Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower
These Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower are crunchy, crispy, tangy, and irresistible. Perfect as a side dish or a vegetarian appetizer with a creamy dip. It’s so easy to make and takes only 15 minutes.
Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower
Cauliflower is a very versatile vegetable and it’s one of my favorites. I cook cauliflower in so many ways in the Air fryer like Air Fryer Cauliflower Steaks and Crispy Roasted Cauliflower.
When I couldn’t find chicken wings in the stores to make some Buffalo wings I tried it with cauliflower and we loved them! It has become one of our go-to vegetarian appetizers now.
This Air fryer Buffalo Cauliflower is crispy and crunchy thanks to a coating of panko breadcrumbs. It’s spicy, tangy, and mildly sweet. I use Frank’s Buffalo wing sauce because it’s convenient and has great flavor.
I’ll show you how to make a creamy dip that makes these an awesome appetizer. It makes the perfect vegetarian alternative to Buffalo chicken wings.
I love cooking vegetables in the Fryer. You’ll love Air fryer vegetables such as Air Fryer Green Beans, Air Fryer Broccoli, and Air Fryer Brussel Sprouts. The Air fryer cooks food by circulating hot air around, making them perfectly roasted and so delicious than any other cooking method. Plus they’re convenient and take less time. We consume more vegetables now thanks to the Air fryer. For more Air fryer side dishes, check our Air Fryer Recipe collection.
Ingredient Notes
- Cauliflower – one medium or large head of cauliflower.
- Olive oil cooking spray
- Buffalo sauce – I use Frank’s Buffalo Wing Hot Sauce as a base.
- Sugar – A bit of sweetness to balance the flavors out.
- Egg white – helps the breadcrumbs stick to the cauliflower.
- Panko breadcrumbs
How to Make Buffalo Sauce
To make the buffalo sauce for this recipe, I use Frank’s Buffalo Wing Hot sauce, sugar and egg whites. If you can’t find this particular sauce or prefer using the plain old Hot Sauce follow the measurement below.
To make the buffalo sauce from hot sauce, combine 3/4 cup of Hot Sauce with 1/4 cup of melted butter and use it in the recipe.
How To Cut Cauliflower Florets
Choose a cauliflower that’s blemish-free and looks white and creamy in color. If it’s individually wrapped make sure it doesn’t smell when you remove the plastic. Then remove the tough outer leaves with a sharp knife. Cut the cauliflower into quarters.
Now, cut the stem off of each quarter. Then, separate into bite-sized pieces.
How To Make Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower
Scroll below for the printable recipe card and ingredient measurements.
To make the Buffalo sauce, whisk together Frank’s Buffalo hot sauce, sugar, egg whites in a small bowl. Add the cauliflower florets into a large bowl and pour the Buffalo hot sauce mixture in.
Toss the cauliflower florets with the sauce to evenly coat. Take the breadcrumbs in a separate bowl. Add a few cauliflower florets in and cover with breadcrumbs making sure the breadcrumbs stick to the cauliflower on all sides. Coat the remaining florets with breadcrumbs. Spray cauliflower florets with some olive oil cooking spray.
Preheat Air fryer to 350F. Place the cauliflower florets in the Air fryer basket. Air fry for 15 minutes, shaking the basket halfway through, until tender and crispy. Transfer to a plate and serve immediately with your favorite creamy dip.
Recipe Tips
- Evenly sized pieces – Make sure the cauliflower florets are the same size to ensure they all finish cooking at the same time.
- Single layer – Place the cauliflower in a single layer for the hot air to circulate completely and make it crispy. Cook in batches if needed. You can keep them warm by heating up all cauliflower for a minute or two in the Air fryer just before serving.
Creamy Dips To Serve With Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower
Make your own creamy dip to serve with these crispy cauliflower bites. Add celery sticks and carrot sticks to make an appetizer platter.
Creamy Dip– Combine 1/4 cup sour cream, 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 1 tsp garlic powder, and 1/4 tsp black pepper. Thin it down with 1 tbsp milk if you prefer.
Or try some of our favorite creamy dips.
- Ranch dressing – this classic dressing goes well with any appetizers, specially with buffalo sauce.
- Blue cheese dressing – the traditional blue cheese dressing has mayonnaise, sour cream, half and half and is luxuriously creamy.
More Cauliflower Recipes:
- Cauliflower Rice
- Creamy Mashed Cauliflower
- Cauliflower and Coconut Curry
- Air Fryer Crispy Cauliflower
More Air Fryer Recipes You’ll Love:
- Air Fryer Hasselback Sweet Potatoes
- Air Fryer Sweet Potato Cubes
- Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
- Air Fryer Carrots
- Air Fryer Broccoli
- Air Fryer Brussel Sprouts
DID YOU MAKE IT? Please leave a comment and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe!
Recipe
Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower
Equipment
- Air Fryer
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower cut into bite sized pieces
- 1 cup Buffalo wings hot sauce* I use Franks
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 egg whites
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
Creamy Dip
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp milk to thin it down optional
Instructions
- To make the Buffalo sauce, whisk together Frank's Buffalo hot sauce, sugar, egg whites in a small bowl.
- Add the cauliflower florets into a large mixing bowl and pour the Buffalo sauce mixture in. Toss the cauliflower with the sauce to evenly coat.
- Take the breadcrumbs in a separate bowl. Add a few florets in and cover with breadcrumbs making sure the breadcrumbs stick to the cauliflower on all sides. Coat the reamining florets with breadcrumbs. Spray cauliflower with some olive oil cooking spray.
- Preheat Air fryer to 350F. Place the cauliflower in the air fryer basket.
- Air fry for 15 minutes, shaking the basket halfway through, until tender and crispy. Transfer to a plate and serve immediately with the creamy dip.
- To make the creamy dip, whisk together sour cream, mayonnaise, garlic powder, black pepper in a bowl. You can add milk to thin it down.
Notes
- *Buffalo Sauce – I use Frank’s Buffalo Wing sauce for this recipe. If you want to use regular Hot sauce, combine 3/4 cup hot sauce with 1/4 cup melted butter to use in this recipe.
- Store – leftover cauliflower in an airtight container for 3 days.
- Reheat – in the Air fryer at 350F for 2 to 3 minutes until warm and crispy.
Nutrition
Save This Recipe!
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!