These crispy, crunchy, fiery, bites of cauliflower breaded in Panko are wrapped in a warm tortilla and topped with the best pesto tahini hot sauce! It all comes together in just 35 minutes! Taco Tuesdays are about to get an upgrade!
Taco Tuesday Any Day
I don’t know about you but tacos have been a quarantine staple for me ever since the beginning of this pandemic!
They are easy, fun, versatile, and packed with flavor! I mean who doesn’t love a good taco?! Especially one filled with crispy buffalo breaded cauliflower bites, caramelized veggies, and a fiery pesto tahini hot sauce!
Taco Tuesdays are about to get a whole lot spicier.
These tacos are vegan, healthy, and packed with bold and vibrant flavors that everyone will love. Listen, If I can make this in my tiny college apartment kitchen in 35 minutes, you can too! And it’s a great way to get everyone excited on a boring weekday! Because let’s be real, tacos never disappoint.
Crispy Crunchy Buffalo Cauliflower
If you’ve ever seen a recipe for buffalo cauliflower florets or have tried one, this recipe takes it to a whole new level.
With a creamy and spicy batter and crunchy panko breadcrumbs, these buffalo cauliflower florets are anything but boring.
So what’s in this magical vegan batter you might be wondering?
- All purpose flour
- Salt
- Pepper
- Onion and garlic powder
- Smoked paprika
- Unsweetened Almond Milk
Add the cauliflower florets to a large bowl. Whisk all of the batter ingredients together in a bowl and pour it over your cauliflower florets.
Next we make the panko bread crumb mixture. Add the panko bread crumbs and nutritional yeast to a shallow dish. In batches, place the florets into the dish to coat each battered piece with the panko mixture.
Add the florets to a lined baking sheet and bake them for 25 minutes at 425 degrees F.
In the Meantime…
While your cauliflower florets are baking in the oven, we’ve got 2 tasks to do: make the pesto tahini hot sauce and the garlic balsamic veggie mixture.
Good news is that this pesto tahini hot sauce is made with 3 ingredients!
Yes, you read that right. Thanks to Trader Joe’s pulling through with their delicious vegan basil pesto, this incredible pesto tahini hot sauce comes together super quickly! I’m linking the exact vegan kale, cashew, and basil pesto I used from Trader Joe’s here.
All you need is vegan pesto, tahini, and sriracha hot sauce!
This sauce is truly MAGICAL and I could literally pour it over any dish and make it instantly better. It’s tangy, spicy, and perfectly smooth.
Garlic Balsamic Veggie Mixture
This simple recipe for sautéed vegetables works perfectly with these spicy cauliflower florets, adding earthy flavors from caramelized onions and mushrooms cooked in a splash of balsamic vinegar for a little kick of acidity.
To make your veggies, just heat a tablespoon of olive oil on medium heat. Add your minced garlic, onions, and red pepper and cook for about 4-5 minutes or until the onions begin to brown. Add in the mushrooms and once they start to cook down add the salt, pepper, and balsamic vinegar and cook on low heat, stirring for the last 2 minutes.
Set this mixture aside to add to your tacos once the cauliflower is out of the oven!
Putting it Together
Assembling tacos has to be my favorite part of taco nights. So many ways to make it your own!
For this recipe, I used whole wheat flour tortillas but feel free to use corn tortillas or any other tortilla you have on hand.
In a pan ( I used the same one that I cooked the veggies in) add the tortillas and cook them for about a minute on each side to warm them through and get a little char. If you have a gas stove you can also set them over the open flame for a few seconds to get a char.
Once the tortillas are heated, spread a spoonful of the pesto tahini hot sauce on top of each tortilla. Then layer on a scoop of the veggie mixture, the buffalo cauliflower florets, and lastly another drizzle of the pesto tahini hot sauce (no such thing as too much sauce).
This is one of my all time FAVORITE dinner recipes and I am so excited for you guys to try it!
They are like the vegan form of crispy fried chicken tenders but plant based, filled with plenty of fiber, healthy, and just delicious!
If you liked this recipe, be sure to tag me on instagram @sipandscone and leave a comment below with your feedback and suggestions!
Want more easy and delicious dinner recipe ideas? Check out my latest posts!
- Butternut Squash Carrot Soup with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds
- Sausage, Kale, Butternut Squash Pasta
- Mushroom, Sun-dried Tomato, and Jamón Serrano Pasta
- Roasted Red Pepper Pumpkin Pasta
- Lentil Artichoke Sun-dried Tomato Stuffed Eggplant Boats!
Crispy Buffalo Cauliflower Tacos with Pesto Tahini Hot Sauce!
Ingredients
Crispy Buffalo Cauliflower Tacos
- 3 whole wheat flour tortillas
- 1 medium cauliflower head
- 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 3/4 cups Panko bread crumbs
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
- *pesto tahini hot sauce recipe below
- *garlic balsamic veggies recipe below
Pesto Tahini Hot Sauce
- 3 tbsp vegan pesto I used Trader Joes (vegan kale, cashew, basil pesto)
- 1 tbsp sriracha hot sauce
- 2 tbsp tahini
Garlic Balsamic Veggies
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 medium onion sliced into thin strips
- 1/2 red bell pepper sliced into thin strips
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 6 baby Bella mushrooms sliced into thin rounds
- 1/2 tsp salt
- dash of pepper
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar of Modena
Instructions
Crispy Buffalo Cauliflower
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line 1 baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut the cauliflower into small florets and place them in a large bowl.
- In another bowl, whisk the flour, salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika. Pour in the almond milk and whisk it together until a smooth batter forms. Pour the batter over the cauliflower florets and coat each piece evenly with a spoon or using your hands.
- In another shallow dish, add the panko breadcrumbs and nutritional yeast and mix them together. In batches, dip the battered florets into the panko mixture to coat each piece and spread each breaded piece on the lined baking sheet leaving some space between each piece.
- Bake the cauliflower florets for 25 minutes at 425 F.
- While the cauliflower florets are cooking, make the *Pesto Tahini Hot Sauce (recipe below).
- While the cauliflower cooks, make the sautéed *garlic balsamic veggie mixture (recipe below).
- In the last few minutes of baking the cauliflower, heat a small pan with a bit of olive oil and place the tortillas on the pan until warm and slightly toasted on each side. Place the tortillas on each plate.
- Remove the cauliflower florets from the oven. Spread a thin layer of pesto tahini hot sauce on top of each tortilla. Next, add a spoonful of the garlic balsamic veggie mixture. Then evenly divide the cauliflower between each plate and place it on top. Drizzle another spoonful of the pesto tahini hot sauce over each tortilla. Serve warm!
Pesto Tahini Hot Sauce
- Add all ingredients to a small bowl and whisk to combine. Spread a thin layer on each tortilla and drizzle over top of the finished taco!
Garlic Balsamic Veggies
- Heat a small pan on medium heat with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Chop the onion into thin strips and add that along with the minced garlic to the pan once hot. Slice the red pepper into thin strips and add it to the pan. Cook for 5 minutes or until the onion begins to brown.
- Slice the mushrooms into thin rounds and add them to the pan. Once they start to cook down, turn the heat to low and add the salt, pepper and balsamic vinegar. Cook for 3 more minutes on low, remove from heat and set aside.
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