I’ve been on a roll lately with the soups and stews, and actually have a few more of those ready to share. (Along with several desserts!) But for today at least, I’m changing it up with this sticky sesame cauliflower recipe.
We have been making cauliflower wings every week or two since last fall. In fact, I shared a teaser of this same recipe on Instagram a while back. I ended up redoing the pictures because during that passage of time, I got my new macro lens and love the cozier feel that my photographs have now. I’ve made so many different wing flavors that I just now got around to sticky sesame again.
That being said, I’m actually not going to classify this particular recipe as “wings”. The cauliflower and breading become light and tender when mixed with the sticky sesame sauce, making them super delicious but not really viable as finger food unless you want to make a colossal mess. This is great with a side of some steamed vegetables or cauliflower rice. I don’t find that I want or need actual rice with it because there’s already plenty of heartiness from the batter. (If you’re looking for a great, CRISPY, hand-held cauliflower “wings” recipe, check out my Thai peanut cauliflower wings recipe from last year).
I’m a known consumer of gluten, but I specifically prefer to make recipes like this gluten-free. With regular all-purpose wheat flour, you have to be a lot more careful when mixing the batter not to overmix it and allow gluten strands to form, which can make your baked cauliflower tough and dense. With gluten-free flour, that’s much less of a concern, although it’s still good to avoid overmixing. I keep my pantry stocked with my favorite store-bought gluten-free flour blend, which is widely available in stores here and works in a variety of recipes.
Another bonus? This sticky sesame cauliflower recipe is really really easy. I know the batter recipe by heart now – and there’s no added steps of dredging or dipping in breadcrumbs. Just mix together one bowl of batter, dip the florets in it, and you’re done. I often just wing it with the sauce too (sesame or otherwise) until I get something tasty. Of course, I measured the exact quantities for my sauce this time before sharing it with you, but it’s very open for experimentation! As a general rule, add as little liquid as possible to your sauce to get the best textural result with this cauliflower. That’s why you don’t see a cornstarch slurry in my sticky sesame sauce, which many similar non-cauliflower recipes include.
The amount of agave nectar in this recipe is prone to sending me into a food coma, so reduce it if you like, but know that that’s where the “sticky” sesame comes from. I keeping meaning to try this out with brown rice syrup instead, so I’ll update here if I do.
If you make this sticky sesame cauliflower, let me know how you like it in the comments! And/or tag me on Instagram with @yupitsvegan and #yupitsvegan to show me your creations. Bon appetit!
Sticky Sesame Cauliflower
Ingredients
For the baked cauliflower:
- 1 cup all-purpose gluten-free flour
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup water plus more as needed
- 1 small head of cauliflower cut into florets (scant 4 cups of florets)
For the sticky sesame sauce:
- 2 and 1/2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil divided
- 1/2 inch ginger minced or grated
- 2-3 cloves garlic (to taste), minced or grated
- 3 and 1/2 tablespoons agave nectar (or less, to taste)
- 2 and 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon chili paste like sriracha
For the sticky sesame cauliflower:
- battered cauliflower (above)
- sticky sesame sauce (above)
- toasted sesame seeds for serving
- chopped green onions for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and prepare two large baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
- In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, garlic powder, and salt. Add 1 cup of water and stir. Continue adding water 1 tablespoon at a time until a pancake batter-esque consistency is reached. You want batter that is thick enough to stay on a cauliflower floret but thin enough that you can easily shake off the excess. I usually need another couple of tablespoons of additional water.
- One by one, dip the cauliflower florets into the batter, gently shake off extra batter, and place them onto the baking sheet. Leave plenty of space between florets on the baking sheet so that they can get crispy. You may not be able to quite fit a whole head of cauliflower on two baking sheets.
- Bake the battered cauliflower for 20 minutes, rotate the position of the trays, and then bake for another 5-10 more minutes or until crispy and browned.
- Meanwhile, heat two teaspoons of the sesame oil in a small saucepan. Add the garlic and ginger and saute over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, for about 60-90 seconds, or until the garlic and ginger are softened and fragrant.
- Add the rest of the sauce ingredients and stir well. Continue cooking on medium-low heat, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling and thickened slightly. Turn the heat to low and leave on the burner, stirring occasionally to keep from sticking. Stir in the remaining sesame oil just before mixing with the cauliflower. (I do this to make sure there's a nice noticeable sesame flavor).
- Once the cauliflower is done baking, use a spatula to gently mix it together with the sauce in a bowl or the saucepan if large enough. Spread it back out on the baking sheets, and return it to the oven for just 2-4 minutes, to thicken the sauce onto the cauliflower. Watch it carefully, as the sticky sesame sauce can burn quickly. Remove from the oven and serve immediately, sprinkled with sesame seeds and chopped green onions if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Other Asian-inspired recipes from the blog:
I'm Shannon, the writer and photographer of Yup, it's Vegan! I'm a morning person based in Baltimore, USA. My mission is to create healthy plant-based recipes that anyone would enjoy, using seasonal produce with inspiration from global flavors.
Rachel Dougherty says
yum yum yum – tried it once – have saved it in my recipe collection to be repeated many times and especially for guests. thank you it’s a winner! Easy to make as well. My variation – we left the cauli bits on the tray after the first bake and painted on the sauce which meant there were still some crispy bits on the bottom.
patrick kelly says
This is an incredible dish! I’ve served it to people that don’t care for cauliflower…they all like it.
Lauren says
So delicious!
Jess says
I would love to make these tonight but only have either regular all-purpose flour, or chickpea flour. Which do you think would be a better choice (if any)? Thank you so much!
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Great Q! All-purpose flour can be substituted. I don’t have the liquid measurements to accompany that so recommend starting with less liquid than the recipe specifies, and adding it slowly until the batter has the described consistency. Also, with the all-purpose flour just be careful not to overmix it.
You can use chickpea flour too, or a mixture. If you use chickpea flour I recommend making the batter a little thinner than the recipe describes, and thus putting a lighter coating on the florets – just to ensure the chickpea can cook through in time.
Ell says
Been dying to try cauliflower “wings” since going vegan and I have so say, this was absolutely stunning and so delicious, just like the real thing – but better!
Peter Martin says
Your ingredients versus my store cupboard was a potential car crash but ‘creative’ thinking led to a good result. Originally cooked this because i had a cauliflower in the fridge but think that could equally have combined with other veg such as sweet potato or butternut squash. The ‘Gluten free” part of flour was a swerve ball: don’t entertain garlic powder – fresh always better to my mind. Just finished last of sesame seed oil so used rape seed oil with a teaspoon of tahini. No idea what agave nectar is so used two squirts of maple syrup instead. No rice wine vinegar so relaxed sauce with red wine (cooking out alcohol). No chili paste but used a small squirt of wasabi instead. Tasted regularly and it came out pretty good (English understatement!). 425 F is probably about 200 C with fan oven. 30 minutes a bit too long for my florets. Served with a veg enhanced dahl simply because there were some cooked green lentils in the fridge. Accompanied by an Australian Shiraz/Viognier. What better for Wednesday supper!? Courage mes braves!
Kym says
Absolutely delicious! This will definitely be in my regular rotation of recipes
Tiffany says
This is AMAZING! Thank you. I found an agave syrup that is half agave/stevia mix and I only used a tablespoon (the brand I found only needs half the required amount to sweeten as directed). I can’t wait to make this for my brothers! One is vegan and one has celiac. This will go into rotation. 5 stars!
Becca says
Made this for my Dad for his birthday, he’s very against me being vegan.(And vegan food, he’s very closed minded, but he is my dad, so what are you gonna do!) But he absolutely loved this! Even to the point where we started to fight over seconds! Can’t wait to try this again!
Jackie says
Winner! Used rice malt syrup as I didn’t have agave. Simple, no mess and spectacular result. Will definitely make again.
Kiri says
Just made this and it’s great! I used brown rice syrup since that’s all I had on hand and it was perfect! I also used regular flour and had to bake the cauliflower a bit longer since I cheated and just dumped the cauliflower in the batter in small batches, but it all worked out in the end!
Adriana says
This was so Delish!! My family is just beginning to eat vegan and now my kids are excited to try more vegan foods after tasting this recipe. Thanks for your food skills and for sharing..
Tracy says
I had to make a few substitutions since I didn’t have th exact ingredients and I was surprised at how good this turned out! I used maple syrup in place of the agave nectar and tomato sauce instead of the paste….I was worried there wouldn’t be enough sauce but it perfectly coated everything and tasted so good!
Laura says
Hello! Fabulous recipe! What’s the best gf flour to use other than coconut flour! I feel like giving up with this type of flour as it is always the ingredient that seems to ruin every new dish I make that calls for it! Namaste! Laura & Johnny
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Hi Laura! You’re right, I don’t think coconut flour would work well in this recipe. It’s very absorbent compared to other flours and not interchangeable. I recommend an all-purpose flour blend for this recipe. That means it’s a blend of grains and starches for a similar protein and starch percentage to all-purpose wheat flour. You might be able to get away with just using fine-ground white or brown rice flour for this but I definitely suggest using a blend.
Debra Engen says
I prepared this last night for company. Including meat eaters. It got rave reviews all around. This is going to be a go to recipe for family and company dinners. Fast, Easy and Yummy!
T Brown says
This is super delicious, my 11 year old daughter and 10 year old son absolutely loved it!!
Lynda Stallings says
Have you tried with broccoli? This sounds like it would be good with a cauliflower-broccoli mixture.
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Hi Lynda, yes – I have made this with broccoli a couple of times :). For best results, with broccoli you want to make the batter a little thinner than you would with the cauliflower, and then cook it a bit longer at a slightly lowered temp. (Otherwise the batter will get trapped in pockets in the broccoli florets and undercook) Next time I make it I’ll measure the exact quantities and post it!
Davina says
This was delicious! I pretty much never post comments online, but this recipe was so impressive, I felt the need to say so. My cauliflower got crispy because I cooked it in an air fryer (aka vegan’s best friend) and I used maple syrup instead of agave only because I’m not a fan of the agave taste. Soooo good! I will be following you!
Kelly says
Thank you for this comment, was wanting to use maple syrup instead of agave bc…meh 😊
I always fear deviating from recipes because I’m always certain I’ll ruin it. Will be making this with maple syrup this week!
Sharron Pitts says
I’m wondering if this sauce will work with tofu. I’m trying to replicate Whole Food’s General Tao recipe. I’m going to try it with cauliflower too because it sounds great
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
I think this sauce would be tasty on baked or pan-fried tofu! Cook the tofu however you usually would and then add the tofu and sauce together once the sauce is reduced/thickened.
I don’t think I’ve tried the Whole Foods item you’re referring to so fair warning that the taste may not be the same, but just FYI i do have a General Tso’s Chickpeas recipe on my site as well!
Dave says
Literally everyone I’ve made these for loves them.
All freah, easy to acquire ingredients. Thanks so much!
Sharon says
Made it tonight – it was amazing! There was also a little serendipity involved because we watched What the Health while having dinner. Every one in our family agreed that if vegan tasted like this recipe we could do it. We’re going to try some more of your recipes and see if we can transition. Thanks big time!
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Hi Sharon, thanks for your comment, I’m thrilled to hear it! Good luck on your journey, and please let me know if you ever have any questions or requests. Also, this list of my site’s reader favorite recipes would be a great place to start: https://yupitsvegan.com/vegan-recipes/popular-recipes/
Kesha says
I just made this with regular flour instead of gf. I was a little worried because the cauliflower tasted like raw flour after cooking, but the sauce luckily covered the taste. I really enjoyed these, however I found it a little to spicy for my taste. I plan on adding less chili paste next time.
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Thanks for sharing your experience Kesha. Converting to regular flour may have resulted in a batter that was a bit too liquidy and therefore didn’t cook through in the allotted time. Next time if you reduce the water a little bit I bet it will come out better.
Kell says
Hello,
would this recipe work with frozen cauliflower? It’s more readily available for me.
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
I think the frozen cauliflower would probably get mushy and overcooked because this batter takes a good 30 minutes to cook through. I haven’t tried it though, so you never know. A breadcrumb-breaded cauliflower wing would probably work better though with frozen cauliflower I would think. This recipe works decently well with broccoli instead of cauliflower if that is more available for you!
Joel says
Tried making this last night with my girlfriend as we want to try more vegan things. It was delicious and I would definitely have it again. It took us a bit of time to prepare but I’m sure I could do it a lot quicker next time. It’s definitely not enough for a meal on its own, it needs to be with some rice or noodles or something. I was still hungry by the end of it, but that may be because they were so good! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Sasa says
For a super quick meal, I put whole cauliflower in instant pot on trivet with 1 cup of water for 2 minutes QR (1minute if you like it less cooked, 0 minutes works too)
I then just cut up cauliflower, tossed in the sauce only and roasted in the oven.
So delicious. We’re hooked on the flavours
Kari @ bite-sized thoughts says
This makes me so excited to buy cauliflower 😀 What a fantastic recipe – thank you for the inspiration.
Hannah says
Now that just looks absurdly delicious. I can’t believe that they’re baked and not fried! I’m recovering from a very bad frying experience (terrible results, not like I burned down the house, at least) so I’m seriously excited to see that there’s a promising alternative for satisfying my crispy cauliflower cravings.
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Thank you Hannah!! I don’t particularly like messing around with deep frying things either 😀 These do get crispy in the oven but don’t stay totally crispy after you add the sauce, but the recipe would be easy to tinker around with.
suziluz says
I made these last night and they were absolutely gorgeous! We had them with rice vermicelli with vegetables and lime-peanut dressing, and they were amazing together. Thanks! Keep up the good work! 🙂
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Thanks for your comment! That sounds like such a lovely meal. I’m glad you enjoyed the cauliflower 🙂
Hannah says
Oh my God! This looks SO good. I love cauliflower, and don’t eat it enough.
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Thanks Hannah! Same here – until my recent cauliflower kick I was rarely eating it and kept forgetting how great it is!
Deb says
I had to make these after seeing the recipe and it did not disappoint.So yummy. I had them with brown rice. Thanks.
Ethne Gibbins says
This looks amazing!! Do you think it would work using coconut flour?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
These would definitely not work with coconut flour. Coconut flour is vastly more absorbent and your batter will be a crumbly mess. If you are trying to make it grain-free, perhaps you could come up with a combination of chickpea flour and and almond flour that might be a better substitute. I have tested it with 100% chickpea flour, it works ok but stays pretty soft after baking, so i think it needs something more. Hope this helps.
Lori says
I made these today with left over dehydrated almond pulp from making almond milk. They turned out great! I did shallow fry them in avocado oil instead of baking them. But they totally worked, grain free!
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
That’s great to hear Lori, thank you for sharing your modification!
Kelly Bishop says
What are the measurements/ingredients for the batter? I do not see this listed anywhere. Thanks
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Hi Kelly, They’re listed within the recipe box under the section “For the baked cauliflower:”. I apologize for any confusion.
Bernie says
You say, “serve immediately.” I’d like to serve at a meal where everything must be prepared in advance. How can I adapt this recipe?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Hi Bernie, unfortunately this recipe does not keep very well. You could try roasting the cauliflower with no batter if it’s more the flavor that you’re interested in. And then sauce it just before serving. The batter definitely gets soggy and weird if it sits.
Dianna says
Make the “nuggets” and place on baking sheet, put in freezer just until very cold, then in fridge. They will keep well until time to bake! 🙂