So the food tech answer to smelly cauli/brocc/sprouts/cabbage etc is:
"Cauliflower contains phytonutrients that release odorous sulfur compounds when heated" also referred to as "volatile organic acids." (similar to the smell of hard boiled eggs) The longer you cook them, the stronger they become ( ie, the more they increase, so the smell is stronger). Some people are much more sensitised to this odour, and some people have more sensitive senses of smell generally.
You could try eating the cauliflower raw. Just give it a quick rinse under running water and shake the water out.
I think I will try roasting in an enamel or ceramic dish. I have a feeling that, at the time, I had absolutely no idea what to do with it. And let's just say it was long enough ago I could not Google a recipe. 
Yes, I'm old, and sometimes retro. Or, at least, I used to be. 
Although I think my first new attempt will be the Madhur Jaffrey soup. That sounds fabulous.
As has been noted several vegetable crops have been significantly more expensive as there are gaps in supply do to bad localized conditions in certain areas from too wet to too dry and too cold.
Also scallions/green onions have been an issue. We talked with folks from the produce stand we frequent while in PA and they mentioned that scallions jumped from $20 a box to $60 a box in the course of two weeks because of supply issues. Also they noted that the $60 boxes had scallions in far worse shape with browning and wilting. They just stopped buying them until a new round of crops came in from different regions (South America) and they said the price has dropped into the high $30s but still not down to what would be normal.
They also were out of cauliflower because the boxes coming in had a lot more appearance issues so they just cut the amount of boxes they were buying to 1/3 of what they would normally get because they figured only the die-hard cauliflower users would buy the less than perfect ones.
They also mentioned that veggies they used to not be able to give away including cauliflower, kale, and brussel sprouts in particular they now often sell out of more than what used to be the big sellers of green beans, iceberg lettuce, and potatoes.
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How did you prepare it? I ask because I haven't had that problem. I either roast it (whole or broken up), or quickly parboil it (or sometimes use the microwave for that) and then finish with butter and some seasonings and/or breadcrumbs.