Teriyaki Cauliflower Wings in the Air Fryer

Recently, Bill and I were out at our weekly trivia game and he spied Buffalo chicken wings on the menu and ordered them. Except when they arrived they were actually cauliflower wings that came with a buffalo sauce as well as teriyaki dipping sauce. They were so delicious we knew we needed to try to make them at home in the air fryer.

Teriyaki Cauliflower Wings

Now, Bill has never chosen cauliflower on purpose from a restaurant menu. He’s also a cheapskate so when the dish arrived, he wasn’t going to send them back because he misread the cauliflower for chicken. He also wasn’t going not to eat them because he was hungry and wanted to get his money’s worth.

At the first bite, he knew he’d discovered a vegetarian appetizer that, had he not mistakenly ordered, he never would have realized he loved. And we think you’re going to love it, too, especially if you’ve previously had an aversion to anything to do with cauliflower.

One of the reasons that our recreated recipe has such a nice bite to it is panko breadcrumbs. I love using them to get a crisp outer layer on anything baked or fried, such as copycat Trader Joe’s arancini, or when using our air fryer. Our popular air fryer chicken cutlets recipe features panko, too.

Also, cauliflower is one of those neutral foods that takes on the flavor you add to it. So using it as a base for vegetarian air fried “wings” is simply brilliant, and I’m so glad that the restaurant that hosts our weekly trivia night introduced us to this concept. When making it at home, I like to mix things up and serve it with this easy Vietnamese peanut dipping sauce.

If you’re a fan of the Asian fusion ramen dish tantanmen — a Japanese take on Sichuan’s dan dan noodles — you’ll love this recipe. It shares many of the same ingredients.

Ingredients Overview

Step-by-Step Instructions

There are two sections to these instructions. First, you need to prepare and cook the cauliflower. Next, you need to make the teriyaki sauce.

Prepping and Cooking the Cauliflower

Cut cauliflower into florets.

In a medium sized bowl, add the milk, flour, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper.

Whisk until well combined.

Add your cauliflower florets to the bowl with milk and cover all florets.

Cover cauliflower in panko breadcrumbs. Make sure all florets are evenly coated.

Place the florets in the air fryer in a single layer. 

Cook for 20 minutes at 350 F.

Making the Teriyaki Sauce

Add the water, soy sauce, brown sugar, honey, minced garlic, minced ginger in a sauce pan and cook on medium-high heat until the water has evaporated and the sauce becomes thicker. This can take about 10-15 minutes.

Now it’s time to combine the cooked florets and the teriyaki sauce.

Pour the teriyaki sauce over the cooked florets. Garnish with sliced scallions and sesame seeds.

Notes

To avoid the cauliflower become soggy and cold, don’t air fry and then wait to make the teriyaki sauce on the stovetop. Instead, try to time it so that you’re making the teriyaki sauce while the florets are cooking.

This recipe calls for homemade teriyaki sauce. However, if you’re short on time or have a favorite store-bought brand, feel free to substitute.

You can make this recipe using dairy milk or soy milk or another non-dairy milk.

We eat these with a fork but if you’re serving as an appetizer, you can always put them on a platter with dipping sauce in the middle and encourage people to use their fingers.