These buffalo cauliflower wings are an irresistible side dish or game day snack! They have delicious crispy edges and an amazing spicy, tangy flavor.
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Buffalo cauliflower wings—a plant-based spin on buffalo chicken wings—are a classic game day snack. But after testing and perfecting this recipe, I’m here to tell you that buffalo cauliflower is wayyyy too good to only make on game day. I’ve been whipping it up for fall gatherings and movie nights, for TV binge sessions and even the occasional lunch or dinner.
It’s crispy on the edges and tender in the middle, spicy, tangy, and a little bit sweet. Try one floret erm, wing, and I promise, you’ll be back for more before you know it.
My Buffalo Cauliflower Wing Sauce
Before I break down the steps to this buffalo cauliflower recipe, let’s talk buffalo sauce. Named after Buffalo, New York, its city of origin, this rich, tangy, spicy condiment earned its fame as a sauce for regular chicken wings. It’s traditionally made with a cayenne pepper hot sauce like Frank’s RedHot, melted butter, and vinegar.
You can buy prepared buffalo sauce at many grocery stores. But for this buffalo cauliflower recipe, I prefer to make my own.
Like most recipes, I start with Frank’s RedHot and melted butter, but I forego any extra vinegar because I find the hot sauce to be tangy enough on its own. Instead, I stir in honey, which makes the sauce thick and glossy, and I add garlic powder and paprika for savory complexity. It’s super easy to stir together and so delicious!
Don’t do butter or honey? Check out my buffalo sauce recipe for a vegan option.
How to Make Buffalo Cauliflower Wings
Once you prepare your sauce, you can get going on the buffalo wings!
1. Prep the cauliflower.
Break it into large, wing-size florets. Careful not to make the pieces too small. If you do, the cauliflower will overcook before the coating gets crispy.
2. Make the batter and coat the cauliflower.
A simple batter gives this cauliflower a fun fried effect without any frying. Just whisk together water, flour, cornstarch, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and salt to make it. The flour makes the mixture thick enough to coat the cauliflower florets, and the cornstarch helps them bake up nice and crispy. Obviously, the spices add great flavor!
Toss the cauliflower florets in the batter and arrange them in a single layer on two large, parchment-lined baking sheets.
- Tip: Make the recipe gluten-free. Though I haven’t tried this myself, several readers have successfully used a cup-for-cup gluten-free flour blend in place of the all-purpose flour.
3. Bake the cauliflower at a high temperature.
Bake the cauliflower at 450°F for 10 minutes, then flip and bake for 10 minutes more.
4. Add sauce and bake again.
Remove from the oven and brush on some of the buffalo sauce. Bake until the cauliflower wings are dark and crisp around the edges, 12 to 15 minutes. Don’t skimp on this bake time! You want to give the florets plenty of time to caramelize and crisp up around the edges.
5. Brush with more buffalo sauce and serve!
The wings are a fantastic appetizer or snack on their own, but we also love them with ranch dressing or vegan ranch dressing for dipping. Blue cheese dressing is a classic pairing with buffalo wings too. Enjoy with carrot and/or celery sticks on the side.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Tips for Making the BEST Buffalo Cauliflower
- Don’t skip the parchment paper. For this recipe, it’s essential. Without it, the cauliflower wings will stick to the sheet pan when you try to flip them. Even with the parchment, make sure to use a spatula and flip them carefully. After just 10 minutes of baking, the batter surrounding them is still delicate, and it can easily tear during the flipping process.
- Brush with more sauce before serving. Let’s be honest: as good as buffalo cauliflower wings are, they’re mostly a vehicle for buffalo sauce. To really pack in that crave-worthy buffalo flavor, you’ll brush the wings with the sauce twice, once mid-bake and once right before serving. FYI, this is not a napkins-optional snack situation.
- Eat them right away. Well, maybe not right away, because these buffalo cauliflower bites are super hot when they come out of the oven. But they are best within a few minutes of baking, when they’re still warm and their edges are deliciously crisp. If you end up with leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. They won’t be crispy, but they’ll still taste great!
More Favorite Snacks and Appetizers
If you love these baked buffalo cauliflower wings, try one of these tasty snacks or appetizers next:
- Air Fryer Cauliflower
- Jalapeño Poppers
- Air Fryer Onion Rings
- Best Bean Dip
- Cowboy Caviar
- French Onion Dip
- Crispy Smashed Potatoes
- Or any of these 50 Easy Party Appetizers!
Buffalo Cauliflower Wings
Ingredients
- â…” cup all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¾ cup water
- 1 cauliflower, about 2 pounds, broken into large florets
- Buffalo Sauce, for brushing
- Ranch dressing, vegan ranch, or blue cheese dressing, for dipping, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and salt. Add the water and whisk until smooth. Add the cauliflower florets and stir to coat.
- Lift the cauliflower florets out of the batter, allowing any excess batter to drip back into the bowl. Arrange in a single layer on the prepared baking sheets and bake for 10 minutes. Use a spatula to carefully flip the florets. Bake for another 10 minutes, swapping the pans on the oven racks.
- Remove the cauliflower from the oven and brush with some of the buffalo sauce. Bake for another 12 to 15 minutes, or until the cauliflower is dark and crisp around the edges.
- Remove from the oven and brush with additional buffalo sauce. If desired, serve with ranch or blue cheese dressing for dipping.
Made these the other night, absolutely delicious!
After your suggestion for getting rid batter, having had issues with similar in the past, I took your advice 1 step further and having battered the cauliflower I let them stand and then cooked them on a cooling rack, worked better than I hoped, batter was lovely and crisp, and a bonus, I had some batter bits in the baking tray that I crushed and used as a deliously flavoured sprinkle over the dish to add some extra texture.
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe, will most definitely be making it again
I’m so glad you loved the recipe, Mike!
All parchment paper is only safe to 425° btw. So please only bake at safe temperatures according to the products you’re using.
Make the sauces a day ahead or hours before would be my suggestion. This all gets a little too messy to do all at once or with other dishes. Parchment paper burns after 425, so maybe foil is better to get the oven crispiness without a convection oven. Not sure that I will make this again soon, although may crave it at some point. The batter took on a slight bitterness, not sure what from? It wasn’t very crispy after all the ins and outs of the oven, but the sauce combinations were tasty.
Perfect, amazing! I made as written but doubled the garlic powder since I don’t have onion powder. I used Primal Kitchen buffalo sauce.
I’m so glad you loved the recipe!
This was one of the best recipes ever. My cali come out perfect. Thanks. I will be making these many times. Keeper!
So glad you loved them!
These were fantastic!!
So glad you loved them, Jen!
Delicious. My go too for the Super Bowl 🥳
So glad you love the recipe!
Hi, excited to try these! Is there a good way to prep them in advance?
Hmm, there really isn’t, they’re best fresh out of the oven (I’ve eaten them leftover but I probably wouldn’t serve them to guests that way). The batter could possibly be made ahead – you could thin it with water if it thickens.
Can cornstarch replace flour for GF option?
Hi Maureen, that would be a lot of cornstarch, but I think a GF all purpose flour would sub in here ok.
These are so delicious! And the texture of the cauliflower is surprisingly satisfying
I’m so glad you loved them!
Soggy, good flavour, not a favourite. I have made other buffalo cauliflower recipes that have turned out crispy, but I wanted to try one from Love and Lemons. The sauce you brush on for the second bake turns them soggy, not crispy (unless you almost burn them). The buffalo sauce was a hit, but that is it!
Finally! A recipe that works. I made the buffalo sauce and ranch dressing too. I added additional water to the batter as it was thicker than it should have been. All delicious. Will make again and again.
So glad you loved the recipe, Lorraine!
Hi Lorraine, I’m glad you enjoyed it!
It’s Buffalo sauce, with a capital “B” because it is paying homage to Buffalo Wings, which were created in Buffalo with hot sauce and butter.
First time I ever made these, they tasted ok but I sprayed the foil with Pam spray , could this be reason they didn’t get crispy? Are they supposed to be crispy like wings? They looked good like wing just not crispy.
Really delicious! Will be in regular rotation and going to try with different sauces.
What can I use instead of buffalo sauce? I’m looking for a very low-sodium option.
Hi Glo, you might like this crispy air fryer cauliflower recipe instead. You could simply reduce or omit the salt!
This is an Amazing RECIPE! THIS HAS BECOME A STAPLE. MY HUSBAND LOVES IT AND SO DO I. I MAKE THIS BUT FRY THEM. THANKS FOR THIS.
Hi Susan, I’m so glad you love the recipe!
I completely love this recipe! I keep coming back to it as being the best out there with very few changes (I add 1 tsp of lemon pepper to the flour mixture), and it’s totally delicious. That is for a simple recipe that really works!
Hi Alicia, I’m so glad you love the recipe!
Not sure what I did wrong, but the batter slid straight off once it was in the oven. I mean, roasted cauliflower is still tasty, but any tips on getting the batter to stay on?
try coating them in flour first, then dip in the batter. That might help.
Hi Megan, a little batter will pool around the cauliflower florets, but it shouldn’t totally slide off. I’d make sure your cauliflower is dry when you add it to the batter. If needed, start with a little less water (1/2 to 2/3 cup) in the batter next time to make it thicker.
Hi there. I cut off the florets and leave them out to dry for an afternoon. If they expell too much moisture while cooking, the batter gets soggy. The cauliflower crisps up better, too. I’ve got 2 heads on the counter now I’m going to trim down this morning, they’ll be ready by dinner tonight. Or even tomorrow afternoon if plans change.
You can also coat in flour, then dip and repeat a second time for extra stick and extra fluffy batter. That’s how I make my chicken strips.
These were GREAT! Just one question… I felt like the amount of cornstarch was a bit much. Next time I make them I’ll do much less of it.
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Let me know how that works out – we like how the cornstarch helps the edge get a little crisp.