If you love buffalo chicken wings but are looking for a vegetarian alternative, this buffalo cauliflower bites recipe will soon become a favorite appetizer for Game Day, Super Bowl, or your next party.
Ingredients
- Cauliflower - I’ve used 1 to 1 ½ pound of cauliflower for these cauliflower wings. You can either use packaged cauliflower pieces or a head of cauliflower that must be cut into bite-sized pieces, rinsed, and dried. It's about a medium to large head of cauliflower.
- Garlic and onion powder - The garlic and onion powder is best for dredging after dipping into the egg mixture.
- Salt - To taste. You could use regular table salt or kosher salt.
- Black pepper - To taste. If you want a bigger kick of heat, consider cayenne pepper or paprika.
- Hot sauce - Something like Frank’s or Valentina will be great for these cauliflower wings, but you can use any hot sauce you prefer or have on hand.
- Butter - You can use salted or unsalted butter but make sure it’s melted for this recipe. If you use salted butter, reduce the salt added to the almond flour mixture.
- Eggs - I’ve used large eggs that are at room temperature. For a vegan version, you could try a flax seed egg as well. But the result may be slightly different.
- Almond flour or meal - you can use both. I used coarser almond flour in the recipe but for more crispy results use almond meal. It is made with unpeeled almonds and is coarser than almond flour. However, both products are often labeled incorrectly in grocery stores. Read more on more detailed explanation of the two. Making your own homemade almond flour is easier than you think.
- Oil - Use the oil to lightly coat the air fryer basket and spray the tops of the cauliflower wings. Olive oil or vegetable oil will work.
- Serving ingredients - Ranch dressing, blue cheese sauce, blue cheese crumbles, and celery stalks are all great options for serving these cauliflower wings.
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How To Make Buffalo Cauliflower
- Preheat the air fryer: Set it to 350°F (usually 4–5 minutes). I use a Cosori 5.8-quart air fryer.
- Prep the ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, arrange your cauliflower florets. Prepare two bowls: one with beaten eggs and a tablespoon of water, and another with almond flour, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
- Coat the florets: Dip each floret into the egg mixture, then the almond flour mixture, and repeat the process for a double coating.
- Air fry: Lightly spray the air fryer basket with oil (or use liners). Add the coated florets in a single layer, spray the tops with oil, and cook for 14 minutes. Shake the basket halfway through at the 7-minute mark. Depending on your air fryer size, you may need to cook in 2–3 batches.
- Prepare the sauce: In a separate bowl, mix melted butter and hot sauce.
- Coat and finish: Once the cauliflower is done, toss it in the sauce until fully coated. Optional: return to the air fryer for an additional 4 minutes for extra crispiness. You can also skip this step and drizzle the sauce on top before serving.
- Serve: Pair with celery sticks, carrot sticks, and a creamy blue cheese sauce.
- Reheating tips: For best results, reheat in the air fryer at 350°F for 5 minutes. Note that the texture will only stay crispy for the first reheating; after that, it may lose its crunch.
Flavor and texture – Crispy almond flour coating with a soft, tender inside. Mildly spicy and perfectly balanced with a cool, creamy dip like blue cheese or ranch.
Craving for more air fryer finger foods? My friend Chhavi from Yellow Thyme made a mouth-watering collection of easy 50+ air fryer finger foods that you can already make today!
Tips
- If you’re in a rush, use store-bought small florets instead of cutting a cauliflower head.
- The size of your air fryer and how many servings of these cauliflower wings you want to make will determine the number of batches you’ll need to cook.
- Never overcrowd the air fryer basket, as this will limit the air circulation in the air fryer and reduce the crispy exterior of the cauliflower wings.
- It’s not a bad idea to check on your wings during the cooking time to ensure they aren’t over-browning. Different brands and makes of air fryers vary in cooking intensity and times.
- Serve these buffalo cauliflower wings with sauce or dressing in separate bowls for your family and guests to help themselves. If you add the sauce or dressing onto the wings before they are consumed, the coating on the cauliflower wings can soften.
- This recipe along with our spicy Million Dollar Deviled Eggs and Stuffed Mushrooms are a great addition to your party appetizer list.
JULIA'S TIP: The great thing about an air fryer is that you don’t need a lot of cooking oil. That said, don’t be too sparing with the oil since a good coating on the cauliflower florets will help them caramelize.
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Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower Bites
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INGREDIENTS
- 1 head cauliflower, about 1 to 1 ½ pounds, cut into bite-size florets (rinsed and dried prior)
- 2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoon onion powder
- salt, to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- ¼ cup hot sauce, such as Frank’s or Valentina
- 3 tablespoon butter, melted
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup almond flour , or almond meal, see notes
- olive oil or avocado oil, for cooking
- ranch dressing, or blue cheese sauce
- blue cheese crumbles, optional for serving
- celery stalks, for serving
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat the air fryer: Set it to 350°F (usually 4–5 minutes). I use a Cosori 5.8-quart air fryer.
- Prep the ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, arrange your cauliflower florets.1 head cauliflower
- Prepare two bowls: One with beaten eggs and a tablespoon of water, and another with almond flour, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.2 teaspoon garlic powder, 2 teaspoon onion powder, salt, black pepper, 2 large eggs, 1 cup almond flour
- Coat the florets: Dip each floret into the egg mixture, then the almond flour mixture, and repeat the process for a double coating.
- Air fry: Lightly spray the air fryer basket with oil (or use liners). Add the coated florets in a single layer, spray the tops with oil, and cook for 14 minutes. Shake the basket halfway through at the 7-minute mark. Depending on your air fryer size, you may need to cook in 2–3 batches.olive oil or avocado oil
- Prepare the sauce: In a separate bowl, mix melted butter and hot sauce.¼ cup hot sauce, 3 tablespoon butter
- Coat and finish: Once the cauliflower is done, toss it in the sauce until fully coated. Optional: return to the air fryer for an additional 4 minutes for extra crispiness. You can also skip this step and drizzle the sauce on top before serving.
- Serve: Pair with celery sticks, carrot sticks, and a creamy blue cheese sauce.
- Reheating tips: For best results, reheat in the air fryer at 350°F for 5 minutes. Note that the texture will only stay crispy for the first reheating; after that, it may lose its crunch.
- Flavor and texture: These cauliflower bites are coated in a thick, crispy almond flour breading with a melt-in-your-mouth interior. They’re spicy but not overly so and perfectly balanced when served with a cool, creamy dip.
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NOTES
ADD YOUR OWN PRIVATE NOTES
NUTRITION
Note: Nutrition information is estimated and varies based on the products used.
Full Nutrition Disclaimer can be found here.
FAQs
These cauliflower buffalo wings are not vegan since I’ve used eggs in the dredging process. They are, however, vegetarian and gluten-free!
Air frying any food will always make it a healthier alternative to deep-fried foods.
These buffalo cauliflower wings are not only low in saturated fat, they are also a delicious way to include healthy veggies into snacks that the whole family will love.
There's a lot of moisture from the drizzled sauce or dressing so if you added this to the spicy buffalo cauliflower bites before serving, this could account for them turning soggy.
I always serve these coated cauliflower wings with a separate serving of dressing or sauce to keep these snacks crispy and crunchy for longer.
I don’t recommend reheating these buffalo cauliflower wings in the microwave as they can turn very soft, and the coating can become quite soggy.
Instead, add your leftover cauliflower wings back into the air fryer for a couple of minutes or reheat them on a baking tray at 350F for 5-10 minutes.
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Julia | The Yummy Bowl
Delicious vegetarian appetizer and a great alternative to buffalo chicken wings.