Soft and tender on the inside and crispy on the outside, these Baked Cauliflower Wings are so close to the real deal it’s hard to believe!
This recipe is a great substitution for buffalo wings and can be made gluten-free, vegan, or vegetarian. Dip in ranch or blue cheese for even more added flavor.
They are baked to make them a little healthier and easier on the waist-line. I haven’t tried frying these yet, but when I do I will update this post.
Now the key to make these wings crispy on the outside is by dipping them in a flour/water batter. I’ve also added some spices to the batter to give the wings extra flavor!
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Healthier Alternative: The cauliflower wings are baked instead of fried, making them a healthier option with a lower calorie count.
- Saucy Goodness: The buffalo sauce adds a spicy and tangy kick to the cauliflower wings. The drizzling of the sauce midway through the baking process and the final toss in the sauce ensures that each piece is evenly coated with the delicious buffalo flavor.
- Vegan-Friendly Option: The batter can be easily adapted to a vegan version by using water, almond milk, or soy milk, making it perfect to those who follow a plant-based diet.
- Simple Preparation: The recipe involves straightforward steps, from whisking the batter to coating the cauliflower and baking.
Ingredients Needed
- Cauliflower: Provides the main vegetable base for the “wings,” offering a hearty and versatile substitute for traditional wings.
- Water: Used in the batter and buffalo sauce, contributes to the consistency of the batter and helps create the buffalo sauce.
- Milk (or alternative like almond or soy milk): Forms part of the batter; for a vegan version, choose a plant-based milk.
- All-Purpose Flour (or gluten-free rice flour): Essential for the batter, creating a coating that crisps up during baking.
- Spice up the batter with Garlic Powder, Cumin, Paprika, Salt, and Ground Pepper.
- Frank’s Red Hot Sauce: The key ingredient for the buffalo sauce, providing the classic tangy and spicy flavor.
- Butter (or vegan substitute like Earth Balance Buttery Spread): Used in the buffalo sauce for richness and flavor; choose a vegan option for a plant-based recipe.
How to make Baked Cauliflower Wings
This batter can be easily made vegan by using water or almond or soy milk instead. Whisk the flour, spices, milk, and water until little to no lumps appear.
First, dip the cauliflower into the batter, in batches.
Be sure to drain as much batter as possible off the cauliflower before placing on the pan. I poured my entire batch in at once and all the extra batter stuck together while baking.
After the cauliflower is fully coated, place it on a greased sheet pan.
After the cauliflower has cooked for 20 minutes, remove it from the oven.
Then, drizzle buffalo sauce on your baked cauliflower wings and return them to the oven.
Last, bake the cauliflower wings for another 20 minutes or until they are crispy.
Expert Tips
- Shake off excess batter from the cauliflower for a balanced coating.
- Taste the buffalo sauce and adjust the spice level to your liking before tossing with the cauliflower.
- If going vegan, choose plant-based milk and butter substitutes for the batter and sauce.
- Line your baking pan with parchment paper or grease well to prevent sticking and simplify cleanup.
Storage Tips
Refrigeration: Store any leftover baked cauliflower wings in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They can typically last for 2-3 days.
Reheating: To reheat, use an oven or toaster oven to help maintain the crispiness. Avoid using the microwave, as it may make the wings soggy.
Freezing: While cauliflower wings are best enjoyed fresh, you can freeze them for longer storage. Place them in a single layer on a baking sheet until frozen, then transfer to a freezer bag.
Reheat from frozen in the oven, allowing a bit more time than the original baking.
Serving Suggestions
I love to serve these baked cauliflower wings as a gameday appetizer!
They are perfectly paired with cool ranch and blue cheese dressing.
Recipe FAQs
What are vegan cauliflower wings?
Vegan cauliflower wings are a plant-based alternative to traditional chicken wings. Instead of using chicken, cauliflower florets are coated in a vegan batter, baked or fried until crispy, and then tossed in a flavorful sauce, often inspired by classic buffalo wing sauce. The result is a dish that mimics the texture and flavor of traditional wings but is entirely plant-based.
Can I use frozen cauliflower for this recipe?
I do not recommend using frozen cauliflower for this recipe. Fresh cauliflower will ensure that the wings don’t get soggy and will give you more control over the size.
Can I make the batter ahead of time?
It’s best to make the batter just before coating the cauliflower to maintain its consistency. If prepared ahead, give it a quick stir before using.
Looking for more healthy appetizers?
- Skinny Mini Shrimp & Guacamole bites
- Crispy Baked Coconut Shrimp
- Healthy Avocado Hummus
- Broccoli Cheese Balls (Low Carb / Keto)
- 3 Ingredient Baked Cheddar Cauliflower Bites
Baked Buffalo Cauliflower wings
Ingredients
- 1 head of cauliflower, approx. 4 cups of florets
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup milk, for vegan: use water or almond or soy milk
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, can sub gluten-free rice flour
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground pepper
- 1 cup Frank’s red hot sauce
- 1 tbsp butter, for vegan: use earth balance buttery spread
Instructions
- Line baking sheet(s) with parchment paper or grease very well with oil. Preheat your oven to 400-425 F depending on your oven.
- Wash and cut cauliflower head into bite-sized pieces/florets.
- Mix the milk/water/flour and spices in a medium mixing bowl (set aside the hot sauce and butter for later). Mix until the batter is thick and is able to coat the cauliflower without dripping.
- Dip the cauliflower in the batter. You can do this one by one or in batches. shake off excess batter before placing cauliflower on the baking sheet. Lay the cauliflower single layer on the baking sheet.
- Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown, flipping the florets over halfway through to get all sides golden brown and crispy.
- While the cauliflower is baking, get your buffalo wing sauce ready. In a small saucepan low heat, melt butter and mix in hot sauce. Remove from the heat just as it starts to melt. Stir together and set aside.
- Once the cauliflower is done its first bake in the batter, remove them from the oven and put all the baked florets into a mixing bowl with the wing sauce and toss to coat evenly. Return cauliflower to the baking sheet and bake in the oven for another 10-15 minutes or until reached desired crispness. Serve with ranch, blue cheese, or your favorite dipping sauce. Enjoy!
Notes
- Serve with ranch or blue cheese dressing.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container. They will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Reheat leftovers in an oven or toaster oven to help maintain crispiness.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
When i added the vegan butter to frank’s red hot, it curled, not sure whY?
Use this recipe but do another step of goating in planko! It made it nice and crispy.
Good idea, We will try that next time!
tO THOSE WHOM HAD SOGGINESS PROBLEMS. TRY CUTTING YOUR CAULIFLOWER INTO SMALLER PIECES, ALSO TRY DRAINING THE BATTERED CAULIFLOWER ON A RACK BEFORE PUTTING IT ON THE BAKING SHEET. AND LASTLY TRY BROILING IT AFTER IT IS COOKED THOROUGHLY AND THE BATTER IS SET.
i DIDN’T BAKE MINE AFTER THE BUFFALO SAUCE WAS ADDED AND IT WAS PERFECT. nEXT TIME i’M GOING TO TRY DRIZZLING IT WITH A BIT OF OIL AFTER THE BATTER IS SET; HOPEFULLY i WON’T HAVE TO FLIP IT 1/2 WAY THROUGH THE COOKING TIME, OR MAYBE i WILL TRY ADDING A BIT OF OIL TO THE BATTER.
I particularly liked step 4
Wow so amazing!! Cant believe vegan wing substitute can be so delicious! Thank you so much! Turned out pretty crispy. Followed the directions exactly. Cheers!
A lot of the comments say the recipe wasn’t crunchy enough. I poured the remaining batter over the pan allowing some to pool on the bottom. While the cauliflower was soft, the batter browned to a crisp making each bite the perfect amount of crunchy and chewy. Loved it!
I’ve been following a vegan diet for (8) mos now. My biggest challenge is coming up with recipes that appeal to my taste buds and are totally plant based. Using breaded cauliflower as a sub for chicken wings is genius! However, the recipe calls for too much water and/or milk OR too little flour as the batter is watery and does not cling to the cauliflower. AS with most recipes, you need to adjust and improvise. On my next go round, I will just use the suggested ingredients and my own sense of how much of each one to use. My next feat will be to find a vegan burger recipe that I can use as a sub for
beef burgers and/or meatloaf. Thanks for this recipe! It is truly genius!
Check out Beyond Meat burgers. They’re INCREDIBLE.
Genius! Worked perfectly. Just as good as the wings at Vegenation!!!!! Can’t thank you enough for this awesome recipe! Even my omni hubbie can’t get enough! xo
Same here. The batter pooled on the baking sheet, and the cauliflower wasn’t crispy at all.
I don’t know how old this comment is, but wanted to share what i did. they turned our great, even a bit crunchy. 1 i added 2 tbsp of oil to the batter. 2 cut the florets bigger than pictured (that helped keeping them still crunchy on the inside) 3 drizzled the wing sauce over them, 4 use the broil option for the last part (10 minutes after the wing sauce is added)
it was such a hit at my house. my husband is reluctant to trying new foods, especially if it’s healthy food.and he ended up having them for lunch and dinner
lastly i don’t know why I’m typing in all caps, the setting on my keyboard is not on caps lock :S
Spicy and delicious but not as crunchy as I though
These were amazing! We followed the recipe exactly and had no issues. : )
These are amazing! I wasn’t sure how they would turn out, if they would get the crisp or if the cauliflower would be soggy……..I will be cooking these time and again! Thank you
I’m so happy to hear you liked the “wings”!
Were they crispy, soggy or in between?
Love these. Great healthy substitute for chicken wings.
These are delicious! Only problem is i had a hard time making them crunchy, mine turned out too soft. Any suggesstions?
Same! Mine are are not crunchy. 🙁 I even tried leaving them in the oven for longer and no luck.
Same problem for me
This looks delicious! Step 4 isn’t listed in the instructions? Was it just a typo with the numbering or does step 4 need to be included? Thank you!
Just made this! Cut the hot sauce back and added a wee bit of ketchup and Worcestershire sauce. Steamed cauliflower a bit before hand. That way I just used 350 temp in oven for 20 min. Perfect!
These were delicious! But I didn’t follow through with the last step of cooking.. after I tossed these in Buffalo sauce, they were ready to eat. The very little that I had leftover, I made into a “buffalo cauliflower wrap” with vegan ranch, daiya and veggies! Yum!
Looks great! I will make them tomorrow.
I’d like to know why you use garlic powder instead of garlic. Is there a technical reason? Will pressed garlic burn?
Hi Ira-garlic powder and onion powder have a specific flavor that replicates the flavor in the hot sauce. (This is a common ingredient in Cajun cooking.) You can certainly use fresh but it will not be the same.
I followed this recipe to a T and it was perfect! The cauliflower was crunchy, there was a great level of spice to it. I think mine got a little overdone at 425, so I’ll probably cut the time down next time. 👍🏼
2 times of 20-25 minutes at 400 or higher does seem extreme for cooking cauliflower. If anyone has trial and error’d and found a safe amount of time and temperature, I’d love to hear it. I’ll try doing 20 minutes at 400, then ~15 for the second round, and see how that goes.
I do 12 minutes and then I turn the cauliflower and do 12 more minutes. Then I toss them in the sauce and bake for five more minutes at 450
Just tried this recipe and my family and I loved them!!! We did half buffalo and the other half honey barbecue and both came out delicious! I’m not a huge fan of cauliflower but I will definitely make this again!! Thanks for the recipe 😊
How did you make Honey-barbecue?
Will make these tonight and rate them.
Any healthier sauce suggestions instead of blue cheese.
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I made tacos with this recipe, its a keeper.
I think the amts for the vegan butter and hot sauce are reversed. The first time I Kade them, they were inedible. ..WAY to spicy! I am trying again with much less hot sauce.
I believe by using oil instead of nonstick spray you might have achieved the crispiness you were looking for. Just a thought…
The batter is not good. It comes right off the first time you flip them, then they are just regular naked baked cauliflower. Other recipes include corn starch to help the batter stick
Amazing! Thank you!
Mushy followed directions exactly
Nice recipe i just wish i would have drizzled the hot sauce on because now the cauliflower is not crunchy but soggy but not bad soggy and ommmmg its soo hot! But overall good recipe!
The parchment paper I have only withstands temperatures up to 420 degrees (per the Caution on the box). I will try it at 420 and see how it works.
I usually deep fry them but am trying to heat healthier, these sounds fantastic!
I made this recipe and the batter came out brilliant, crispy but not to thin. used finely chopped garlic instead of the powder and everything went fine.
However when it came to the sauce I made the error of using a different sauce instead of Franks, not knowing that franks is a rather mild sauce by hot sauce standards I added a cup of sauce that was about 25 times hotter than franks (10,000 scoville vs franks 400).
Amazingly they were not only edible (with one hell of an after-burn) but also quite nice and well put together.
Like an arsonist in a nice suit.
My favorite comment ever read on the internet.
I did the correct amount of time at somewhere between 425 and 450 degrees, however my cauliflower turned out soggy instead of crispy. Maybe the recipe calls for too much flour in the batter? Or just too much batter in general? I would try this again, the batter tasted great, however I would play with it next time to try to get it more crispy.
So amazing. Pictures helped a ton! I made these gluten free and needed about 3x the water but I just added a little at a time until the batter matched your picture.