Vegan Cauliflower Buffalo Wings – Gluten Free
By Jessica Hylton -
- Updated
These Vegan Cauliflower Buffalo Wings will blow your tastebuds away!! Coated in a sweet hot garlic buffalo sauce, they are unbelievably addictive and the perfect game day snack!
FACT: I am a spice lover. Not a little, I LOVE spice. I put pepper on everything: my avocado toast, in my chickpea curry, even in my new favourite cauliflower soup (uh, PSA: you need to try that. It’s been my most quickly reviewed, 100% positive recipe!!). If it facilitates spice, I’m adding it. I have made sure that none of the recipes here is at my spice level because I know it’s high, all EXCEPT these Vegan Cauliflower Buffalo Wings. I present a recipe that identifies with me at my core. Spicy, DELICIOUS, loaded with flavour (SO. MUCH. FLAVOUR) and of course, and quite simple to make.
Batter, bake, sauce, done.
Oh my. These cauliflower buffalo wings. My eyes swelled joyfully as I ate the first batch sans cooling sauce (#teamfierce) and I enjoyed every bite. This isn’t my first cauliflower wings rodeo, and I’ve made my Sticky Sesame Vegan Cauliflower Wings more times than I can remember. After it was selected as one of the recipes that won 2016/one of the recipes you NEED to try in 2017, I knew I needed to make a new version. A version that you’d not only adore if you’re a spice aficionado but one absolutely perfect for Super Bowl.
Your friends will ooh, ahh, and look on jealously as you devour these. The smell of the sauce is intoxicating. Share with them, it’s the right thing to do.
So I’ve bantered on as usual; let’s get to the cauliflower buffalo wings. I used the exact same recipe as I did for my sesame wings, except I used finer breadcrumbs. Traditionally, buffalo wings aren’t breaded at all, but I think it’s safe to say these aren’t so traditional ;).
I definitely think the breading is crucial to the cauliflower wings tasting so good, so don’t skip it. After they are baked at a nice high temperature, they are tossed in a sweet hot garlic buffalo sauce.
Good grief. That name alone. I then bake them one last time. Let me tell you – I tasted them right out of the sauce. They were divine. However, after the second bake?! I had to struggle to wait long enough to take pictures before devouring them. They were SO flavourful after that. It’s one of those crucial steps that are so worth it (only 5 more minutes of waiting!)
After posting the same picture on my Instagram stories and Snapchat, many of you were in shock that these were vegan. YES, my friends, vegan, gluten-free and ready to be eaten. Try them: party snack, evening snack, Netflix night and Super Bowl treat. I kept these as healthy as possible with only one tablespoon of vegan butter so feel free to DIG in without any guilt!
YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED
Q: So, are these wings really spicy?
A: YES! Buffalo wings are super hot wings in general. Taste the sauce before soaking your wings in them and adjust them to your heat level if it’s too much. We personally LOVED the heat here.
Q: Do I have to make these vegan cauliflower wings with the breadcrumbs?
A: Yes! The breadcrumbs make the cauliflower wings crispy before the sauce goes on, and also means that you can make them sauceless. Ideally, you should make them with panko breadcrumbs which I’ve linked to below. I’ve made these without the breadcrumbs and it doesn’t work without the breading. IF you’re NOT gluten-free, you can use regular panko breadcrumbs. These are the gluten-free breadcrumbs I use – otherwise, I just make them myself (day-old bread in a food processor/blender, then toast it).
Q: If I’m not gluten-free, can I use regular flour and panko breadcrumbs?
A: Yes!
Q: Do you have a vegan ranch dressing to go along with these?!
A: Yes I finally do! After you guys asked me about this endlessly, I made a Vegan Ranch Dressing for you to serve these with!
MORE VEGAN GAME DAY SNACKS
Crispy Cauliflower Tacos with Chipotle Crema
Sticky Spicy Sesame Cauliflower Wings
WHAT I USED FOR THIS RECIPE:
Enjoy friends! If you make this best authentic hummus, please snap a photo and tag #jessicainthekitchen on Instagram! We’d also love if you would leave a comment below, and give the recipe a rating! Thanks so much!
Vegan Cauliflower Buffalo Wings – Gluten Free
These Vegan Cauliflower Buffalo Wings will blow your tastebuds away!! Coated in a sweet hot garlic buffalo sauce, they are unbelievably addictive and the perfect game day snack!
Ingredients
Cauliflower Wings
- 1 small head cauliflower if using a large head, you may need to up the batter and sauce quantities
- 1/2 cup gluten free flour*
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup crispy/panko gluten free breadcrumbs seasoned with salt & pepper and 1 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning
Sauce
- 1/2 cup vinegar based hot sauce such as Franks hot sauce
- 1 tablespoon vegan butter
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2-3 tablespoons maple syrup
To Serve With: The Dip (Ranch Dressing)
Instructions
Instructions
Cauliflower wings
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees F/230 degrees C.
- Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with a silicone baking sheet or greased foil (I highly recommend a silicone baking sheet. Using a knife, remove florets from the cauliflower (aka cut off the leaves and don't use the stems). Chop the cauliflower into smaller pieces to resemble the size of the wings.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the gluten-free flour, almond milk, salt, ground black pepper and garlic powder in a bowl to make the batter. If the batter is too thick, feel free to thin it out with some more milk.
- In a separate bowl, place the breadcrumbs. Line it up beside the batter bowl.
- Toss the cauliflower in the batter mixture (you can add them all at once), using a spatula or spoon to coat them all. Transfer them to the breadcrumbs to coat completely, then place onto the baking sheet, giving each wing enough space. Repeat until all of the wings are coated.
- Bake for 22 minutes. Please ensure your oven is completely preheated and hot.
- While baking, prepare the ingredients for the sauce by whisking together.
- Remove from oven. Toss the wings in the sauce (I like to use a spatula to move them around to get properly coated) then using tongs or a spoon, remove and place back on the baking sheet. Bake for another 5 minutes for the sauce to soak into the wings.
- Remove from oven and serve immediately with a cool vegan ranch dressing (cooling agent is essential!). Enjoy!
Sweet Buffalo Sauce
- While the wings are baking, in a small pot over high heat, mix all the sauce ingredients. Bring to a boil and boil for 2 to 3 minutes, which helps to bring out more flavour notes of the ingredients. Remove from heat. Taste a little bit to decide if you need more sweetener to balance out the heat; if so, add a tablespoon at a time until your desired heat. Please note that especially depending on the hot sauce you use, these wings are HOT so take caution!
NOTES
- Don’t use olive oil to grease the baking sheet since it will burn the bottom of your wings.
- You can use regular or whole wheat flour if not gluten-free. Some Gluten-Free flours are thicker than others, so if your batter seems way too thick, add in a few tablespoons of milk to thin it out a little if necessary. I use Bob’s Red Mill All-Purpose GF Flour. I have used Einkorn flour while making these and it is a beautifully smooth consistency and is naturally organic.
- HOW TO STORE CAULIFLOWER WINGS
You can store these Cauliflower Wings in an airtight Tupperware container in your fridge for up to 4 days, and reheat them in an oven until warmed. They taste best fresh. I wouldn’t recommend freezing these as the batter may get soggy. - If you’re NOT gluten-free you can use regular flour and panko breadcrumbs!
Nutrition
Calories: 152kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 697mg | Potassium: 336mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 122IU | Vitamin C: 61mg | Calcium: 60mg | Iron: 1mg
by Jessica
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I so wish the Ranch Dressing had been in the recipe! I didn’t even think about needing it and I’m in the middle of making it and just read I need it as the dip! Dang.
Hi Kelly, we’re sorry about that. To make it more clear we added it to the ingredients list just in case someone would like to use it in this recipe as well.
Thank you. The ‘wings’ were delicious! I had no idea cauliflower could taste so good and I love cauliflower. My husband and son devoured them. Thanks again.
Oh wow, this makes us feel really good. We’re so happy that you and your husband enjoyed the recipe kelly!
Yes we love to hear it! You’re welcome Kelly.
These are soooo good! I’ve made these a few times now and almost always finish a whole head of cauliflower in one sitting! Oops? This isn’t a recipe that “just works for vegetarians/ vegans” – even my meat-eating hubby loves them. Highly recommend you make them!
Thank you soo much Shakti for this kind comment!! Haha I have definitely eaten ALL of this in one sitting too (more than once) so I totally feel you. So happy B loves them too! 🙂
These put every other buffalo cauliflower recipe to shame! So delicious!
Wow such high praise thank you so much Courtney!
This recipe is DELICIOUS. They are so crispy and the sauce is absolutely amazing. 10/10 stars!
We’re so happy that you enjoyed this recipe Meaghan! Thank you so much for reading and leaving such a nice comment!
This was SO delicious! I served it with some cucumber sticks because I didn’t have any celery, and with your ranch dip, which was also delicious! Thank you for a great recipe!!
These buffalo wings are amazing and very easy to make! The buffalo sauce was so tasty (and spicy 😎) and definitely the best I’ve ever had. For the batter we used oat milk – I loved the outcome, but can’t say whether or not it changed how Jessica intended for it to taste. Next time I’ll try with almond to compare. Thanks again for such a fab recipe!
We’re so happy that you enjoyed this recipe Ayala! Thank you so much for reading and leaving such a nice comment!
This recipe is flawless. And you are not lying when you warn that these wings are HOT!
Oh my goodness, so delicious and satisfying. I have been making buffalo cauliflower wings since I was in college and this is by far my favorite recipe!
Followed instructions almost to the T and absolutely loved the crunchy outer! The sauce is delicious — I (didn’t have Frank’s Hot so) used Cholula instead and it turned out well. I made it two days in a row for myself and had an entire tray of cauliflower each time. ~Thank you!!~
I’ve made this recipe twice and I love it so much! I will warn everyone that when Jessica says the sauce is spicy, she means SPICY. I toned it down by using less hot sauce or I eat it as a cold leftover bc that somehow tastes less hot to me and just as delicious.
My parents were amazed that it was so similar to buffalo wings that they did not miss the meat. I need to be mindful of quantity in the future since Dad loves cauliflower—he wants more than can fit on a tray and some of the more crowded areas didn’t crisp up as well.