Sesame Cauliflower is coated in batter and a delicious sweet and spicy sauce. This recipe rivals any vegetarian takeout. Serve over white rice for a spectacular Meatless Monday meal.
I cook quite a few vegetarian recipes since my daughter is vegetarian. She loves Asian food and it lends itself so well to vegetarian cooking. Anything tastes good in a flavorful sauce. Cauliflower is my daughter’s very favorite vegetable so it is my go to vegetable to use for a vegetarian main dish.
Even if you don’t have a vegetarian in your family, this Sesame Cauliflower is a must try. It is so good! The batter perfectly coats the cauliflower and fries up light and crispy. The cauliflower florets get just tender inside the coating. They are tossed in a wonderful sauce made from fresh ginger, garlic, sambal oelek, ketchup, sesame oil, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, and vegetable broth.
Serve over rice for a totally delicious vegetarian meal.
Sesame Cauliflower
Ingredients
Sauce
- 3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sambal oelek
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 3 tablespoons white vinegar
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
Batter
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/4 cups water
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
Remaining Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
- Peanut oil for frying
- 1 green bell pepper, but into chunks
- 1 sweet onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
- white rice for serving
- green onions for garnish
Instructions
- In a bowl, mix together sambal oolek, vegetable broth, vinegar, soy sauce, ketchup, sugar, and cornstarch.
- Heat sesame oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add ginger and garlic and cook 1 minute.
- Add vegetable broth mixture. Cook, stirring frequently, until thickened. Keep warm.
- Pour 2 inches peanut oil into a Dutch oven. Heat to 365 degrees.
- In a medium bowl, stir together flour, cornstarch, salt, pepper, baking powder, and baking soda.
- Whisk water and vegetable oil into flour mixture.
- Add cauliflower to batter, coating well.
- Fry about 5 to 6 pieces at a time, frying until golden brown on both sides. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate.
- Once all cauliflower is fried, turn heat off and add onion and green pepper to oil. Let cook about 30 seconds and then remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate.
- Serve cauliflower over rice with green pepper and onions and drizzle with sauce and sprinkle with sesame seeds just before serving
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Looking for more vegetarian meals? This Asian Garlic Tofu is the most popular vegetarian recipe on Spicy Southern Kitchen. Watch the video below to see how to make it.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
This website is really helpful for me to learn how to cook and play EElastic Man online.