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Kentucky Fried Cauliflower

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Move over Col. Sanders, my Kentucky Fried Cauliflower is the new kid in town, and you know what?

Cauliflower doesn’t have feathers!

kentucky fried cauliflower

I’ve heard that Cauliflower is the new ‘Chicken’ when it comes to a plant-based diet.  Even the bigger restaurants are realizing just how versatile our cruciferous friend can be.

Think cauliflower steaks, barbecued cauliflower, whole roasted cauliflower, or even my own copycat recipe for Vegan Orange Chicken (cauliflower). 

No doubt about it – the once lowly Cauliflower is rapidly climbing up the food chain.  And for good reason:

  • Cauliflower is very nutrient dense, and not calorie dense like most our Standard American Diet foods.
  • It is also low in calories, low in fat, and high in fiber, Vitamin C, and Vitamin K
  • And full of healthy antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds, which lower oxidative stress and helps prevent cancer.

But the one thing about Cauliflower that was hard for me to come to terms with….. was its taste.

I just didn’t like it!

Probably because as I was growing up, it was always served WAY over-cooked (mom would literally boil it to death),  so it was mushy, tasteless, and just plain nasty!

But NOW……  we’ve learned how to dress it up a little.

Like dredging it in those 11 secret herbs & spices that made that Kentucky gentleman in the white suit so famous.  (Did I really see a KFC commercial with Reba McEntire dressed up as Col. Sanders?   I love Reba, but no…..just…..just…. NO!!!) 

So even if you’re a glorified Cauliflower hater (like I used to be), I ask that you simply give this a try.  I guarantee that when its spiced up a bit it will soon become one of your new favorites and you won’t be able to get enough of it.

Fair?

Now let’s go fry some Cauliflower.

 

Kentucky Fried Cauliflower

kentucky fried cauliflower

Kentucky Fried Cauliflower | Brand New Vegan

AIR FRY I should say.

This is a NO OIL, Air Fryer recipe.  But if you don’t have an Air Fryer, a convection oven (that blows hot air around the food) should work too.

And if you just have a regular oven – I think this will still work, but you will have to watch it closely and probably turn the pieces often to get them crispy.

I personally use a Cuisinart Toaster Oven/Air Fryer which I have listed in my Amazon Store.  

BNV’s Amazon Store. 

 

Ok so first, let’s make the breading

Combine the Panko, and all the dry breading ingredients together in a small bowl.  Whisk thoroughly and then pour this into a flat, shallow pan we can use for dredging.

 

Next, let’s get the gravy started

Now, this is a traditional cream gravy, and it does contain flour.

So for you Gluten-Free folks, you can just skip this part, or substitute your own favorite GF gravy.   You can even use a Vegan Ranch Dressing if you’d prefer, like my Cool Vegan Ranch Dressing. 

We’re going to whisk ¼ cup of flour, the nutritional yeast, sage, salt, pepper, and thyme together in a small bowl and pour this into a large frying pan.  We want to toast the flour and spices just slightly (1 min or so) before slowly whisking in 3 cups of Unsweetened Almond Milk.

Simmer over med-low heat, stirring often, until it thickens to a gravy-like consistency  (it will thicken even more when it cools).  

 

Now the batter

Because so many of you have asked for GF options, I decided to give Chickpea Flour a try.

Mine was made by Bob’s Red Mill so look in that section of your grocery store.  If you can’t find it, regular flour will work too.

Whisk ½ cup of chickpea flour (or regular flour), the onion powder, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.  Meanwhile, whisk 2 tsp of either lemon juice or apple cider vinegar together with 1 cup of unsweetened almond milk to make the ‘buttermilk’.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix to make a thin, pancake-like batter (it should not be thick).  Pour this into another flat, shallow pan and let’s start dipping.

 

The dredging process

I used frozen cauliflower for this because it’s already cooked and will not take too long in the air fryer.  Besides, frozen cauliflower pieces are already broken up into florets, and are usually way cheaper than buying fresh.

For the actual dredging process, professional chefs will use what is known as the “wet/dry hand” method here.  Meaning use one hand to grab a piece of cauliflower and roll it in the wet batter.  Then with the same hand –  place it in the breading.

Now using your DRY hand – sprinkle the breading all over/roll it around until the battered cauliflower is now evenly coated with breading.

Place the coated pieces directly into your Air Fryer Basket (if using a convection oven, place on a cookie sheet instead).

There is enough batter and breading to easily coat a 12oz bag of frozen Cauliflower (and probably more) but my Air Fryer Basket is only so big so I stopped here.  If you want to start a 2nd bag of cauliflower, it’s up to you.

We want to Air Fry these at 390° F for about 20 minutes.  After 10 minutes or so pull them out and give them a shake/turn/flip.

*

And that my friends…. is it.

Crispy, crunchy, Kentucky Fried Cauliflower…..

With all the health benefits of eating our vegetables, and all the taste and texture of eating one of our favorite comfort foods from the past….

Without using any oil, and not a single feather shed.

How’s that for a win-win?

Let me know how you like them and until next week…..

 

Eat Your Veggies!

brandnewvegan

 

5 from 13 votes
Print
Kentucky Fried Cauliflower
Prep Time
40 mins
Cook Time
20 mins
Total Time
1 hr
 

A southern-fried treat using Cauliflower instead of chicken, and air-frying to eliminate the oil. Same great taste, only a whole lot healthier.  Move over Col. Sanders, there's a new kid in town! 

Course: Comfort Food
Cuisine: American, Oil-Free, Vegan
Author: Chuck Underwood
Ingredients
  • 1 bag Frozen Cauliflower (12 oz bag)
Batter
  • 1 cup Unsweetened Almond Milk
  • 2 tsp Lemon Juice (or ACV)
  • 1/2 cup Garbanzo Bean Flour (chickpea)
  • 1/2 tsp Onion Powder
  • 1/4 tsp Salt & Pepper
Breading
  • 1 cup Panko Bread Crumbs
  • 1 Tbs Paprika
  • 2 tsp Garlic Salt
  • 1 tsp Ground Ginger
  • 1 tsp Dried Mustard
  • 1 tsp Celery Seed
  • 1/2 tsp White Pepper
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 1/2 tsp Ground Thyme
  • 1/2 tsp Dried Basil
  • 1/2 tsp Oregano
  • 1/4 tsp Black Pepper
Cream Gravy
  • 1/4 cup Flour
  • 1 Tbs Nutritional Yeast
  • 1 tsp Rubbed Sage
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 1/2 tsp Black Pepper
  • 1 pinch Ground Thyme
  • 3 cups Unsweetened Almond Milk
Instructions
Breading

  1. Whisk all dry ingredients together in a bowl, then spread evenly in a flat, shallow pan for dredging.  Set aside. 

Gravy

  1. If not using gravy - you can skip this section. Otherwise:

  2. Whisk all dry gravy ingredients together and then pour into a large skillet.  

  3. Toast dry ingredients for 1-2 minutes over med-low heat, then slowly stir in 3 cups of almond milk. 

  4. Whisk to remove any lumps and stir often as it begins to thicken.  

  5. Once gravy has thickened to a thick, gravy-like consistency, remove from heat and set aside.  ( It will thicken even more - thin with more almond milk if necessary) 

Batter

  1. Whisk all dry ingredients together in a small bowl. 

  2. Also whisk either lemon juice or vinegar into almond milk to make the 'buttermilk'.  Pour into the dry ingredients and mix until smooth. 

  3. Pour batter into a flat, shallow pan. 

The Assembly

  1. With one hand, place several pieces of cauliflower into the wet batter and turn to coat evenly, then place them into the breading. 

  2. Using your OTHER hand, sprinkle breading on battered pieces and turn to coat evenly before placing into Air Fryer Basket.   (or cookie sheet)

  3. Air Fryer / Convection Oven:

    Air fry at 390 degrees F for 20 minutes.  Check after 10 minutes and shake.

  4. Regular Oven:

    Bake at 390 degrees F for 20-30 minutes.  Check and flip/turn every 10 minutes until crispy.  This may take longer. 

Recipe Notes

Serve with Cream Gravy for dipping, or your favorite dressing. 

Tips are always appreciated!

kentucky fried cauliflower

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. kdmi

    Haven’t tried this yet — and will need to use a regular oven so thanks for adding in a note about that — but I think this recipe will probably go viral because it is so clever and imaginative!

    We are lucky to be living in a time when the internet helps spread the beauty of veganism along with creative vegan recipe developments like this one. Eating veggies keeps getting more sassy and fun!
    Thanks!

    Reply

  2. Julie

    Would you recommend a certain brand/model of air fryer? I’d like to get one…but I want one that’s easy to clean. 🙂

    Reply

  3. Pink

    How often do you use your air fryer? I’ve been contemplating one for a long time, but wonder just how often I would make use of it.

    Reply

    • Chuck Underwood

      I actually use it quite a bit. French fries are so easy with it. And I made some Tater Tots that were amazing. These Chicken Nuggets made from Cauliflower are amazing too. I’m happy with mine, but your choice.

      Reply

  8. Sue

    Not having an air fryer, I used the oven with a 2-piece crisper tray. Worked great but baked for 30-40 minutes. We liked ww flour instead of the garbanzo flour which gave a weird taste.

    Reply

  10. Kate

    Been going ‘round and ‘round about an air fryer for awhile now,, this recipe has convinced me! Yup! One more gadget……

    Reply

  12. Vikki

    For your gluten free followers, I have used brown rice flour in recipes calling for other flours and so far I have never had a fail.

    Reply

  13. Ellen Lederman

    I bought a bag of frozen cauliflower for this, but now am having second thoughts because the pieces are pretty small. Not teeny tiny like cauliflower rice, but small like the size of a quarter/50 cent piece. Havne’t had KFC in over 30 years, but don’t think the pieces were that small—these are more like what I would imagine mini McNuggets to look like. How big were your pieces? Maybe I should just use fresh cauliflower—don’t have an air fryer so I will be baking them.

    Reply

  14. Heather

    OMG I just made this and it’s amazing! My cauliflower pieces were small but the recipe worked perfectly!

    Reply

  17. Monique

    I made them in my oven on parchment. Came out great! I love the texture and taste. My husband liked them too. Very peppery though. I would cut the black pepper back to about 1/4 of what you have in there. Also, I think I’ll cut the celery seed in half as well. The gravy was also delicious (but also, less pepper). I put it on mashed potatoes and my picture looked like your picture.

    Reply

  19. Polly

    This recipe is wonderful! Produces a very nice browned, crispy vegetable in the air fryer! I also used the batter to make eggplant Parmesan. It was great! This will be my “go to” batter for the air fryer!

    Reply

  20. Kelly A

    Oh yum! Made exactly according to your directions for oven method. Had a little batter left over and three baked potatoes in the fridge. Cut potatoes into quarters, dipped in batter, and placed on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet, sprinkled with paprika. Cooked along with KFC and delish! Great combo. Dr. MacDougall has taken away my fear of carbs!

    Reply

  21. Linda

    Oh No! I didn’t read the recipe correctly and I bought a huge head of cauliflower! Do you think it would work with fresh cauliflower?

    Reply

  22. Jeanne

    I made these chicken nuggets and mashed potatoes and gravy for dinner. It all was delicious. I do not usually eat much salt so I found it a little salty. My taste buds have changed since I started following the McDougall way of eating. I don’t like store bought potato chips for the same reason. Next time I will just decrease the salt. I will definitely make this again though. I really missed my KFC bowls from the past and this was really close to the real thing, Lots of great vegetables. Thanks Chuck for another great recipe,. You are the best!

    Reply

  23. Kelly

    Seriously taste like the real thing. Has anyone tried this with cauliflower steaks? Chicken fried steak, so to speak. I will also use last slot next time, but I think the original is quite salty

    Reply

  24. Pam

    I made this tonight in my air fryer. Loved it! Crispy cauliflower and delicious mashed potato and gravy. I used fresh cauliflower.

    Reply

  27. Haden

    We loved these! I used oat milk, and brined my cauliflower for about two hours before. Thanks for the recipe. I’ll be using this for a long time 🙂

    Reply

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