General Tso’s Cauliflower

I have been working on adding a few meatless meals into my week however, I personally have found that these meals aren’t as satisfying. That’s where recipes like this come into play! I found this recipe from Woks of Life and you need to check out their page. This meatless recipe has everything you need, that crunch of fried foods, a little bit of heat, and a little bit of sweet!

Ingredients

For the Cauliflower

• 1 Small Cauliflower Head
• 2 TSP Cornstarch
• 1 TSP Baking Soda
• 1/2 TSP Salt
• 1 TSP Sesame Oil
• 1/8 TSP White Pepper/or regular pepper if you don’t have
• 1/4 Cup Water
• 1 Cup Rice Flour/ I used regular flour and it worked out okay!
• 2 TSP Toasted Sesame Seeds
• 2-3 Cups of Canola Oil

For the Sauce

• 1 TSP Canola Oil
• 2 TSP Ginger, finely minced
• 2 Cloves Garlic, finely minced
• 5 Whole Dried Red Chili Peppers, optional
• 1/2 TBSP Shaoxing Wine, I didn’t use and it still worked out!
• 1/2 TSP Sesame Oil
• 1 1/2 TBSP Light Soy Sauce
• 2 TBSP Rice Wine Vinegar
• 2 TBSP Sugar
• 1 Cup Water/Chicken Stock
• 1 TBSP Cornstarch + 1 TBSP Water
• Scallon for topping

Let’s Get Cooking

Cut the cauliflower into about 1-2 inch chunks. Mix into a batter cornstarch + baking soda + salt + sesame oil+ white pepper + 1/4 cup water + 3/4 cup rice flour in a large bowl.

Add in the cauliflower and fold together until the cauliflower is coated. Sprinkling the rest of the rice flour over the cauliflower, mix everything until it is sticking to the cauliflower.

In a small pot or large pan, heat the oil to 375F. While heating, sprinkle sesame seeds over the cauliflower. Once the oil reaches heat, fry the cauliflower in small batches, about 3 minutes each. Once fried, remove from heat and place on a baking sheet lined with paper towels.

In a wok, heat 1 TBSP of oil over med-high heat. Add in ginger and let fry for a few seconds. Add in garlic + dried red pepper and stir. Add in Shaoxing wine + sesame oil + soy sauce + rice wine vinegar + sugar + water/chicken stock. Turn the heat down to low and let simmer. Add in the cornstarch slurry and stir constantly, for about 20 seconds. The sauce should thicken and coat the spoon.

Add the fried cauliflower and scallions into the sauce and mix until everything is well coated!

Top with a little extra sesame seeds and serve with rice or on it’s own!

Made with Love,

Hannah