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Buffalo cauliflower on a plate with vegan ranch, celery and carrot sticks
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5 from 1 vote

Buffalo cauliflower wings

Crispy and delicious buffalo cauliflower wings. Perfect appetizer for your next party.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time40 minutes
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Servings: 4
Calories: 310kcal
Author: Maria

Ingredients

  • 1 head of cauliflower cut into bite-sized florets.
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 cup unsweetened oat milk or coconut milk or cashew milk
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup buffalo wing sauce
  • ¼ cup melted vegan butter optional
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup optional
  • 2 cups panko bread crumbs

Instructions

  • Cut cauliflower into bite-sized florets. Make sure they're small enough to fit on a taco, but not too small. The smaller the floret, the more soggy it will be when baked.
    1 head of cauliflower
  • In a large bowl, mix together flour, garlic powder and onion powder, salt and smoked paprika. Pour in unsweetened oat milk and stir until batter is smooth. Dump cauliflower florets into batter and mix until each piece is well coated
    1 cup all purpose flour, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, ½ teaspoon smoked paprika, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 cup unsweetened oat milk
  • Take tongs and remove each piece of cauliflower from batter bowl, trying to knock off any excess batter. Place cauliflower in a bowl with 1-2 cups of panko bread crumbs. Cover each piece evenly
    2 cups panko bread crumbs

Baking instructions

  • Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees
  • Add cauliflower to a lined baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until florets start to turn slightly golden brown.
  • Mix buffalo wing sauce, vegan butter (optional) and maple syrup (optional) in a sauce pan. Simmer on low until butter is melted.
    1 cup buffalo wing sauce, 1 tablespoon maple syrup, ¼ cup melted vegan butter
  • Once cauliflower has baked, let it sit for five minutes to let it crisp up. This an important step to make sure cauliflower doesn't get soggy. Then dump it into the sauce pan, evenly coating each piece.
  • Place back in the oven for another 5-10 minutes to crisp cauliflower back up.
  • Serve with creamy vegan ranch dressing, celery and carrot sticks.

Air fryer instructions

  • Lightly greese or line your air fryer basket. Place the cauliflower in the air fryer basket, giving each piece room. You may have to do this in multiple batches. Bake at 400 degrees in the air fryer for 12-15 minutes shaking halfway through.
  • Take out of the air fryer then add the cauliflower to the sauce pan on the stove. Coat well. Add back to the air fryer for 2 minutes at 400 degrees to crisp the cauliflower back up.

Video

Notes

When cooking in the air fryer, make sure not to overcrowd the cauliflower, or else it won't get as crispy. Make it in batches if needed. 
I prefer unsweetened oat milk because it doesn't leave an after taste like soy milk does. You can also use unsweetened cashew or boxed (not canned) coconut milk. No, the boxed coconut milk won't leave a coconut flavor.
To make this gluten free, use gluten free flour and gluten free bread crumbs. 
Make sure to read the ingredients of the buffalo sauce, some of them contain eggs. Frank's red hot sauce doesn't. 
This tastes best eaten fresh, instead of as left overs. The longer it sits, the soggier it gets. But if you need to re-heat it up the next day, do it in an oven at 400 degrees, until it's warmed up - usually 10 minutes. 

Nutrition

Calories: 310kcal | Carbohydrates: 46g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 1g | Sodium: 2379mg | Potassium: 527mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 663IU | Vitamin C: 69mg | Calcium: 74mg | Iron: 3mg