Home » Recipes » Appetizer » Buffalo Cauliflower Recipe {5 Ingredients!}
By Taylor Stinson | 6 Comments | Posted: | Updated:
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This is the easiest ever Buffalo Cauliflower recipe – these delicious baked bites are a healthier vegetarian alternative to buffalo wings.
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Ingredients and substitutions
- Flour – use almond flour or cornstarch to make this appetizer gluten-free.
- Garlic powder – onion powder would also work here.
- Salt & black pepper – to taste.
- Cauliflower – this is crucial to the recipe. Make sure to choose a head of cauliflower that’s firm to the touch and tightly closed.
- Buffalo sauce – use any bottled variety of your choice or make your own homemade buffalo sauce.
- Butter – the butter will help cut the buffalo sauce. Feel free to swap it out for your favourite butter substitute or leave it out altogether (although the flavour will be stronger).
How to make Buffalo cauliflower
Step 1: Combine the flour, garlic powder and water.
Combine the flour, garlic powder and water in a large mixing bowl.
Step 2: Toss the cauliflower in the mixture.
Add the cauliflower florets, tossing to combine.
Step 3: Add to a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
Step 4: Bake the cauliflower.
Season with salt and pepper, then bake on the sheet pan for 15 mins.
Step 5: Toss in the sauce.
Meanwhile, mix buffalo sauce and butter together. When cauliflower is done, pour sauce overtop and gently toss to combine. Bake another 10 mins.
Step 6: Serve and enjoy!
What to serve with buffalo cauliflower
If you are making this buffalo cauliflower as an appetizer for a party, you can serve it with more of your favourite game day sides! Here are some side dish and serving ideas:
- Dipping sauces like vegan ranch dressing, blue cheese, nacho sauce, sauce, Buffalo sauce or hot sauce
- Crockpot buffalo chicken dip
- Sliced veggies like carrot sticks, celery sticks, cucumbers or radishes
- Chili cheese fries or loaded In n Out fries
- Cowboy caviar
Frequently Asked Questions
What type of buffalo sauce is best?
Buffalo sauce is a combination of hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, butter and seasonings. It’s easy to make your own, but there are lots of options on the market for just purchasing a bottle. I personally like using the Frank’s Red Hot buffalo wing sauce as I love the flavor, but you can use any bottled variety of your choice!
Can you make it gluten-free or dairy-free?
You can easily adapt this recipe for a variety of diets. To make the recipe gluten-free, use almond flour or cornstarch instead of flour. To make it dairy-free or vegan, use your favourite butter substitute like margarine instead of regular butter.
How do you make it less spicy?
If you're not a big fan of spice, you can use extra butter to cut the spiciness of the buffalo sauce.
Can you make it in the air fryer?
You can definitely give it a try! I personally haven't tried making buffalo cauliflower in the air fryer, but I would suggest cooking it for about 10 minutes per side at 400° Fahrenheit. Make sure the florets are in a single layer in the air-fryer basket, and air fry in batches if need be.
Can you make them advance?
This buffalo cauliflower recipe is best made fresh, but if you're prepping it for a party or gathering, you can bake the cauliflower and store it in the fridge for up to 5 days. Stick it back in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes so they get nice and crispy again, then serve!
Storing and reheating
Without a doubt, these buffalo cauliflower bites are best straight out of the oven. However, you can store them in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 days in an airtight container.
To reheat this buffalo cauliflower recipe, put the florets back in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes to maintain that nice crispy texture. If you reheat them in the microwave, the batter on the cauliflower will get soggy even if they still taste great.
If you have extra buffalo cauliflower, you can use it in lots of other dishes like as a filling for tacos, in a pita, crumbled on a pizza or as a salad topping.
Freezing this recipe
You can definitely freeze this buffalo cauliflower recipe! Let the cauliflower cool completely then place the florets on a baking sheet in the freezer in a single layer without any of the pieces touching to keep them from sticking together. After an hour, you can put them in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months.
When you’re ready to enjoy, reheat your buffalo cauliflower from frozen in the oven for 15 minutes at 375° Fahrenheit.
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Meal Prep Tools
- Grab someglass meal prep bowls if you plan on turning thisrecipe into leftovers.
- This is the buffalo sauce I use.
- Freeze this recipe in glass microwave-safe bowls up to 3 months.
- **Get my full list of tools here**
Buffalo Cauliflower Recipe {5 Ingredients!}
This is the easiest ever Buffalo Cauliflower recipe – these delicious baked bites are a healthier vegetarian alternative to buffalo wings.
4.86 from 7 votes
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Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 225kcal
Author: Taylor Stinson
Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes minutes
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup flour
- 1 tsp garlic or onion powder
- Salt & pepper, to taste
- 1 head cauliflower
- 2/3 cup buffalo sauce
- 3 tbsp melted butter
To serve (optional)
- Ranch dressing
- Blue cheese dressing
- Chives, chopped
- Carrot sticks and celery
Instructions
Preheat oven to 500 F. In a large bowl, combine flour, garlic powder and water. Add cauliflower, tossing to combine.
Add florets to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper, then bake for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, mix buffalo sauce and butter together. When cauliflower is done, pour sauce overtop and gently toss to combine. Bake another 10 minutes.
Remove from oven and serve with dressings and veggies of choice. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Make your own buffalo sauce using hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, butter, cayenne and garlic.
The butter helps cut the buffalo sauce but you can leave it out for a sharper flavour.
Store leftovers in the fridge for 4-5 days then reheat in the oven to maintain that crispy texture.
Freeze for up to 3 months. Reheat from frozen in the oven.
Nutrition
Calories: 225kcal (11%)Carbohydrates: 31g (10%)Protein: 6g (12%)Fat: 9g (14%)Saturated Fat: 6g (38%)Cholesterol: 23mg (8%)Sodium: 1348mg (59%)Potassium: 463mg (13%)Fiber: 4g (17%)Sugar: 3g (3%)Vitamin A: 262IU (5%)Vitamin C: 69mg (84%)Calcium: 39mg (4%)Iron: 2mg (11%)
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Created by Taylor Stinson
Hey there, my name's Taylor! I’m the founder of The Girl on Bloor, a food blog where I share healthy meal prep recipes for busy people. I'm a busy city girl living in downtown Toronto on (you guessed it!) Bloor Street. I've got 10 years experience meal prepping, along with a Master's degree in journalism, and you can find my work across the internet featured on publications such as Buzzfeed, HuffPost, Women's Health, Reader's Digest and more. I also run the awesome 5-Day Meal Prep Challenge, which is a free email course and Facebook group where I share my meal planning strategies and easy meal prep tips and recipes. Be sure to check out my free beginner’s guide to meal prep and follow me on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram to get my latest recipes and meal prep tips!
Reader Interactions
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Kathy says
Can you use frozen cauliflower?
Reply
Taylor Stinson says
I wouldn’t recommend it as it would probably just be soggy and wouldn’t crisp up.
Reply
Laura says
Delicious and easy- mid-day snack with a spicy zing!! I made in the oven but next time I’ll use the air frier. I plan to substitute white flour to reduce carbs!Reply
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so glad you enjoyed!
Reply
Zahra says
I wonder if these would work in the air fryer! Do you do any air fryer friendly recipes? Recently got one and I’m obsessed! Love all your recipes.
Reply
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Zahra – I’m sure they could be cooked in an Airfryer! I have a couple other Airfryer recipes on my site that you can search for in the search bar 🙂
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