Description
Enjoy this Glazed Orange Cauliflower Chicken featuring crispy orange cauliflower in a sticky sauce. Perfect for a healthy orange cauliflower wings broccoli slaw meal or sheet pan orange cauliflower chicken thighs roasted style dinner. This vegan orange cauliflower Chinese takeout copycat is both delicious and easy to make.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 raw small heads of cauliflower makes around 3 cups of florets 650g
- Neutral oil for frying
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tbsp corn starch
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup room temp. water
- 1 1/2 cup bread crumbs
- 1/2 cup desiccated coconut or sub more bread crumbs
- 1 cup orange juice from 2 navel oranges or orange juice of choice
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 2–4 tbsp maple syrup or other liquid sweetener of choice adjust according to desired sweetness
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar or distilled white vinegar
- 2 tbsp room temp. water
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 4 tbsp room temp. water
- Extra orange slices
- Sesame seeds for garnishing
- Steamed rice
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine cornstarch with water to create a slurry and set it aside.
- Mix all glaze ingredients in a large bowl and reserve, starting with 2 tablespoons of syrup and adding more for sweetness if needed.
- Prepare the batter by mixing flour, corn starch, baking powder, salt, and water until smooth and thick.
- Blend bread crumbs and desiccated coconut in a separate bowl.
- Dip cauliflower florets in the batter evenly in batches, then coat them thoroughly in the bread crumb mixture, pressing to adhere.
- Heat neutral oil in a large frying pan over high heat and test when hot by adding some bread crumbs, then fry cauliflower until golden on all sides, turning every 2 minutes; drain on a strainer or cooling rack and let cool.
- Clean out the oil from the pan if needed.
- Using the same pan, heat the glaze mixture over medium heat and let it simmer for 3 to 4 minutes; when boiling, reduce heat and stir the slurry again.
- Remove pan from heat, stir in the cornstarch slurry quickly until glaze thickens.
- Add crispy cauliflower to the pan or pour glaze over them and toss to coat evenly.
- Optionally, garnish with sesame seeds and orange slices. Serve immediately while hot.
Notes
- For crisp tops, broil 2–3 minutes at the end
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Main Course, Snack
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Chinese, Fusion
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 517 kcal
- Sugar: 17g
- Sodium: 2390mg
- Fat: 13g
- Saturated Fat: 9g
- Unsaturated Fat: 1g + 1g
- Carbohydrates: 87g
- Fiber: 10g
- Protein: 16g