Crispy Cauliflower Nuggets
Exciting news! (I mean, beside the fact that you're about to make your own deliciously crunchy cauliflower nuggets.) I got the job I've been so hoping to hear back from at the non-profit, and I'm so excited about it! So excited, in fact, that I demanded we celebrate by making nuggets and fries for dinner. Alex happily obliged. Now the nuggets might be gone but the excitement is STILL HERE! I feel like this move is to a position that is much more closely aligned with the work I'd like to spend the rest of my life doing, and again, I'm PUMPED! So, go me. Enough of that though...how 'bout those nuggets?
Crispy, perfectly golden, fried cauliflower nuggets will change the future of nuggets as we know it. Alex claimed they were better than any chicken nugget he had ever had (duh!), and loved the slight crunch and the fact that he didn't feel like crap after eating them. I love all things fried (in moderation, of course), and was happy to have something to slather in ketchup- my guilty pleasure. Now I know frying is bad and we shouldn't do it, but if we're gonna splurge here, at least you're frying up a vegetable, right? And 2014 has been named the Year of the Cauliflower- so let's do this thing!
INGREDIENTS
2 cups cauliflower florets (about 1/2 head of cauliflower) 1/4 cup high heat oil, for frying (coconut, grapeseed, and avocado oils are all great high-heat options) Flax Wash: 1/4 cup ground flax 1/4 cup almond meal 3/4 cup water Flour Mix: 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs (gluten-free or regular) 1/4 cup almond meal 1 teaspoon organic sugar 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper DIRECTIONS In a small bowl, make flax wash by mixing ground flax, almond meal, and water. Set aside. Next, mix together in a medium-sized mixing bowl the bread crumbs, almond meal, sugar, nutritional yeast, garlic salt, salt, pepper, and cayenne. This mixture will become your breading. Heat 1/4 cup oil n a large frying pan over medium heat. Dip cauliflower florets into the flax wash mixture, coating lightly but evenly. Next, dip cauliflower into the flour mixture and coat completely. Drop coated cauliflower nuggets into the heated oil, and cook until golden and crunchy, then flip and repeat until the nugget is evenly fried, about 2-3 minutes on each side. Using tongs or a spatula, move cooked nuggets to a paper towel lined plate to absorb excess oil, let cool several minutes, then enjoy with your favorite dipping sauce! Best if eaten immediately. Uneaten nuggets can be reheated in the oven at 375 degrees for 10 minutes, or until warm. Enjoy! **Not much for fried foods? You can try baking these at 400 degrees for about 20-30 minutes, flipping halfway through. They won't be nearly as crunchy and crispy, but probably much healthier. Do what you gotta do!
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21 Comments
Caleb
3/17/2014 02:37:41 am
Congrats on the job (and the nuggets)! Here I was going to email you about what you thought of moving back to Maine (as a vegan) because we were thinking of doing the same and you move to Cali (which is our other option)!
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Amber link
3/18/2014 01:39:06 am
Hi Caleb! Thank you and yes, I can share- I'll be working with the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals in their social marketing department. Im super excited!
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Kaylee @ Lemons and Basil link
3/17/2014 02:57:15 am
These look AMAZING! As in I want to run home and make them NOW, yum!
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Maria Tadic link
3/17/2014 06:33:52 am
These look so delicious! I want to make a buffalo version of these!!
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Crista link
3/17/2014 09:24:42 am
LOVE this recipe!! I love anything that has to do with cauliflower!! xox
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Hayley
3/17/2014 03:26:17 pm
These look so delicious, now toonly find flax seeds in this small town of ours.
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Amber link
3/18/2014 01:40:21 am
Hi Hayley! Try veganessentials.com or eatseed.com, they often run cheap specials on flax seeds that you can have delivered right to your door!
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veena link
3/17/2014 06:39:08 pm
so tasty and perfect kids snack
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Nikki Finn link
4/2/2014 02:35:36 am
Looks perfect in the picture, but I did not like them :((( It actually did not end up like it is pictured... so sad :( cause I really really liked the idea. Anyway, thank you :)
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Amber link
4/2/2014 06:13:06 am
Hey Nikki! Sorry you didn't have success with this recipe. We've made it multiple times with no problem. I'm happy to help you troubleshoot if I can!
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Nikki Finn
4/2/2014 06:50:42 am
I went through the recipe again and controlled everything and dew to my poor English :D I probably found what I was doinf wrong. I did not use ground flax seed. I used it whole and of course the flour mix did not hold onto it. I will try once more, I still have the ingredients. And will not use the sugar and add more cayenne pepper... I really like the idea... it must work even in the Czech Republic :D
Nikki Finn
4/2/2014 08:43:34 pm
due :D not dew ... god!!§ :D
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suzanne
4/10/2014 10:20:28 am
We do not eat oil. I am wondering if these would be good baked instead? I might need to try this but fat-free. Have you tried it baked?
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Amber St. Peter
4/12/2014 02:13:23 am
Hi Suzanne- please be sure to read all the way through the recipe, baking instructions are at the bottom :)
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Suzanne
4/12/2014 07:03:42 am
You are awesome! Thx so much!
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Diandra
8/29/2014 02:52:52 am
I am so glad I stumbled upon your website through findingvegan.com ..your pictures are mouth watering! I love the idea of a fried cauliflower nugget, and your 1 page print outs are really handy. Thanks for sharing the veggie love!
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Diandra
9/1/2014 08:01:19 am
Just a follow up - I was really excited to try these and spent the last hour trying to trouble shoot because they did not work out :( I used everything except the nutritional yeast and sugar and the breadcrumb mix would just not stick! I tried adding more almond meal and ended up making an almond meal breading mix instead but it all eventually melted off the cauliflower once in the oil and amounted to fried cauliflower. any advice or tips would be helpful!
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Amber link
9/16/2014 04:56:36 am
Hmm..I'm not sure what went wrong here. Of course, if you did not follow the recipe to a T, I can't vouch for what will happen, but was your flax seed ground? Hope we can help you figure out what went wrong, we love making these little nuggets! :)
Laurie
11/3/2014 08:01:27 am
Hello! Six week old baby vegan here. I've tried a few recipes and have not had much success. I tried this one tonight. I did both fried and baked since my husband isn't into fried but I am. The fried came apart and was a greasy mess. I'm not sure what I did wrong. I just had a pile of cauliflower and a pile of greasy coating bits. The baked turned out awesome though! Super delicious. I'll definitely do the baked version again. Who knew I'd like baked more than fried!
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The Vegan Junction link
6/23/2015 04:45:37 am
Wow, those look perfectly crunchy! And cauliflower too. ;)
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Nicola Reeves
8/8/2018 05:36:17 am
Contrary to some of the other comments, I had great success with this recipe. Delicious, surprising, and easy. I found this recipe very quick to make and my other non-vegan family members also enjoyed themselves. Also I ran out of avocado oil half way and used olive oil instead which actually caused the batter to stick to the bottom of the pan, So if you have a problem where the coating is falling off don't use olive oil.
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