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This Sticky Sesame Cauliflower is a crowd pleaser! Cauliflower is battered and baked , then coated in sticky spicy sesame sauce and baked again. Serve as is or with rice or in lettuce cups. Vegan Gluten-free Nut-free Refined sugar free RecipeĀ Jump to Recipe
When you need some sticky sweet tangy delicious sauced something, cauliflower fits right in. Cauliflower florets are tossed in a rice flour and starch batter and baked to crisp. The sticky sesame sauce uses sesame oil, garlic, ginger, soy/tamari, vinegar, maple syrup and some sriracha for heat for a addictive flavor profile. Brush this sticky sauce on the baked cauliflower and serve, or bake again for more sticky crispy cauliflower!
Serve it over rice, by itself or in lettuce wraps! I use sesame oil in the batter and the sauce for extra sesame flavor profile. For additional protein, add in some firm tofu, seitan or soycurls with the cauliflower. Lets make this!
Ingredients for Sticky Sesame Cauliflower and substitution options
- The Sticky Sesame Sauce has sesame oil, garlic, ginger, tamari/soy sauce, maple syrup for sweet, rice vinegar, Sriracha, and starch to thicken.
- You can use coconut aminos to make this soy-free
- Maple syrup can be subbed with sugar or other sweetener
- Omit the Sriracha for lower heat.
- The batter for the crispy cauliflower has ā
- rice flour, that makes the batter crisp and non doughy on baking. You can use a mix of half all purpose flour and half starch as a substitute.
- corn or tapioca starch to add lighter and crisp texture
- sesame oil for more sesame profile
- black pepper, salt and garlic for flavor
- garnished of lightly toasted white sesame and black sesame seeds and scallions.
How to make Sticky Sesame Cauliflower
Transfer to the parchment lined baking sheet or dish and bake for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, assemble the sauce ingredients. Saute the ginger and garlic in sesame oil for a minute, then add the soy sauce, vinegar, sriracha and maple syrup and bring to a boil.
Add cornstarch slurry and cook to thicken.
Brush the sticky thick sauce on the cauliflower florets or add the florets to the sauce and mix gently. Then bake again.
Garnish with sesame seeds and scallions and serve over rice.
Tips to make Crispy Sticky Sesame Cauliflower
- For a nicely crispy result, bake the cauliflower on a baking sheet.
- Bake the sauce coated cauliflower for longer.
- Use smaller size cauliflower florets
If you plan to serve the sauced cauliflower without baking, you can add another tsp starch for extra thick sauce that will glaze the cauliflower.
More Cauliflower Recipes
- Taco Spice roasted Cauliflower
- Spicy Pepper Cauliflower Bites
- Mango Sriracha Cauliflower
- Aloo Gobi ā Baked
- Nashville Cauliflower Bites
- Kung Pao Cauliflower
Sticky Sesame Cauliflower Recipe (Gluten free Vegan)
IngredientsĀ Ā
Sesame Soy Sauce:
- 2Ā tsp. sesame oil
- 2Ā tspĀ fresh grated ginger
- 2Ā cloves of garlic, , minced
- 1/4 cupĀ gluten-free tamari , or soy sauce
- 1/3Ā cupĀ maple syrup
- 1.5 tbspĀ rice vinegar
- 1Ā tspĀ sriracha
- 2 tspĀ cornstarch or 1.5 tsp tapioca starch
- 1/4Ā cupĀ cold water
Cauliflower:
- 1/2 cup rice flour
- 3 tbsp tapioca or corn starch.
- 1/2Ā teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4Ā teaspoonĀ salt
- dash of black pepper and cayenne
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 1Ā small head of cauliflower, , chopped into equal size florets
- Garnish: sesame seeds and scallions
InstructionsĀ
- Sticky Sesame Sauce: Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add sesame oil, garlic and ginger. Cook the garlic ginger for a minute. Add the soy sauce, rice vinegar, maple and bring to boil. Mix cornstarch in the water and add this cornstarch slurry and bring to a boil to thicken, Take off heat.
- Cauliflower: Preheat the oven to 425 deg F ( 220 C). Line a baking sheet or dish with parchment. In a large bowl add the dry ingredients for the batter and whisk well. Add the wet ingredients and min until smooth.
- Add the cauliflower and mix to coat. This batter keeps thickening as it sits, so mix and toss quickly.
- Transfer to the the lined baking sheet. and bake for 30 mins. Make the sticky sauce in the meanwhile if you havent yet.
- Once baked, you can do one of the following: 1. Brush the sauce over the cauliflower florets and bake for additional 10 to 15 mins (time depends on how crisp and sticky you want the sauce)2. Wait for a few mins then transfer the florets to the sauce. Mix gently to coat. Serve immediately or transfer to the baking sheet to bake for 10 to 15 mins.
- Sprinkle black and white sesame seeds and chopped scallions and serve as is, or over rice or in lettuce wraps!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This recipe is so incredible!! It truly tasted like sesame chicken you would get in a fancy restaurant but the fact it is meat-free and made with healthy ingredients makes it that much better. I used the following substitutions/adjustments and I will do it the same next time! I swapped cornstarch with arrowroot powder, swapped rice flour with cassava flour, swapped tamari with coconut aminos, and cut down the maple syrup to 1/4 cup instead and it was just the right amount of sweetness for me and my husband! I also used 2 parts honey 1 part maple syrup which makes it not vegan but we enjoy the flavor of honey in this.
sounds amazing, thank you
This was delicious!! I doubled the recipe and instead of a second head of cauliflower, I added a block of cubed tofu! Turned out great and we loved it, over a bed of rice!
woo hoo!! sounds delish
Iāve made this a bunch of times and it does not disappoint. I omitted sesame seeds and swapped avocado oil since my daughter is allergic to sesame. Itās still amazing!
sounds great Sam
Delicious! I ran out of soy sauce, so I used amino acids instead. I also added a tablespoon of chili flakes, because I like it hot. This recipe is a keeper!
love chili flakes!!!!!
I think its too salty
Might be the brand of the soy sauce? I use low sodium soy sauce.
Oh dear, my husband said he couldnāt wait to be finished lol! I tried. Umm its pretty salty love. I had to add additional sweet& sour sauce over it to balance with sweet.
Soy sauce is salty. Sooooo probably no more salt needed in recipe. But sugar yes i think. Good job at presenting the recipe and taking the time to post it. I was honestly very excited to make it. Perhaps a different type of soy sauce as a suggestion could be in the recipe orrr um less soysauce, more water and more sugar. Thankyou.
I use low sodium soy sauce .that probably is less salty hence the measure accordingly. Use 1 tbsp less as you can add more later if needed. Brands sometimes vary as well.
SO good. My husband said itās the best vegan dish heās ever had. My kids loved it too! Thank you!
wow! thank YOU
This recipe came out delicious! Love it!
hooray š
THIS was cauliflower heaven! Even my picky teens gobbled it up. I used tapioca flour vs rice flour and it was crispy perfection. Also used Coconut aminos vs tamari and just delicious!
like cauliflower clouds of heaven!
Too much ginger, too salty, not crispy.
Thought Iād try baked and not fried for a healthier version but this didnāt work at all.
Crispy until the sauce went on, then just a soggy, sticky, mess even with the extra 15 minutes in the oven after coating.
Was rightly skeptical about this.
The sauce was sooooo salty from the soy (I even used light soy) and there was way too much fresh ginger in this recipe.
I love ginger in Asian food but not when it takes over. I should have gone with my instincts ā reduced the soy, only add one tsp of fresh ginger.
I am sorry it didnāt work out for you. Several 100s of people have made this with success. You can reduce the ginger and soy to preference. The crisp coating unfortunately will soften in time because of the moisture from both the sauce and the cauliflower. I like to bake them longer the first time to crisp them up really well and do a quick bake and serve immediately. Did you use rice flour for the batter? You can make the batter thicker and also toss the cauliflower in breadcrumbs for extra crispy ness.
The colifllower is in the oven, but I can say that the sause is DELISH
Awesome!! Do leave a rating too!
This was delicious and my omnivore mom and husband both loved it. However it takes about two hours all total between chopping and all the prep plus cooking time. Better for a weekend recipe when you have extra time.
some recipes do need a bit more time. glad you still enjoyed!