Inspo: New Vegetarian Crunchy Cravings
Okay so! I’m on my 5th week of no meat and it’s really been fairly easy for me. We even went to Chick-fil-a today and I wasn’t even tempted to get their chicken! I was only wishing they had better vegetarian options that wouldn’t make you sound insanely bougie when you order. I settled for fries and a milkshake. (Not healthy at all, but I won’t be paying for an entree “without meat” and paying the same price lol!) The only time I’ve found myself “wanting” meat on this journey is thinking about the crunch of some boneless wings or fried chicken ect. I didn’t have fried food that wasn’t meat too often before. So! That is how this amazing crunchy gluten-free recipe came about!
Why Gluten-free
I don’t personally try to avoid gluten, but my husband does. For his sake, I usually make most of my recipes gluten-free. If gluten doesn’t bother you, feel free to use whatever all-purpose flour you’d like. I chose a gluten-free all purpose flour that is 1:1 so the measurements would be the same. I tried this recipe with a mixture of almond, coconut, and tapioca flours before. It turned out okay, but not as crunchy as this recipe! Also, for those who don’t typically keep all the different gluten-free flours in their pantry, it’s much easier to grab 1 bag of gluten-free all-purpose!
Make it how ya like it
I was craving a good honey garlic sauce when I made this recipe. In my humble opinion, it is the perfect blend of honey and garlic, and with the addition of liquid aminos, you really get that umami flavor (this is how we described it anyways lol!). My husband couldn’t stop eating these, said he could eat the entire batch, AND thinks they’d sell really well in a restaurant. If you know him, you know I was doing a lil victory dance! He never sugar coats his feedback and I could tell (by the empty serving dish) that this was a serious winner! HOWEVER, if you’re not in the mood for alla that, they’re great naked too! Or grab your favorite BBQ, buffalo, or whatever other sauce you like and do it up!
Crunchy Gluten-free Honey Garlic Cauliflower “Wings”
Ingredients
Cauliflower "Wings"
- 1 Small Cauliflower (rinsed, dried, and cut florets into bite-size chunks) or 1/2 a Large
- Buttermilk
- 2 Eggs beaten
- 2 Cups Gluten-free All-purpose Flour
- 2-3 Tsp Sea Salt
- 1/2 Tsp Black Pepper
- 1/4 Tsp Paprika
- 1/4 Tsp Garlic Powder
- 1/4 Tsp Onion Powder
- 1/4 Tsp Baking Powder
- Olive Oil
Honey Garlic Sauce
- 1/2 Cup Honey
- 1/4-1/2 Cup Water depending on desired thickness of sauce
- 1 Tbsp Coconut Sugar
- 2 Tbsp Liquid Aminos
- 5 Large Cloves Garlic minced
- 1 Tsp Onion Powder
- 1 Tsp Sea Salt
- Green Onions chopped for garnish
Instructions
Honey Garlic Sauce
- Make the sauce first by adding all sauce ingredients (except green onions) to a medium pot over medium heat.
- Mix well and bring to a boil.
- Turn heat down and simmer for around 10-15 minutes.
- Taste for desired flavor (it is salty which allows it to overpower the cauliflower taste). Then remove from heat and sauce with thicken more.
Cauliflower "Wings"
- In a large bowl, cover your cauliflower (that has been rinsed, dried, and cut into chunks) with buttermilk and let sit for at least 10 minutes.
- In a small bowl beat 2 eggs and in pie dish (I like the size and depth for dredging) mix your flour, seasonings, and baking powder.
- From your buttermilk, take the cauliflower and dredge in your flour mixture, then in your egg, then back in your flour. As your doing this, make sure to shake off excess of each step. You don't want it overly coated or it will fall off your cauliflower when or after cooking.
- You can dredge all of your cauliflower and then move onto the next step or work in batches, dredging each batch as you go. I fried 6 cauliflower at a time to leave room and heat for a good crunch!
- Warm olive oil in large pot over medium heat. You want the olive oil around 1 inch deep.
- In batches, fry your cauliflower using tongs to flip and make sure all your sides are golden.
- When your cauliflower is finished, rest on a plate lined with paper towels to soak up any excess oil.
- Add your crunchy cauliflower to a large bowl and pour your honey garlic, or sauce of choice, over and mix to coat well. Top with green onions and make sure you get some before someone sneaks in and eats it all! These will disappear quickly!
Lemme Know
Drop a comment if you give these crunchy gluten-free cauliflower “wings” a try. Hoping you love it as much as we do! If you want to check out more recipes, click here!
I have a few vegans coming over for the Superbowl and this would be perfect to serve!
It is seriously delicious! A few easy changes would make it vegan-friendly. I think agave nectar would work best in place of honey, vegan buttermilk is said to be easily made from lemon juice and soy milk, and flax eggs for dredging! I haven’t tried these changes personally. You’ll have to let me know how it turns out!
You had me at honey garlic sauce!!! These sound amazing 🙂 I’ll have to give it a try using dairy-free buttermilk!
I can’t get over how delicious they were! My husband has been debating cutting out dairy. You’ll have to let me know how it turns out for you!
I love anything Honey Garlic so this is such a good option for when you want a crunch and get in those veggies!
Yes!! I’m wanting to try roasted cauliflower with different sauces without the breading for a lighter option! Also way less work haha!
I’m dairy-free, so I often make vegan dishes at home. This looks like a great game day snack to serve!
I made them Sunday and even my 7 yr old who refuses to eat cooked vegetables loves them! Oddly, he only likes raw veggies lol!
I really want to try this recipe even if I have to skip some ingredients to make these vegan friendly. Will let you know, thanks for sharing.
Oh yes! Please let me know! 🙂
I’ve been so intrigued about cauliflower and have never done anything with it. Excited to try this recipe!
I love cauliflower breaded and with sauce or even just seasoned and roasted. So good!