Cauliflower Gratin with Pancetta

Bring a large pot of water to the boil and salt it. Meanwhile break the 600 g of cauliflower into evenly sized florets.

💡 Even florets matter more than pretty ones — mismatched sizes mean some are still crunchy while others have gone to mush.

Boil the florets for about 10 minutes, until a knife tip slides into a stem with only slight resistance.

💡 Stop while there is still a little bite. The cauliflower spends another 35 minutes in the oven and will soften further there.

While it boils, warm a thread of olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat and add the 100 g of cubed pancetta.

Fry the pancetta for 4–5 minutes, stirring, until the fat has run out and the cubes are browned at the edges and crisp.

💡 Leave the rendered fat in the pan. That is the seasoning the cauliflower is about to be tossed in.

Drain the cauliflower well and let it steam dry in the colander for a minute.

💡 Wet florets thin the béchamel and leave a watery puddle under the gratin — that minute in the colander is worth taking.

Tip the drained cauliflower into the pancetta pan and turn it over medium heat for a couple of minutes, letting the florets pick up the fat.

Season with black pepper and a few gratings of nutmeg, and taste for salt — the pancetta may already have supplied enough.

💡 Nutmeg is not decoration here. It is the traditional partner to both cauliflower and béchamel, and it stops the dish tasting flatly milky.

Heat the oven to 190°C fan.

Spread some of the 400 ml of béchamel over the bottom of a baking dish, enough to cover it in a thin layer.

Tip the cauliflower and pancetta on top, spreading them into a single even layer with all the pan juices.

Pour the remaining béchamel over everything, working it down between the florets with the back of a spoon.

💡 Any floret left poking out of the sauce will dry and harden in the oven — push them all under.

Scatter the top with grated cheese, then with a light, even dusting of breadcrumbs.

💡 Cheese first, breadcrumbs second. The other way round the crumbs sink into the cheese and never crisp.

Bake for 35 minutes at 190°C fan, until the top is deep gold and the sauce is bubbling up around the edges of the dish.

Rest it 5–10 minutes out of the oven so the béchamel thickens again, then serve hot, straight from the dish.