Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower bites are spicy, crispy, and easy to make in the air fryer. These are the perfect Whole30, and Keto-friendly snack!
Low-Carb Buffalo Snack
Buffalo is a popular flavor of chicken-wings, but it’s often made with tons of sugar. I revamped that recipe and turned it into a low-carb and Whole30-compliant recipe that you can eat guilt-free!
Intro
Vegetarian Buffalo “Wings”
I went to college for two years in Upstate NY where the “locals” ate Buffalo Chicken Wings by the barrels. I always wondered what happened to the rest of the chicken after making all those wings.
But I digress.
Seriously though, who doesn’t like spicy and crunchy chicken wings even if you don’t live in Upstate NY, ammiright?
That’s why I hacked the iconic Buffalo Chicken Wings for the Instant Pot so we can ALL enjoy them without deep frying them in oil. And the fact that you can make them in one big batch without the big mess, I love making them for my family. And they love eating them!
But for my cookbook, Paleo Cooking with your Air Fryer, I wanted to come up with a vegetarian version using cauliflower for those times when you’d like to change it up a bit or to get more veggies into you or your children’s diet.
Ingredients
All of the exact ingredient amounts are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. First, I want to share a quick glance at what I used in this recipe so you know what you’ll need from the store.
There are two parts to this recipe – the cauliflower bites and the dairy-free ranch dressing.
Cauliflower Bites
For the cauliflower bites, I used the following simple ingredients:
- Cauliflower
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Cassava Flour
- Ghee
- Frank’s Hot Sauce
Dairy-Free Ranch Dressing
Here is what I used to make my dairy-free ranch dressing. It’s so good!
- Mayo
- Coconut milk yogurt
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Sea salt
- Apple cider vinegar
- Dill
Instructions
Here’s a quick overview of how I made these vegetarian buffalo cauliflower bites.
Buffalo Chicken Wings are usually deep-fried until crispy, and then, mixed in hot butter sauce. But who wants to deal with oil splattered counter and all. that. oil?
This air fryer buffalo cauliflower recipe calls for air frying the cauliflower florets not just once, but TWICE for better texture and flavor. And you can adjust the amount of hot sauce to your taste!
And of course, you can use this recipe for chicken wings too but you’ll have to fry them longer until the internal temperature is at least 160°F.
Look how gorgeous these are, eh? Serve them up with some homemade Paleo Ranch Dressing and other veggies to complement the heat from the sauce. I guarantee these will be your family’s favorite appetizer or as a game-time snack!
Substitutions
To make this recipe keto-friendly, omit the cassava flour. The texture might not be as crispy but the saucy Buffalo flavor will rock your world!
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Recipe
Buffalo Cauli Bites (Paleo, Whole30, and Keto-Friendly)
Ingredients
- 1 Cauliflower cut into florets
- 1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
- 2 Tbsp Cassava Flour divided (Omit if Keto)
- 4 Tbsp ghee
- 3 Tbsp Frank’s Hot Sauce
Ranch Dressing
- 1 C mayo homemade or specific diet compliant
- ⅓ C coconut milk yogurt homemade or specific diet compliant
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp dill
Instructions
- Cut and discard the outer leaves and cut the cauliflower into florets.
- In a medium mixing bowl, mix the florets with EVOO and coat them with the cassava flour.
- Preheat the air fryer to 360°F
- When the air fryer is ready, shake off any excess flour from the florets, place them in the basket, and set the timer for 6 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the excess flour, ghee and Frank’s Hot Sauce in the same mixing bowl and set aside.
- In a small bowl, make the ranch dressing by mixing all the ingredients, then refrigerate.
- When the timer goes off, transfer the florets to the mixing bowl and coat them well with sauce.
- Put the florets back in the basket and cook for 6 more minutes.
- Take them out when the timer goes off and add more Frank’s Hot Sauce if needed.
- Serve immediately with the ranch dressing.
Notes
Nutrition
Related recipes
- Air Fried Shrimp with Garlic and Butter
- Air Fried Paleo Chicken Wings
- Air Fried Paleo Coconut Shrimp
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