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5 from 24 votes

Baked Vegan General Tso Cauliflower

You will love this Baked Vegan General Tso Cauliflower  - it is so quick and easy to prepare even on a weeknight and the flavor is better than anything from a Chinese restaurant or take-out joint! 
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time40 minutes
Total Time1 hour
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, Chinese
Keyword: baked general tso cauliflower, vegan general tso cauliflower
Servings: 4
Author: Vegan Richa

Ingredients

For the Cauliflower

  • 1 Small head Cauliflower chopped into small florets
  • 1/2 cup rice flour
  • 3 tbsp tapioca starch or use cornstarch
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp soy sauce
  • 2 tsp oil
  • 1/2 cup water

For the General Tso Sauce

  • 1 tsp oil
  • 1/2 cup Chopped red bell pepper
  • 1/2 cup Chopped green bell pepper
  • 3 cloves of garlic minced
  • 2 tsp minced ginger
  • 1/3 cup soy sauce
  • 3-4 tbsp brown sugar
  • 3 tbsp rice vinegar
  • 1 tbsp mirin
  • 2 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp or more sambal oelek or other Asian chili sauce
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 tbsp cornstarch
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Chop your cauliflower florets into equal sizes, and set them aside.
  • In a bowl, mix the rest of the ingredients for the batter, until well combined, then mix in the cauliflower florets into the bowl, and toss well to coat. The batter is going to be a thick batter. It will continue to thicken as it sits. So if it's thinner when you mix it, let it sit for a few minutes before adding the florets. You can also add in 1-2 tsp more rice flour as needed to thicken it. Toss the florets until all the batter coats them evenly. There is just enough batter to coat all of the florets.
  • Transfer the coated florets to a parchment-lined baking sheet, and bake at 400 degrees F (205 c)for 30-35 minutes.

For the sauce

  • Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add in the bell peppers, and cook until they're starting to get golden on some edges.
  • Add in the garlic and ginger, and mix in for a few seconds, then add in the soy sauce, sugar, rice vinegar, mirin, sesame oil, sambal oelek, and salt, and mix in.
  • Cook for 2 minutes. Meanwhile, mix your cornstarch into the water until well combined, then add the cornstarch slurry to the skillet, and mix well. Bring this whole mixture to a good boil. Then simmer for another 2 minutes for it to thicken evenly. Let it continue to simmer for another minute if it hasn't thickened enough.
  • Switch off heat, then add in your baked cauliflower florets, and toss gently to coat.
  • Top the cauliflower florets with sesame seeds, and green onion, and serve as is, or over rice.

Video

Notes

  • You can use low sodium soy sauce to reduce sodium..
  • Coconut sugar can be used instead of brown sugar. 
  • For even cooking, turn the baking sheet once after 20 minutes to allow for even browning on your cauliflower. 
  • For Vegan general Tso Chicken soycurls see here 

Nutrition

Calories: 218kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 943mg | Potassium: 358mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 652IU | Vitamin C: 71mg | Calcium: 39mg | Iron: 1mg