Description
These spicy bbq cauliflower wings combine two popular wing seasonings: barbecue sauce and Frank’s hot sauce! They’re vegan and gluten-free, and totally addictive. Perfect game day fare.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 medium-large head of cauliflower, chopped into florets
CHICKPEA FLOUR BATTER
- 1 cup chickpea flour
- 1 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk
- Pinch each fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
SPICY BARBECUE SAUCE
- 1/2 cup barbecue sauce
- 1/4 cup Frank’s original red hot sauce
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot starch or corn starch
Sauces for serving (choose one)
GREEN GODDESS AVOCADO HEMP RANCH
- 1 medium ripe avocado
- 1/2 cup hemp hearts (also called hulled hemp seeds)
- 1 rib of celery, chopped
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice or lime juice
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 medium garlic clove
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro or parsley
AVOCADO CAESAR DRESSING
- 1 ripe avocado, pitted
- 1/4 cup hulled hemp seeds (also called hemp hearts)
- 1 tablespoon capers
- 1 teaspoon vegan Worcestershire sauce (I like Wizard’s brand)
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 2 medium cloves of garlic
- 2 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- Zest of one organic lemon
- 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about 1 whole lemon)
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1/3 cup water, plus more as needed to thin
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F and line one large or two small baking sheets with parchment paper. The parchment paper is very important here, as it prevents the battered cauliflower from sticking to the pan.
- Make the batter: Whisk together the chickpea flour, non-dairy milk, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl.
- Dunk a cauliflower floret into the batter and gently shake off excess before immediately transferring to the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining cauliflower. Ensure that there is some space in between each floret to allow for proper crisping while they bake.
- Transfer the battered cauliflower into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. It’s ready when it slides off of the parchment paper easily without sticking. Leave the oven on.
- While the cauliflower is in the oven, make the sauce: Whisk together the barbecue sauce, hot sauce, and arrowroot in a bowl.
- Transfer the baked battered cauliflower florets into a medium bowl, leaving the parchment paper on the pans, since you’ll be using it again for the next step.
- Pour the spicy barbecue sauce over top of the cauliflower and toss to coat. Transfer it back onto the baking sheet(s), leaving space between each floret again to make sure that they get crispy.
- Bake for 5-7 minutes more, until much of the sauce has been absorbed. Let cool slightly before transferring to a serving platter.
- Serve with desired accompaniments. For both sauces, simply add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth and creamy.
Notes
- A lot of cauliflower wings recipes call for panko bread crumbs to achieve the crispy exterior that’s similar to what you would find in a deep-fried version at a restaurant. I opted to go without the panko since I wanted to keep the recipe gluten-free. I am, however, going to experiment with a coating similar to my nut parmesan-crusted butternut squash in the future, so stay tuned for that!
- Want to make this into more of a meal? Put a whole bunch of cauliflower wings on top of a pita or a tortilla, top with green goddess ranch, pickles, shredded carrots, and lettuce, fold or wrap it up, and lunch or dinner is served!! If you want to really take it over the top, serve some sweet potato oven fries or kale Caesar salad on the side.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 32 minutes
- Category: Appetizer, Side Dish
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: spicy barbecue buffalo cauliflower wings