Buffalo Cauliflower has the flavor of classic buffalo chicken wings, only with a plant-based twist! Serve it with blue cheese dressing or vegan ranch dressing for a satisfying appetizer.
Why You’ll Love It
It’s easy to make. Just stir together a quick batter, toss the raw cauliflower until it’s coated, and roast it to crispy perfection. You’ll toss it in a quick buffalo sauce and pop it back in the oven just before serving!
It’s allergy-friendly. This recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, and egg-free. I like to add a drizzle of honey to the buffalo sauce to help balance the spice, but you can use maple syrup instead, to keep this recipe vegan-friendly.
It’s delicious. If you love regular buffalo chicken wings, you’ll love these buffalo cauliflower bites just as much! They are flavorful, and pack extra nutrients in each bite.
It’s a crowd pleaser. This game day snack will be a hit at your next party! It is a great appetizer that is easy to serve to your guests. Serve it with carrots and celery sticks for the full effect.
Ingredients You’ll Need
What’s in this buffalo cauliflower recipe?
- Head of cauliflower
- Flour
- Garlic Powder
- Paprika
- Salt
- Hot Sauce
To keep this recipe gluten-free, use buckwheat, chickpea, or a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend for the best results. You can also use all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour, if you don’t need this recipe to be gluten-free.
You can use any hot sauce that you love, but this recipe was tested with Frank’s hot sauce, as it seems to be consistently available at most grocery stores.
How to Make Cauliflower Buffalo Wings
1. Prepare the batter.
Preheat the oven to 450°F and line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, combine the flour, garlic powder, paprika, salt, and water. Mix well, until the batter is smooth.
2. Coat the cauliflower.
Cut the cauliflower into small florets (about 1 1/2 inch pieces) and add it to the bowl of batter. Stir well, to coat the cauliflower evenly.
It will look a little gooey and messy, like you just tossed the cauliflower in pancake batter.
3. Bake.
Transfer the coated cauliflower florets to the prepared baking sheet, and bake at 450ºF for 20 minutes. The cauliflower should feel dry and slightly crispy to the touch.
4. Toss in the hot sauce.
In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, hot sauce, and honey (or use maple syrup for a vegan option.) The added sweetener helps to balance out the spicy sauce, so it won’t burn your mouth. But beware, this addition also makes it hard to stop eating these!
Stir the buffalo wing sauce well, then toss the baked cauliflower in the bowl, coating the pieces evenly.
Return the coated cauliflower back to the lined baking sheet, and bake for 15 to 20 more minutes, until the cauliflower looks more dry and golden around the edges.
Serve the cauliflower buffalo wings with your favorite dipping sauce, like vegan ranch dressing or healthy blue cheese dressing.
Common Questions & Substitutions
How can I make the cauliflower crispy?
The key to making good buffalo cauliflower is to NOT crowd the baking sheet. Be sure to use two pans when baking this amount of cauliflower, so the veggies won’t steam each other by baking too close together.
Can I use a different type of flour to coat the cauliflower?
This recipe should work well with all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, buckwheat flour, or chickpea flour. I don’t recommend using almond flour, coconut flour, or Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 gluten-free blend, as it doesn’t bake as well on the cauliflower.
Can I use an air fryer to make these?
Yes! You can air fry the battered cauliflower at 360ºF for 10 minutes. Then toss with the hot sauce, return it to the air fryer basket, and cook for another 10 minutes. The air fryer does a better job of circulating the hot air compared to a standard oven, so the air fryer buffalo cauliflower should be done faster.
Do I have to use olive oil?
You can use melted butter for the hot sauce mixture, if you prefer. The added fat helps the sauce “stick” to the battered cauliflower better than just using the hot sauce on its own.
Buffalo Cauliflower
Ingredients
Cauliflower Wings
- ¾ cup buckwheat flour (see notes)
- ¾ cup water
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 ½ pounds cauliflower , cut into florets
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (or melted butter)
- 1/4 cup Hot Sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey (or maple syrup; optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F and line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. (Use two half sheet pans, if possible.)
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, water, garlic powder, paprika, and salt. Stir until smooth and well combined.
- Add the cauliflower florets to the bowl, and stir well. It will look like you are stirring the cauliflower in pancake batter, but keep stirring until the cauliflower is evenly coated.
- Arrange the cauliflower florets about an inch apart from each other, in a single layer. Use two pans, so the cauliflower won't crowd the pan. (Otherwise, you'll end up with softer, soggy cauliflower.) Place the two pans in the oven and bake at 450ºF for 20 minutes.
- Rinse & dry the large mixing bowl, then use it to stir together the hot sauce, olive oil, and honey (if using). When the cauliflower is done baking, transfer it to the large mixing bowl and stir well, until it's coated in the hot sauce mixture. Return the cauliflower to the lined baking sheets, and bake again until the cauliflower looks relatively dry, about 15 to 20 minutes. Watch closely at the end of the cook time, as the edges may start to burn after 15 minutes.
- Serve the baked cauliflower pieces warm, with your favorite dipping sauce, like blue cheese dressing or vegan ranch. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
Notes
- Nutrition information is for a quarter of the batch, assuming you use buckwheat flour. This information is automatically calculated, and is just an estimate, not a guarantee.
- For a vegan recipe, use maple syrup instead of honey for the hot sauce mixture. It will help balance out the spicy flavor!
- Buckwheat flour keeps this recipe gluten-free, but you can also use chickpea flour, or a gluten-free 1:1 flour blend, like Bob’s Red Mill brand. Do not use almond flour or coconut flour. If you don’t need a gluten-free recipe, all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour will also work!
- This recipe is adapted from Simple Green Meals, by Jen Hansard
Nutrition
If you try these Buffalo Cauliflower Wings, please leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how you like them.
I love this dish at Crossroads, and am going to buy cauliflower tomorrow! One question… Is there a good way to reheat them? I’m single, and although I’m fairly sure I could eat them all by myself in one go, I probably shouldn’t — and I really don’t want to share. As for what recipe I’d like to see in your next blog? I have a real sweet tooth, but I can’t have chocolate — which I miss so very much. I wanted to try carob (it did not translate well into your avocado pudding recipe which I used to eat pretty much every day — which might explain how I developed a chocolate allergy). When ordering carob from Amazon, I accidentally ordered several pounds of it. I’ve also tried substituting it in the brownie recipe from your book, and your black bean brownie recipe, but both times I was forced to add a ton of peppermint oil to mask the carob. So, I’m hoping that you could post a recipe that uses ground carob and is actually delicious. That would be even better than winning Jen’s cookbook that looks pretty darn delicious.
I just started low carb/keto and would love to see some easy bring-to-work-plus-can-hold-up-an-hour-on-the-train-commute lunches! 🙂
I would like a family recipe of yours next!! With a great story
Yum! My recipe request is a warm, make-ahead breakfast option other than oatmeal. Thanks!
I would like to see healthy grab and go food. These cauliflower wings look amazing. Always looking for ways to use cauliflower, one of my favorite vegggies, but not my son’s. Lol.
Yum! Looking forward to trying this. And if her book is as good as yours are, I would love a copy.
I’d love to see a Instant pot vegan red beans and rice recipe (using dried beans). I’ve tried a handful and they are either super unhealthy or flavorless!
Thanks for all your delicious recipes, and for featuring other authors with dairy-free and plant based recipes! I had your vegan mac’n’cheese with roasted broccoli tonight for dinner. So tasty. With winter coming, I’d love some good ideas for hearty and properly combined soups! Especially ones that I can throw in the Crockpot before I go to work in the morning.
I would love to see a fool proof delicious vegan/ oil free salad dressing.
I struggle with finding healthy, low fat, plant based treats. There’s plenty of plant based desserts available, but most are really high in fat. I’m trying to keep my fat intake low for health reasons, but have a crazy sweet tooth and want my treats! So, I’d love to see any recipes in the sweet but healthy and low fat dessert category.
I love these! I’d love to read about a Savory vegan muffin or loaf recipe for kids lunches.
I would love to see a substitute for Spinach Artichoke dip without cheese. I do not know how to make things without dairy. I need help in replacing it. Thanks
I would love to see a Vinaigrette with no oil.
I’d love to see something that’s vegan and paleo 😬
I would like to see a healthy recipe to make an actual wrap, a tortilla, and a taco shell. If you have already published, please tell me where. Just pre-ordered the Insta Pot book. Just pulled mine out I bought about 5 years ago and never opened. You inspired me!
Silly question…how much paprika in the dipping sauce please?
Just a pinch!
I’m so excited and happy I found u!
I have been trying to fix my diet forever but could never find simple recipes for those of us that HAVE to be dairy free. Thank u for ur simplicity and wonderful flare for amazing taste!!!
I’m excited to make this as an appetizer for the next party with my friends!
I made this on Sunday and although it was still delicious, I think I did something wrong. There are a few possibilities: perhaps the “mystery flour” I had in a container was just straight rice flour, or maybe halfing the recipe didn’t quite work? Either way, the flour sank to the bottom and didn’t want to incorporate, and then when I flipped them most of the coating stuck to the pan. I also ended up using an entire batch of the hot sauce coating even thought I had cut the recipe in half. Don’t get me wrong, I thought they were still good, and if done right I’m guessing they’re pretty phenomenal. I’m definitely going to try again.
I would love a strawberry cake with strawberry frosting recipe. My son is turning 4 this month and really wants a strawberry cake for his birthday 🎂 I just bought strawberries today to make your strawberry cupcakes and hoping I can whip it into something resembling a cake.
This was amazing! I prefer plain cauliflower wings, so I did not add the hot sauce. I used a silicone baking mat and did not turn them halfway through. They still looked white, with a few brown edges.. but tasted great! The ranch dipping sauce was also amazing. I started it too late, though. I soaked the cashews in hot water for 45 minutes, and the sauce was still nice and creamy. This was super easy to make, and I will definitely be making it again! Thank you!
I was so excited to make this but I ended up getting so frustrated. The sauce needed way more water to become creamy. Not only that, but the batter needed more water too and I had to make 3 times the amount to coat one cauliflower head.
These were DELICIOUS. So crispy! We had them one night as “buffalo wings” and another night without the sauce, in corn tortillas, and topped with a slaw and red onions. This is by far one of my favorite cauliflower recipes I’ve ever found – thanks 🙂 PRO TIP: buy the pre-cut cauliflower. Less mess!
This recipe did not work out! The batter was not enough for one head of cauliflower. The batter also stuck to the parchment when I tried to turn them over. I noticed a few others had similar issues. No star for this one.
Made these for fathers day and they were a hit! Definitely spicy but so good. I actually used frozen cauliflower and cooked them slightly longer at the beginning (20 minutes, flip, 10 minutes) until they were dry. Then after adding the sauce it took 20 minutes to crisp. They were perfect. Thanks Megan!
These were very good. My husband hates cauliflower. He grudgingly tried a piece. He like it and had 2 helpings.
I followed this recipe to the letter. Very tasty. I will make this again.
So yummy! And easy to make!
Turned out great! Followed the recipe exactly. Really satisfies that “buffalo” flavor craving. I will be making this regularly. Great recipe, thanks!
A delicious recipe! I made it as written but used vegan honey + maple syrup and gluten-free 1:1 flour. Once I completed the recipe, I put the finished bites back in the bowl and mixed around to coat a little more and get any excess sauce. I will be making this again!
This has quickly become a staple in our house. My meat eating buffalo chicken loving husband is obsessed with these and requests them weekly. It is so easy to make and tastes incredible. I usually make them with all purpose flour and that turnes out soooo good. I just tried making them with buckwheat flour. They came out a lot darker due to the color of the flour and they also burned a lot faster. The flavor was more nutty. I’ll stick to all purpose flour in the future