Cauliflower Buffalo Bites


Cauliflower Buffalo Bites


Get your buffalo wings on the vegan way! Variations of these cauliflower buffalo bites have been all over Pinterest, and have always piqued my curiosity on how good they actually were. I mean, I LOVE buffalo wings, but as you could probably tell from reading this blog, I am always on the lookout for healthier alternatives for carnivores and plant eaters alike (carnivores – check out my grilled buffalo strips recipe!), and these seemed liked an awesome way to get your veggies and hot wing cravings in for a minimal amount of calories.


Cauliflower Buffalo Bites


They key to making good cauliflower bites is getting that perfectly golden, crispy exterior. Without it, forget it. You’ll basically have soggy cauliflower that is soaked in hot sauce, which is so not what we are going for here. In order to get the most crispy cauliflower bites possible, I tried this recipe two different ways; one with unsweetened almond milk and brown rice flour, and one with water and brown rice flour. While the ones with almond milk weren’t bad, they didn’t crisp up quite the same as the ones with water did for one reason or another, so the obvious winner was the water and brown rice flour batter.


Cauliflower Buffalo Bites


Contrary to what I initially thought, these bites are best eaten after they have had a chance to set out for bit at room temperature. I’m not sure why, but whatever the reason, this step is a must. The longer they set out, the more they taste like a hot wing/tater tot hybrid, and yes, that tastes as good as it sounds.

So, do these taste exactly like buffalo wings? Well, I think they are about as close as you can get considering you’re using cauliflower in place of chicken. I mean, this recipe is definitely one of the tastiest ways I have eaten cauliflower in a while, and I am pretty sure if you’re a buffalo wing fan, you’ll probably agree.

Cauliflower Buffalo Bites
 
Author: The Lean Clean Eating Machine
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
A vegan approved, healthy take on hot wings.
Ingredients
  • 1 head cauliflower; chopped into bite size piece
  • ½ cup brown rice flour
  • ½ cup water
  • Pinch of kosher salt
  • Pinch of granulated garlic powder
  • Non-stick spray
  • ***Sauce***
  • 1 tsp. Earth Balance butter substitute; melted
  • 1/2 cup Frank’s Red Hot sauce
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 450F.
  2. In a small bowl, combine brown rice flour, water, garlic powder and salt. Mix thoroughly with a whisk.
  3. Dip cauliflower pieces in the batter until coated evenly, then place on a lightly greased, non-stick baking sheet.
  4. Bake for about 10 minutes or until the batter hardens, then flip with a spatula and bake for another 5 minutes.
  5. Whisk together Frank’s Red Hot sauce and Earth Balance butter substitute in a small bowl.
  6. When the cauliflower is finished, take a plastic pastry brush and evenly brush each piece with the hot sauce mixture.
  7. Bake coated cauliflower for an additional 8-10 minutes, or until cauliflower is crispy, and sauce looks absorbed.
  8. Remove from oven.
  9. Let cauliflower bites set out for at least 20 minutes before serving.
  10. Enjoy!
 

 

 

107 comments on Cauliflower Buffalo Bites

  1. Kelly @ hidden fruits and veggies
    February 3, 2014 at 10:53 am (10 years ago)

    These sound AMAZING! I gave up meat long before I was old enough to try any type of hot wing, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love hot sauce now!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      February 3, 2014 at 10:56 am (10 years ago)

      Thanks Kelly! I feel you on the hot sauce love! Frank’s Red Hot is my go to for pretty much everything, and it tastes AWESOME on these!

      Reply
  2. Praveen
    February 4, 2014 at 5:19 pm (10 years ago)

    Wow, they look so good! We have an Indian version of this, but, we deep fry them. I love the way you just baked them.

    Being a veggie I can see me making this every week 😉

    Reply
    • Danielle
      February 4, 2014 at 5:34 pm (10 years ago)

      An Indian version of this sounds amazing, Praveen! You’ve inspired me to experiment on this :)

      Reply
        • Danielle
          February 5, 2014 at 10:48 am (10 years ago)

          Thanks for the compliment, Praveen :) It’s too funny that you just posted this! You had me intrigued yesterday with the Indian version you mentioned, so I started doing a little research and came across Gobi manchurian, and I actually started experimenting with it. Instead of cauliflower, I had a bunch of broccoli I needed to use, so I tried it with that and it really turned out great. I also mixed up the batter a little by using brown rice flour, water, potato starch and red pepper flakes. I will probably be posting the recipe on this once I feel I have perfected it 😉

          Reply
          • Praveen Samudrala
            February 5, 2014 at 5:46 pm (10 years ago)

            Oh ya, you can use any veggie. There is also a veggie manchurian, basically a mix of all veggies.

            Looking forward to your recipe. One lesson I have learned is the right amount of water in the batter is *most important* 😉

  3. Andrea Cole
    February 12, 2014 at 12:00 pm (10 years ago)

    These look delicious! Were they superbowl inspired? They would be good with some kind of vegan type ranch dip or something really garlicky…mmmm. I am going to have to try these.

    Reply
    • Danielle
      February 12, 2014 at 12:03 pm (10 years ago)

      Hi Andrea! Yes, they were Super Bowl inspired :) I used my current favorite ‘ranch’ dressing to dip them in which is Organicville brand dairy and gluten free ranch. It is really good and I would definitely recommend giving it a try! Something garlicky would be delicious also….yum.

      Reply
  4. Jody
    March 20, 2014 at 5:50 pm (10 years ago)

    Have you tried using the butter and hot sauce (appropriate amount) as the liquid for the batter?

    Reply
    • Danielle
      March 20, 2014 at 5:55 pm (10 years ago)

      Hi Jody, I personally have not tried that out, but I think you could definitely try it. If you do, let me know how it works out. You have me interested!

      Reply
  5. Rae
    March 21, 2014 at 10:37 am (10 years ago)

    Tried making these last night, and they were beyond good. I couldn’t find brown rice flour, so I used white (which I’ve never used before!), and they turned out great. I did cook mine a lot longer though, to get them crispier. Thanks so much for the recipe, I’m searching your blog now for more!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      March 21, 2014 at 4:14 pm (10 years ago)

      So glad to hear it worked out for you, Rae!

      Reply
    • julie
      January 27, 2015 at 10:57 am (9 years ago)

      I found the brown rice flour @ meijers Bob’s Red Mill makes it

      Reply
  6. Jennie
    March 23, 2014 at 1:23 pm (10 years ago)

    Made these today and they are fabulous! I love wings and I love finding healthy alternatives. Just a warning to anyone making these…Don’t forget to grease the pan. I did forget and the cleanup was a pain. Plus, I think they would have been even better had I remembered.

    Reply
  7. aifirefly
    March 27, 2014 at 11:34 am (10 years ago)

    Why rice flour? I’ve never tried to batter veggies before. I’m quite curious and excited to try this!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      March 27, 2014 at 12:46 pm (10 years ago)

      I used short grain brown rice flour because it is gluten free and slightly stickier in consistency compared to other gluten free flours. It seems to work best for coating things that are going to be baked or fried.

      Reply
  8. song
    April 6, 2014 at 8:31 pm (10 years ago)

    I am dying to make these. I am going to use a bbq sauce that is not hot! I am not a fan of spicy foos. I know I will like them.
    Also I am going to use your batter to dip and bake slices of eggplant. I have been trying to work out a crispy non fried version for eggplant. Thanks!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      April 7, 2014 at 6:46 am (10 years ago)

      You’ll have to let me know how the batter turns out on eggplant! The batter for these bites may be a little thick for eggplant since eggplant isn’t as sturdy of a veggie as cauliflower, but if it doesn’t work, I would suggest maybe trying my gluten free tempura batter as it is a little less dense. You can find it here http://theleancleaneatingmachine.com/2014/03/14/kung-pao-cauliflower/

      Reply
  9. Kaithlyn
    April 17, 2014 at 10:01 pm (10 years ago)

    Would these still be good if I made them and then reheated them?

    Reply
    • Danielle
      April 20, 2014 at 10:16 am (10 years ago)

      Hi Kaithlyn! So sorry to not answer this sooner! Your comment somehow got marked as spam :/ I personally haven’t tried reheating them, so I would not be able to tell you for certain. I think if you were going to reheat them, you would need to do so in the oven. Let me know how it works if you try it!

      Reply
  10. Candice
    April 21, 2014 at 3:38 pm (10 years ago)

    Hey, were these supposed to brown in the oven? Mine looked exactly like they did when they went in. Maybe I did something wrong? They’re not “done” yet, so don’t know how they’ll turn out.

    *update*
    I decided to wait until they were done to post my results. I forgot to add the water to the flower mixture so they weren’t wet at all! I took them out and sprayed them thoroughly with water after being in the oven for 10 minutes and put them back in for 15. I think the added time made them too tender, so next time I’ll be sure to actually follow the directions!

    Other than my flub- a good meal! My meat-eating roommate tried them and gave them her approval!
    I’ll be making these again!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      April 22, 2014 at 5:54 am (10 years ago)

      Hi Candice! Sorry for the flub! The water is definitely needed in the mixture to make it into a batter that sticks, so I am sure that was confusing when they never looked ‘done’ :) I would definitely give these a try again with the water in the flour! I can almost guarantee they will taste 100% better :)

      Reply
  11. tori
    May 29, 2014 at 9:02 am (10 years ago)

    buffalo anything is my weakness and now that I found this…I am making it TONIGHT!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      May 31, 2014 at 8:57 am (10 years ago)

      I am with you on the buffalo weakness, Tori! I am pretty much addicted to Frank’s Red Hot sauce haha :)

      Reply
  12. Dyan
    June 5, 2014 at 8:06 pm (10 years ago)

    do you have any idea the nutrician on these?

    Reply
    • Danielle
      June 7, 2014 at 12:06 pm (10 years ago)

      Hi Dyan! If you split it between two people, it comes in at just under 200 calories per serving :)

      Reply
      • Phyllis Towns
        January 21, 2015 at 3:18 pm (9 years ago)

        Danielle, are you saying that this recipe is for 2 servings?

        Reply
        • Danielle
          January 24, 2015 at 1:35 pm (9 years ago)

          Well, it depends on how hungry you are :) It always ends up being a 1 serving recipe when it comes to myself.

          Reply
  13. Derek
    June 8, 2014 at 10:40 pm (10 years ago)

    This is, hands down, the best cauliflower recipe I’ve ever tried.

    Reply
    • Danielle
      June 9, 2014 at 10:01 am (10 years ago)

      So glad to hear, Derek!

      Reply
  14. Brenda
    July 15, 2014 at 1:19 pm (10 years ago)

    Oh my goodness I LOVE these. I shared your link to this in my blog. Even my Omni guy loves them…..and that is saying a lot because he is so picky and doesn’t like hardly any veggies.

    Reply
    • Danielle
      July 21, 2014 at 5:33 pm (10 years ago)

      That’s awesome, Brenda! Thanks for sharing!!

      Reply
  15. L.A. Burdette
    July 17, 2014 at 9:08 am (10 years ago)

    I’m making these. They look so delish!!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      July 21, 2014 at 5:30 pm (10 years ago)

      Hope you enjoyed them!

      Reply
  16. Emily
    July 29, 2014 at 12:22 pm (10 years ago)

    Would you suggest eating these right away, or would they last for a couple of days? If so, how would you suggest storing them?

    Reply
    • Danielle
      August 6, 2014 at 4:10 pm (10 years ago)

      Hi Emily, so sorry for the late response! I would definitely would suggest eating these right away as they wouldn’t reheat the same.

      Reply
  17. Jessie
    August 7, 2014 at 2:36 pm (10 years ago)

    I just made these. They are AMAZING! It was near impossible to wait for them to cool. Thanks for sharing the recipe!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      August 7, 2014 at 3:30 pm (10 years ago)

      No problem, Jessie! Glad to hear that you enjoyed them!

      Reply
  18. Michelle L.
    August 11, 2014 at 3:09 pm (10 years ago)

    Thank you for this recipe! I just made a batch and they were delicious! I had to substitute oat flour for the brown rice flour since that was all I had in the house, but it still came out great! I plan to make buffalo cauliflower again real soon.

    Reply
    • Danielle
      August 12, 2014 at 11:56 am (10 years ago)

      So glad to hear it turned out so well for you, Michelle! Thanks for sharing the tip on oat flour also :)

      Reply
  19. Nicole
    August 17, 2014 at 6:11 pm (10 years ago)

    Made these today – they were incredible!! I love cauliflower – raw, roasted, fried etc…I also love buffalo wings, but since finding out I’m sensitive to wheat, I haven’t had them in almost 2 years. These were absolutely delicious and didn’t NOT taste like cauliflower – they tasted like buffalo wings minus the bones.

    Reply
    • Danielle
      August 18, 2014 at 8:50 am (10 years ago)

      Thanks Nicole! So happy to hear that you liked them :)

      Reply
  20. Brittany
    August 21, 2014 at 1:06 pm (10 years ago)

    I made this about 13 times now, no joke. I have made it with or without the breading. I have made it with buffalo sauce, Asian sauces, bbq, and many others. I have cooked it the entire time with the sauce, and other times added it at the end. Super easy, and super tasty!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      August 22, 2014 at 12:19 pm (10 years ago)

      That’s so great to hear, Brittany! An Asian style sauce sounds delicious. I’m going to have to try one out :)

      Reply
  21. Eva
    August 26, 2014 at 7:23 pm (10 years ago)

    I didn’t have brown rice flour so I used a combo of mostly white rice flour and a bit of buckwheat flour. I left the cleaned/cut cauliflower pieces in the fridge in an open bowl to drain overnight, in the hopes that they would need less baking time, and I guess it saved about 5-10 min overall in the baking time. These came out great! You’re absolutely RIGHT about letting them set out! I ate a handful when they were right out of the oven (I couldn’t resist) and the rest after letting them set for 10min, and the batter on the set ones is more like battered buffalo wings. Thanks SO much – this was just what I was craving, and the batter was just enough – not too heavy, but more than some other “just spice” recipes for this dish that I’ve seen on the web. Also, i found the smaller pieces (rather than the large tree-like pieces) were more tender inside, which I liked, so next time I’ll cut them more uniform sized.

    Reply
    • Danielle
      August 27, 2014 at 7:40 am (10 years ago)

      Thank you so much for listing your ingredient swaps and cooking tips, Eva! I know I appreciate it when other people share their experience with making the recipe, and I am sure other readers do as well. Thanks again! :)

      Reply
  22. Michael
    August 29, 2014 at 2:29 am (10 years ago)

    I have tried several versions of this recipe…Cannot wait to try it again…..

    Reply
  23. Cynthia
    September 2, 2014 at 6:47 am (10 years ago)

    I have garbanzo flour and gluten free all propose flour. Can I use one of these, or would you recommend sticking with the rice flour?
    Sorry if you’ve answered this before. I’m on my phone and can barely read the comments. Thanks :)

    Reply
    • Danielle
      September 2, 2014 at 12:42 pm (10 years ago)

      Hi Cynthia! I haven’t tried either one with this recipe, but the reason I use the short grain brown rice flour is because it is slightly more sticky than other flours, and the stickiness helps it bind better. If you give either one a try, please let me know how it turns out!

      Reply
  24. Anne
    September 23, 2014 at 9:26 am (10 years ago)

    Hi Danielle,
    May I use real butter, we skip carmelizing/roasting the cauliflower in olive oil because of the batter right? Also, may I find that flour at Whole Foods do you think? Will make for a party this weekend. Thanks!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      September 24, 2014 at 8:23 am (10 years ago)

      Hi Anne! There is no need to caramelize/roast the cauliflower first; the wet batter kind of steams it while it bakes. I personally haven’t tried roasting the cauliflower before battering it, so I can’t say for sure how it would turn out, but if you wanted to caramelize the cauliflower first, I don’t see why you couldn’t use butter instead of olive oil. Also, you should be able to find the flour at Whole Foods. If they don’t have short grain brown rice flour, plain white rice flour will work. Let me know how it works out!

      Reply
      • Anne
        October 6, 2014 at 8:36 am (9 years ago)

        Hi Danielle,
        The flavor profile turned out to be amazing—literally might be able to avoid regular wings from now on as these tasted so fantastic (and I found the brown rice flour, which I really liked). My husband asked how soon we could make it again. My issue was with texture. Somehow, most of mine turned out mushy (so I served them with toothpicks) and only a few had a slight crisp to them. I know oven time and temp can vary so I’m trying to figure out if I need additional time in part 1 of roasting (with the flour) or part 2 of roasting (with the sauce basted). Any thoughts on how to make sure I get them crispier? Thanks again for the recipe and advice! Loved it.

        Reply
        • Danielle
          October 7, 2014 at 9:23 am (9 years ago)

          Hi Anne! I would try additional time in part 1 of roasting to make sure you get the batter nice and crispy. It’s hard to get it crispy during part 2 if it isn’t already there after part 1 of roasting. Hope that helps!

          Reply
  25. Laura E
    September 25, 2014 at 10:24 pm (10 years ago)

    I made this for my office potluck and it was a total and complete HIT! Everyone was raving about it, even though I’m one of the very few vegans there. It just goes to show that vegan food can be as delicious, if not more so, than food that comes from animals. Thank you for sharing this great recipe!!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      September 26, 2014 at 1:24 pm (10 years ago)

      That’s so awesome to hear, Laura! Thanks for sharing!

      Reply
  26. Leah
    September 29, 2014 at 2:52 pm (10 years ago)

    How do you think Coconut flour or almond flour would fare? I cannot have rice.

    Reply
    • Danielle
      September 29, 2014 at 3:26 pm (10 years ago)

      Hi Leah! I can’t say with certainty how either flour would work since I haven’t personally tried it, but I would try almond flour first and see how that works. Sorry I can’t be of more help!

      Reply
    • Meri
      February 1, 2015 at 1:26 pm (9 years ago)

      I’m trying this with almond flour tonight. I bet it will still turn out fantastic. I’ll post an update post-Super Bowl. :)

      Reply
  27. Cindy
    November 26, 2014 at 8:10 am (9 years ago)

    Absolutely loved these!

    Reply
  28. Dee
    November 29, 2014 at 11:26 am (9 years ago)

    It’s been 10 months since I have eaten meat. I missed my chicken wings the most………..but thanks to you I have these & love ’em!

    Reply
  29. Arielle
    December 6, 2014 at 3:14 pm (9 years ago)

    Wondering what I did wrong.. Mine weren’t crispy, they felt waxy. I even cooked them for a longer amount of time. Flavors great, but I want to know how I could make them crispy

    Reply
    • Danielle
      December 8, 2014 at 10:22 am (9 years ago)

      Hi Arielle! Sorry to hear that yours did not turn out crispy. What type of brown rice flour did you use? I use short grain brown rice flour that I process myself as I think it has a better texture. You could also use short grain white rice flour. The only other thing I could suggest is to use a little more non-stick cooking spray over the top of the cauliflower before you flip it over. Hope this helps!

      Reply
  30. Haley
    January 8, 2015 at 3:46 pm (9 years ago)

    Have you tried using normal whole wheat flour?

    Reply
    • Danielle
      January 9, 2015 at 2:01 pm (9 years ago)

      Hi Haley,
      I have celiac so whole wheat flour isn’t something I have around. If you do try it with this recipe, let me know how it turns out!

      Reply
      • Haley
        January 24, 2015 at 7:22 pm (9 years ago)

        So I gave it a shot with normal flour, (took me a while to do this recipe cause I haven’t seen very good looking cauliflower…) They are just sitting right now… Husband is definitely intrigued. :) So We will see how this goes. 😀

        Reply
        • Danielle
          January 26, 2015 at 10:44 am (9 years ago)

          I am curious to find out if regular flour worked, so let me know!

          Reply
  31. Sarah
    January 8, 2015 at 4:23 pm (9 years ago)

    Didn’t have rice flour so I’m using oat flour I just pulverized from Quaker oats in ninja. So excited to try!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      January 9, 2015 at 2:04 pm (9 years ago)

      Hi Sarah! Let me know how the oat flour turns out. I am curious to find out!

      Reply
  32. Nichole
    January 11, 2015 at 6:00 pm (9 years ago)

    Just made this tonight and was delicious! Thank you for sharing this recipe. Will definitely make again

    Reply
    • Danielle
      January 12, 2015 at 3:07 pm (9 years ago)

      Glad to hear you enjoyed it, Nichole!

      Reply
  33. Stefanie
    January 13, 2015 at 6:26 am (9 years ago)

    These sound amazing! I am somexcited tommake them tonight but I have a few questions first….to make your own brown rice flour, do you just blend in a Vitamix or Blendtec? Secondly, where can I find Franks Hot Sauce?

    Reply
    • Danielle
      January 15, 2015 at 1:02 pm (9 years ago)

      Hi Stefanie! I do use my Vitamix to make the rice flour, so you could totally do this with a Blendtec. Frank’s Red Hot Sauce you can find in just about any supermarket.

      Reply
  34. Dianne
    January 14, 2015 at 1:54 pm (9 years ago)

    I can’t wait to try this! I have been a vegetarian for most of my life, so I’ve never been able to try ‘Hot Wings’. I love Cauliflower, though…and am buying the ingredients to try this tonight. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      January 15, 2015 at 1:03 pm (9 years ago)

      Hope you enjoy them, Dianne!

      Reply
      • Dianne
        January 17, 2015 at 12:38 pm (9 years ago)

        Tried them and the whole family LOVED them. I’m making them AGAIN today in a bigger batch. A new all-time favorite. Thank you!

        Reply
        • Danielle
          January 20, 2015 at 12:17 pm (9 years ago)

          Glad you enjoyed these, Dianne! They are one of my favorites too :)

          Reply
  35. Jennifer
    January 16, 2015 at 9:03 pm (9 years ago)

    Just made these – with your recommendation of using water in place of almond milk. They turned out PERFECT. Love the tip to let them sit out for 20 minutes as well.
    thank you! This will be a repeat for sure.

    Reply
    • Danielle
      January 20, 2015 at 12:18 pm (9 years ago)

      Glad to hear you enjoyed them, Jennifer! And yes, letting them sit out makes them so much better in my opinion!! It gives them a little time for the flavors to absorb.

      Reply
  36. Petra Buhr
    January 20, 2015 at 8:42 am (9 years ago)

    The recipe looks lovely.
    Do you know if they will keep their crisp even if brought to lunch in an airtight container?
    Petra

    Reply
    • Danielle
      January 20, 2015 at 12:15 pm (9 years ago)

      Hi Petra! You know, I honestly couldn’t tell you. In my house they have never made it to the storage stage as we tend to eat them all in one sitting 😉 If you try it, let me know how it turns out! If you reheated them in the oven they might, but I can say with certainty that reheating in the microwave won’t maintain the crispy exterior.

      Reply
  37. Phyllis Towns
    January 20, 2015 at 2:30 pm (9 years ago)

    These are off the charts delicious! I made 2 batches today – I had no Franks, so I used Tabasco Jalopena hot sauce for one batch & since I live in the Chesapeake Bay area, Old Bay for the other batch. The Old Bay bites were fabulous! You have got to try them! My new favorite way to eat cauliflower

    Reply
    • Danielle
      January 20, 2015 at 3:36 pm (9 years ago)

      Glad you liked them, Phyllis, and thank you for the awesome suggestions! I’ll have to give those both a try.

      Reply
  38. hilary
    January 23, 2015 at 7:24 am (9 years ago)

    Hi! I plan on making these on Super Bowl Sunday! Question: I have a bag of whole wheat flour already at my house. Would this work instead of brown rice flour? Or of course I have white flour here too. Which would you suggest? Either? Or neither? Thank you so much!!! Looking forward to making these!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      January 24, 2015 at 1:31 pm (9 years ago)

      Hi Hilary! I personally haven’t tried it with wheat or white flour as I have celiac, so I can’t say for sure how it would turn out. The best advice I can offer is to maybe do a test run first. I wish I could be of more help!

      Reply
  39. Martha
    February 2, 2015 at 2:41 pm (9 years ago)

    I found this recipe as a “Plan B” because the original one I wanted to use called for garbanzo bean flour which wasn’t available at my local store. Brow rice flour, however, was available and it was the last bag! It seemed destined to be, right?!

    I was told 10-20 people would be at the party I was attending and bought two cauliflower heads and doubled the recipe. It’s was extraordinarily easy but took a bit longer than expected. It took me a while to chop the cauliflowers into bite size pieces and get the leaves off and whatnot. Then the battering of the pieces took longer too because I wanted to make sure I got off any excess batter. They took longer to crisp up and I think next time I’ll put them under the broiler because each time I opened the oven there was steam and that wasn’t helping lol. For the sauce, I used Franks red hot mixed with unsalted real butter instead of earth balance and it was great!

    It was a big hit at the party (paired with celery sticks and chunky real blue cheese dip, of course!) but I wish they’d gotten a little crisper.

    Reply
  40. Diane
    February 2, 2015 at 4:18 pm (9 years ago)

    FRANK’S® REDHOT® BUFFALO WINGS SAUCE lists “natural buttery flavor” in the ingredients. I emailed the company to ask if that was VEGAN and below is their rather disturbing response. Really? I need a Dr’s note to be sure their product is dairy free?? They can’t tell me? Huge red flag.

    Thank you for contacting RB regarding ingredient information for Frank’s® RedHot® Cayenne Pepper Sauce.

    Most of the ingredients for this product are listed on the package label and those that are not are proprietary. Since manufacturers want to offer consumers the tastiest products possible ingredients may change from time to time. Therefore, we would suggest that you routinely review ingredient listings on all food items that you purchase.

    Should additional information be needed, due to a medical condition, it will be necessary to have your physician submit a letter on his letterhead requesting the specific ingredient information making sure to include the exact name of the product and the UPC code for which the information is needed.

    We appreciate your interest in our products.

    Sincerely,
    Roger Klein
    Consumer Relations

    Reply
    • Danielle
      February 2, 2015 at 4:25 pm (9 years ago)

      Wow, that’s ridiculous! I am disheartened to hear how submissive they were :( Can anyone offer up an alternative hot wing sauce?

      Reply
      • Elizabeth
        December 11, 2016 at 10:02 pm (7 years ago)

        My guess is that they might alternate between dairy- or plant-based oils depending on which is cheaper at a given time. Not unusual, but it does make it impossible to commit to their brand if non-dairy is important.

        Reply
  41. hungryvegean
    February 3, 2015 at 8:07 am (9 years ago)

    Just tried this recipe… My mouth is stilll watering… I was a big hot wings fan in my meat days.. Really hit the spot..will make this more often

    Reply
    • Danielle
      February 6, 2015 at 1:42 pm (9 years ago)

      So glad to hear you enjoyed it!

      Reply
  42. Clayton
    March 12, 2015 at 7:53 am (9 years ago)

    My wife and I make these all the time. So good! Maybe its just our oven, but we usually have to cook them a bit longer (15 minutes rather than 10) to get them crispy. We broil at the end too. Either way, an excellent snack!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      March 13, 2015 at 11:59 am (9 years ago)

      Thanks for the tip, Clayton, and glad to hear that you and your wife enjoy the recipe!

      Reply
  43. Yvonne Rippel
    April 12, 2015 at 4:11 pm (9 years ago)

    Can you use just regular flour and mix with the buffalo sauce? and bake it?

    Reply
    • Danielle
      April 16, 2015 at 1:00 pm (9 years ago)

      Hi Yvonne,
      I have not tried it with regular flour as I have celiac, so I can’t say for sure. If you try it and it works out, I would love to hear though as other readers have asked.

      Reply
  44. Jett
    May 26, 2015 at 2:49 pm (9 years ago)

    Holy Moly! These are the yummiest things in the whole entire world and such a great way to eat cauliflower! Made them twice in two days and will be experimenting with other sauces – thanks!

    Reply
    • Danielle
      May 27, 2015 at 4:05 pm (9 years ago)

      So glad you enjoyed them, Jett!

      Reply
  45. Kathleen
    June 20, 2015 at 10:57 pm (9 years ago)

    OH MY! I made a variation of these tonight for dinner, along with a homemade bleu cheese dressing and they were a hit!

    I know you said you do not know how other types of flour would fare with this. I used coconut flour. The only problem I ran into was that, with the flour/water ratio on the original recipe, my “batter” was very clumpy. I was afraid that it wouldn’t stick to the cauliflower, so I added more water. Mistake on my part, because I could not get the batter to firm up! I cooked them for a lot longer than your 10/5 minutes and they still did not firm. It was getting late, so I finally gave up and coated them with the sauce. They were a little softer than I would have liked, but the taste was superb!! I will definitely be playing with this some more to find the perfect balance for stickiness and firmness.

    Also, I had trouble finding Frank’s Hot Sauce and ended up using Texas Pete Buffalo Sauce, which was 5 peppers on the hot scale! We loved it. I will keep looking for the Frank’s, though, as I’d like to try it.

    Thank you again for this fabulous recipe! I’m off to peruse your other recipes and find the gems!

    Reply
  46. Jessica
    October 24, 2015 at 2:09 pm (8 years ago)

    This was so good! I subbed for whole wheat flower, and it was perfectly delicious! Thank you!!

    Reply
  47. Floyd Jones
    February 6, 2016 at 10:45 am (8 years ago)

    Damn, Gina! (Danielle :) These are fantastic. Similar to what I’ve done before, but the Frank’s/Earth Balance brush for the last few minutes to get that sizzly crispy is the hot ticket. I love super hot, but Frank’s is just the tastiest hot sauce ever. Tabasco. Blech. Just an update on a variation I did that worked great: IPA (or any lighter beer) instead of water, and cayenne and tumeric in the flour mix. GREAT call on letting ’em sit for 20 minutes. Thanks for this! Go Broncos!

    Reply
  48. Jeff
    March 31, 2016 at 10:21 pm (8 years ago)

    A common trick to get batter on fried items crispier is to use vodka for the liquid (instead of milk / water/ buttermilk).

    Alcohol boils out faster and leaves it crispier. Vodka doesn’t impart a flavor afterwards… Curious if that would even step these up

    Reply
  49. BENNIE
    May 29, 2016 at 6:53 am (8 years ago)

    I love buffalo chicken! It’s great to have a healthy alternative. Thanks for linking to the In and Out of the Kitchen Link Party. Hope to see you next week.

    Reply
  50. Elizabeth
    December 11, 2016 at 9:56 pm (7 years ago)

    I had some of these at a restaurant and came to the Internet to find a recipe. I chose yours because the picture looked right. :) The only change I made was using regular margarine instead of butter substitute for the sauce. Everyone loved the flavor. My head of cauliflower made three pans of “wings,” so I ended up needing 3x the batter and the sauce (one entire 12 oz. bottle). The ones I made on a metal pan turned out better than the ones on a baking stone. Taking someone’s suggestion from the comments, I baked them way longer than the final 8-10 minutes, more like a final 20 minutes. “Almost burnt” turns out to be perfect, if you want it crispy.

    Reply
  51. Katie
    January 2, 2017 at 2:36 pm (7 years ago)

    Wow these are super good!! I have never liked cauliflower but I LOVED this! The batter is perfectly thick and they are so tender on the inside while being crisp and tasty on the outside. Thanks!!

    Reply
  52. Rochelle
    February 11, 2018 at 2:27 pm (6 years ago)

    These were great! I used whole wheat flour with a bit more water and cooked on parchment paper. I didn’t flip them and they still came out crispy. I tossed with more buffalo/sweet chili sauce after they left the oven. Thanks!

    Reply
  53. Becky
    April 6, 2018 at 5:24 pm (6 years ago)

    This cauliflower buffalo wing recipe is by far the best wing recipe ever. I have it at least once or twice a month. And this is the time, day, hour, and month to do it all over again. Absolutely, delicious.

    Reply
    • Danielle
      June 5, 2018 at 8:43 pm (6 years ago)

      So glad to hear that you enjoy it, Becky!

      Reply

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