Bang Bang Cauliflower Recipe - Private Chef in Rhode Island Chef Chelc

Hi all!

Happy Friday!

Unfortunately for me today is my “Sunday” so the Sunday scaries are in full force. And its only 8am hah

Who else thinks it’s wild that today is October 1st? Did September even happen? Fall is officially here! As is my desire to get in the kitchen and cook up some recipes to share with all of you! Next week I will be sharing my favorite fall dessert ever. And today, I’m sharing the best cauliflower ever!

Bang Bang Cauliflower!

At least that is what my brother declared when I served this to him last night. I wasn’t even sure he liked cauliflower? hah!

‘This cauliflower you guys…is INSANE. It tastes like your favorite version of fried decadent bang bang shrimp but with cauliflower and it isn’t fried, its baked! I wouldn’t say this is the mostttt healthy way to eat cauliflower, but it is extremely delicious!

I didn’t take many step by step photos because I was trying to film a video to post to Tik Tok. But I got locked out of my chef tik tok account because I wasn’t posting enough, so now I have to start over. Ohhhh technology, definitely not my strong suit.

Moving on! For this cauliflower you make a batter. Almost like a pancake batter. I like to cut the florets into bite size pieces, they can be varying in size slightly. In the batter goes flour, garlic powder, onion powder, soy sauce, sriracha, corn starch, and water.

Not the prettiest picture..but trust the process 😉

As messy as it is, this is best to do with your hands to make sure each piece is evenly coated.

Then you place the florets spread out on a greased baking sheet. I would recommend lining your baking sheet with parchment paper to ensure they wont stick, but I didn’t have any so I just used some good old non stick spray!

Bake at 425 for 15 minutes, remove from the oven and flip each piece over. This takes a couple minutes but will ensure a nice even coating! Then bake for another 15 minutes.

While baking you mix together the bang bang sauce. Aka crack sauce. It is so good. Mayo can be a bit triggering for some but I promise it doesn’t take super mayonaise-y. I know thats not a word but lets go with it. In the sauce goes mayo, sweet chili sauce, sriracha, lime juice, and salt. That’s it! If you can find Kewpie mayo at your grocery store I would highly recommend. It is an asian brand of mayo that just has an extra umami flavor that is hard to describe. Although there is a viral tik tok video going around of a girl making this salmon rice bowl and adding kewpie mayo, so good luck finding it in stores, hah! Here’s a link to it on amazon. I won’t judge you if you order mayo on amazon…I encourage it! 🙂

Right when the cauliflower comes out of the oven you toss it in the sauce, add some scallions and sesame seeds, and voila! Crispy, creamy, slightly spicy, tangy, SO FREAKING GOOD! This would make an awesome football day appetizer! Or can be served as a main dish alongside some rice.

Bang Bang Cauliflower

Serves 4 as app, 2 as main

Ingredients:

1 head cauliflower, cut into small florets
1 cup all purpose flour
2 tbsp corn starch
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sriracha
3 scallions, chopped
Sesame seeds for garnish
Salt and pepper

Bang Bang Sauce

¼ cup mayo (kewpie mayo preferred)
¼ cup sweet chili sauce
1-2 tbsp sriracha
Juice of ½ a lime
Salt

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, or spray well with nonstick spray.
In a large bowl, mix together flour, corn starch, garlic powder, onion powder, soy sauce, sriracha, a pinch of salt and pepper. Next add in 1 cup of water and mix until combined. It should be about the consistency of pancake batter.
Add the cauliflower florets to the batter and mix until all pieces of cauliflower are equally coated in the batter. Place the coated florets on the lined baking sheet, making sure they are slightly spread out.
Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and carefully take tongs and flip each piece over. This is slightly tedious but ensures a nice crispy coating all around. Bake for another 15 minutes.
Meanwhile in a separate large bowl, whisk together all ingredients in the bang bang sauce. Season with a pinch of salt.
Once the cauliflower is out of the oven, immediately place the warm cauliflower pieces in the bowl with the bang bang sauce. Coat to combine. Add in most of the scallions and a pinch of sesame seeds.
Garnish with remaining scallions and sesame seeds and serve immediately. If serving as a main dish serve with some steamed rice!