These Breaded & Fried Cauliflower Nuggets are the perfect game day snack! Even when you're not into sports, you'll love these crispy veggie nuggets. It's almost unbelievable that these are made with cauliflower! Dip them into BBQ sauce and enjoy!
I really don't know how to begin to describe these Cauliflower Nuggets because they are UNREAL. You have to try them for yourself to find out how amazing these are!
They are super crispy on the outside, and soft on the inside. It's almost unbelievable that it's cauliflower!
These Breaded & Fried Cauliflower Nuggets are my favorite thing to make with cauliflower right now (and probably forever). I always felt that cauliflower is the meh-cousin of broccoli, but these nuggets made me fall in love with the vegetable for real.
Served with BBQ sauce, these are the perfect snack for game day get-togethers or parties!
How to make Breaded & Fried Cauliflower Nuggets
The Ingredients
The ingredients you will need for these Cauliflower Nuggets are super basic. You can find the whole recipe at the end of the post. But here's an overview:
- cauliflower
- frying oil (strain leftover-oil and reuse it!)
- for the batter, you will need:
- flour,
- water,
- and spices
- for the breading, you'll need:
- fine breadcrumbs,
- panko flakes,
- flour (to make sure the cauliflower florets are coated completely),
- sesame seeds,
- and spices
If you don't have panko flakes at home, no worries, just use more fine breadcrumbs! If you're missing some of the spices, feel free to experiment with what you have!
The basic steps
If you're unsure about frying, I've compiled a couple of tips on how to deep-fry in a pot.
More Cauliflower Recipes you will love
- Looking for healthier, baked wings? > Baked BBQ Cauliflower Wings
- Want spicy wings? > Spicy Cauliflower Wings
- Golden Cauliflower Rice
- Tandoori Cauliflower Wrap
- Cauliflower Rice
- Creamy Cauliflower Soup
Love it? Rate it!
I hope you enjoy these cauliflower nuggets as much as I do! Let me know if you give them a try!
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Cheers, Bianca
Breaded & Fried Cauliflower Nuggets
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower
- frying oil
Batter
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon paprika powder
- 1 pinch turmeric powder
- 1 cup water
Breading
- 1 cup fine breadcrumbs
- ½ cup panko flakes
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons white sesame seeds
- 1 ½ teaspoons paprika powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
Instructions
- Break the cauliflower in florets and wash them.
- For the batter: In a bowl, combine the flour, salt, paprika powder, turmeric powder. Add water and whisk until it's a smooth batter.*
- For the Breading: Combine all the ingredients listed above for the breading in a bowl.
- Heat the frying oil in a pot.** Make sure you don't fill the pot more than half the height of the pot to prevent oil from spilling over.
- Then take one cauliflower floret at the stem, dip it in the batter, then in the breading (make sure it's coated well), then carefully lower it into the oil. Work in batches (4-8 nuggets depending on the size of your pot). Let them fry for 8 minutes until golden brown.
- Transfer the cauliflower nuggets onto a paper towel to remove excess oil. Repeat until you've used up all the cauliflower florets. They are absolutely delicious dipped in BBQ sauce or sweet & sour sauce!
Sunil Dogra says
Hi
I like your creativity with BBQ sauce and cauliflower with a perfect finishing with sesame seeds.
The crunch make the snacks in a perfect platter counter.
Thanks a lot for sharing your recipe...
Bianca says
Thank you, Sunil! I'm glad you like it!!
Alison says
Bianca, YUM! these look delicious, I have a cauliflower obsession! Do you think these can be baked instead of fried? I'm not big on using oil in anything. I avoid it at all costs. Thank you!
Bianca says
I haven't tried baking these but I'd recommend making the batter a bit thicker (so it doesn't drip off the cauliflower) and then it should be no problem at all! Let me know if you give these a try! :)
Connie says
Can you re deep fry your your calfl and broccoli
Oscarella says
Hi! I tried your recipe today and brought it to a super bowl party - it was universally loved!!
Here are some notes in case they help anyone else:
I baked them in the oven instead of frying - 450 degrees F for about 20-30 mins. I placed the pieces right on tinfoil-covered pans (ie didn't oil the pans) and while some of the pieces stuck slightly, overall it worked fine without oil.
I multiplied the recipe to make enough for 8 people (thank you for this handy feature!), so using 2 heads of cauliflower. I started with just half the flour mixture (aka the amount that would be used for just 1 head of cauliflower) and found that this was the perfect amount to coat florets from 2 heads of cauliflower. I made the full amount of the breading mixture (aka the amount for 2 heads of cauliflower) but had a ton left over when I was finished. I think the heads of cauliflower that I used were normal sized, so I might suggest that people make half the suggested amounts of both the flour mixture and breading mixture for a given amount of cauliflower.
Thanks for this wonderful recipe! I will definitely be making it again! :D
Samantha Scott-Porter says
These are so good 🥰 i made my batter a bit thinner as had to much cauliflower for the amount and it still worked great. Also really great with sweet chilli 🌶 sauce as well as BBQ 😊
Susan says
Would this work in an air fryer? I just got one and have no idea what I’m doing!
Susan says
Forgot to ask for notifications for responses! Thanks!
Bianca says
My guess is that the batter will not stick to the cauliflower nuggets long enough in the air fryer. it needs the oil/frying to stick together.
Alana says
These look amazing! I'm recently in love with finding clever ways to make my family eat cauliflower. I'm wondering if using almond flour instead of normal flour would effect the recipe? Thanks and I am looking forward to trying more of your cauliflower recipes!
Nel says
@Alana, Hi how did using Almond flour go please?
I am going to try it with Almond Meal with both Cauliflower & Broccoli 🥦
😉
No I.d. says
Bomb.com thanks for the recipe.
Pauline says
These are absolutely incredible! Thanks for sharing this recipe
Fran says
Fantastic Bianca!
Thanks so much
Monique says
Made these for dinner today. They were a hit. I'm not the best cook, but I followed the recipe (except I sub bread crumbs and panko with crushed seasoned croutons) and tada. A mom staple.