Deep-Fried Cauliflower Florets, Easy 3-Ingredient Recipe

If this isn’t the easiest appetizer or side dish you can come up with, I don’t know what is. This deep-fried cauliflower florets recipe is actually my mom’s. I started making it, too, because my mother reminded me how much I liked it when I was a child. It’s deep-fried, so it shouldn’t be your staple, but if made using high-quality, organic ingredients (especially oil), it can be consumed once a week or every ten days.

Once I grew up, my mom stopped making it because this has always been considered a “kids’ favorite”. The delicacy of its flavor and the light batter that makes it a crispy, easy-to-like bite for sure are the reasons this is a perfect way to make your children like cauliflower. However, these bite-sized fried cauliflower florets are a fantastic side dish if you are making an easy recipe like mushroom and artichoke frittata or an appetizing starter for any larger meal you might want to make for whatever occasion.

Our recipe is pretty simple but there are some variants you can try and definitely a tasty assortment of dressings depending on your preferences and the type of meal you are preparing. These deep-fried cauliflower florets, in fact, carry a very gentle flavor and adapt to all sorts of seasonings.

Deep-Fried Cauliflower Florets Ingredients – Tips

• Pick a fresh but ripe cauliflower. You don’t want it to be too soft but obviously not green either.

• Opt for a light oil. I’m a big fan of olive oil, but for this fried cauliflower florets recipe I found that sunflower oil gives a more delicate taste. Make sure you pick high-quality organic, cold-pressed, and high oleic sunflower oil.

• What flour? Usually, my go-to flour for whatever recipe I’m making is either whole-grain or semi-whole (in Italy, we call it type 2). For this recipe, however, I used what in Italy is known as type 1, so a flour that is less refined than the all-purpose “00” but more, and lighter than a whole-grain. This is because it does give a lighter flavor and because I made them for my 2-year-old who is too young to eat whole-grain. As a gluten-free alternative, you can coat the cauliflower heads with corn flour instead: the result will still be delicious and crispy.

Deep-Fried Cauliflower Florets – Tips and Tricks

• To better wash the cauliflower, you can briefly soak them in water with a little baking soda to make sure there is no little insect left.

• Keep egg and flour separated. It’s also possible to make a batter by mixing eggs and flour to coat the cauliflower before frying it, but I prefer to keep these separated. If you do mix them, you would need to add some water to avoid it becoming too dry but little by little so that it doesn’t become too watery.

• Drain the cauliflower and leave it in a colander to dry a little.

• Place the cooked cauliflower on absorbing paper to remove the excess oil.

Possible Dips and Seasonings

I like to drizzle a few drops of lemon juice on top of the fried cauliflower, but if you are into something more sophisticated and fulfilling, you can use some dressing or dips to spice things up a little.

• If you enjoy the lemony taste, you can dress the fried cauliflower florets with a tangy tahin lemon cream.

• I recently tried a miso mustard cream on my cauliflower soup and was a great combination. I didn’t try with these deep-fried cauliflower florets but if you like miso, you can give it a try by mixing a teaspoon of miso, half a teaspoon of mustard and a tablespoon of lemon juice.

• A chili sauce of your choice, either a store-bought one or one that you can make if you have fresh chili or jalapeno.

• You can try a BBQ sauce.

• Mayonnaise or ketchup. These two easy dips are never disappointing, and if you prefer using fresh ingredients instead of the store-bought versions, you can easily make them at home.

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