Homemade Honey BBQ Cauliflower Wings (Air-fried)

One day I was craving Honey BBQ wings, but I am vegan, so I decided to substitute chicken for cauliflower without having to sacrifice flavor. I was able to come up with a recipe with step-by-step instructions so that other vegans could make flavorful wings to enjoy with the whole family. This recipe is not exclusive to vegans, in fact I encourage anyone who likes Honey BBQ flavor to indulge themselves. Enjoy!

Serving Size: 4

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Total Cook Time: 30-40 minutes

Dry Batter:

• 3/4 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika (smoked if you prefer)
• 1 teaspoon parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Wet Batter:

• 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Honey BBQ Sauce:

• 3/4 cup of BBQ sauce (any BBQ sauce you'd like)
• 2 Tablespoons of honey (preferably raw honey)
• 1 Tablespoon of Dijon Mustard (If you don't have mustard or don't like it, substitute for 1 Tablespoon of turmeric
• 1 teaspoon of Sriracha
• a dash of butter (vegan butter is preferred)

1 head of cauliflower

Dipping Sauce (Optional): Vegan Creamy Dill Dressing

Saucepan

Metal Cooking sheet

Plug the Air Fryer into the wall and turn it on 400 degrees and set it for 7 minutes.

Break up the head of cauliflower into small chunks. They should resemble drumsticks when you finish.

In a large bowl add flour, garlic powder, paprika, parsley, and black pepper. In a medium-sized bowl add unsweetened almond milk and apple cider vinegar. Mix the wet and dry batter separately. After letting them sit for a minute or two mix them together. Make sure to mix it well, so that there are no clumps, it should be smooth.

Grab a clean cooking sheet and lay the pieces of cauliflower on it.

Once the cauliflower is spread out on the cooking sheet, pour the dry/wet mix onto the cauliflower.

Make sure that you coat every piece. If you want to you can actually dip each piece of cauliflower into the dry/wet batter mix and then place the cauliflower onto the cooking sheet.

After the cauliflower is completely coated, put them in the air fryer.

I recommend splitting the cauliflower into two sections so that the air fryer does not get overcrowded.

Once you place half of the cauliflower batch in the air fryer, make sure that it reads 400 degrees for 7 minutes.

After the 7 minutes is up, turn them over and place them back in the air fryer for 7 more minutes. This step is to ensure that the cauliflower forms a firm shell. Cauliflower has a natural soft outer shell when dipped in the mixed batter, so the combined 14 minutes, 7 on each side makes it crispier with a desired crunch.

Repeat the same process with the remaining cauliflower. 7 minutes on each side, if it is not crispy enough for you add 2 more minutes to each side. Keep an eye on the air fryer timer because when your timer is up it will shift the temperature down and continue to cook.

While the cauliflower is cooling off, mix the ingredients to make the honey BBQ sauce and place in a small saucepan on low heat (stovetop). You can either do this step on the stove top or just warm it up in a plastic bowl and place in the microwave for about 20 seconds.

After the Honey BBQ sauce is warmed up and the cauliflower has cooled, pour the sauce all over the cauliflower. At this stage the cauliflower should be in a big bowl while you are pouring the sauce over it. The sauce should cover every inch of the cauliflower.

Now, you can either eat the Honey BBQ Cauliflower wings like they are or pop them back in the air fryer for an additional 5-7 minutes for crispiness.

Keep an eye on the cauliflower so it does not overcook.

Remember vegetables do not take long to cook, so be mindful of how long you leave them in the air fryer.