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Oven baked and extra saucy, Buffalo Cauliflower with Spicy Tahini Ranch. Breaded cauliflower, baked, and tossed in homemade buffalo sauce. Serve with a creamy, light, and healthy tahini ranch dressing. Add extra sauce buffalo sauce, and enjoy! Trust me, every bite is delicious and will leave you wanting more.
After years of not having my tried and true buffalo cauliflower recipe on the site, I’m finally sharing it. Why it took so long is just silly. I thought there were one too many buffalo cauliflower recipes on the internet. And well, there might be, but whatever, this recipe is highly requested and one of my family’s favorites.
With all the football happening this month, and then the Super Bowl coming up next month, I’m sharing my recipe! We really love it, so I finally decided it was just silly not to share the way I make it!
As I said, my family regularly requests all things buffalo. Buffalo chicken, pizza, pretzel twists…even these fun buffalo chicken wraps. But they really love something they can “dip” when they’re watching the game or all sitting around talking. So buffalo cauliflower ends up being their most requested buffalo.
I serve these both as an appetizer and as a dinner (usually with fries – sometimes rice). I also like to serve them with a side of blue cheese ranch. Since it’s “Healthy January” I’m sharing my creamy tahini ranch, which I love just as much!!
The details
I make these so often. Therefore, I like to keep them pretty quick and simple, so they don’t take a lot of time. And no frying is needed!
Start off by breaking the cauliflower up into florets. Then whisk up a few eggs in a large bowl. Add the cauliflower right into the whisked eggs, then simply toss to coat.
For the crumbs, I really like using finely crushed corn flakes. I’ve found they provide the best texture. If you’re someone who prefers to eat gluten-free, use gluten-free bread crumbs instead. Then mix the crumbs with smoked paprika and a touch of cayenne.
Now dredge the cauliflower through the seasoned crumbs, then bake!
For the buffalo sauce, my favorite ratio is 3 to 2, hot sauce to melted butter (or olive oil). I then add some seasoned salt and a big pinch of black pepper. It literally takes minutes to make these and they are so good.
Next comes the tahini ranch, again, it’s so simple. Basically, you’re replacing sour cream and mayo with tahini. So it’s tahini, plus dried herbs, and then a little lemon. It’s delicious, and a nice lighter ranch option.
When the cauliflower is crispy, drizzle the buffalo sauce over, and then give the pan a good toss.
It’s not fancy at all, but that’s what makes these bites so good. These are a delicious alternative to restaurant buffalo chicken…just made in a healthier, less greasy, way. And yes, they’re pretty darn perfect for game night too.
Enjoy everyone!
Looking for more game day recipes? Here are a few to try:
Sheet Pan Buffalo Chicken Pizza
Spinach and Artichoke Stuffed Soft Pretzels
Fried Buffalo Goat Cheese Balls
Baked Buffalo Chicken Egg Rolls with Cilantro Lime Ranch
Lastly, if you make this Buffalo Cauliflower with Spicy Tahini Ranch, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Buffalo Cauliflower with Spicy Tahini Ranch
Servings: 8
Calories Per Serving: 232 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 large head cauliflower, cut into florets
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/4 cups finely crushed corn flake crumbs
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, use to your taste
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 1/2 cup hot sauce (I use Frank's)
- 1/3 cup melted butter or extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
Tahini Ranch
- 1/4 cup tahini
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons dried chives
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried dill
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, use to your taste
- kosher salt and pepper
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 425° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 2. Beat the eggs in a large bowl, add the cauliflower and toss well to coat. In a separate bowl combine the corn flake crumbs, paprika, cayenne, and a pinch each of salt and pepper.3. Dredge the cauliflower through the crumbs, covering fully. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining cauliflower. Bake for 20-25 minutes, turning the cauliflower halfway through cooking.4. Meanwhile, whisk together the hot sauce, butter, seasoned salt, and a pinch of black pepper until smooth. Pour the sauce over the cauliflower, gently tossing to coat. Return to the oven for 5 minutes.5. To make the tahini ranch, combine everything in a bowl, whisking in 1/4 to 1/2 cup water to thin the dressing. Taste and season with salt and pepper. 6. Serve the cauliflower with extra buffalo sauce and tahini ranch on the side for dipping. Enjoy!
My husband and I LOVED this! And I’m not the biggest fan of cauliflower.
We had Siete tortilla chips on hand and we used those instead of the corn flakes and it was a great swap, still crispy. Thanks for the recipe!
Hey Kelly,
Happy Sunday!😃 Thanks so much for making this recipe and your comment, I am so glad it turned out well for you! xx
I hate cauliflower but love anything buffalo so I decided to give it a try. So glad I did! It was so easy to make and I definitely can see myself making this to snack on when I get a buffalo saucy food craving. Even my anti veggie hubby approved!
Hey Christy,
Happy Friday!! I appreciate you making this recipe and your comment, so glad to hear it was delish! xx
Yikes this did NOT work for me. Turned out like steamed cauli…no crispness whatsoever. Great flavours, and loved the tahini ranch but no idea how to achieve a crisp cook!
Hi Lauren,
Thanks for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback, so sorry to hear this did not turn out for you. Any chance the cauliflower was over crowded on your baking sheet? Let me know how I can help! xx
do you know what times and temps would be if i were to use an airfryer instead? Thank youuu
Hi Evan,
So sorry, I’ve not tested this so I’m not sure on the times and temp, but I bet it would work well for you. Let me know if you give this recipe a try! xx
Can you substitute the corn flakes with gluten free flour or almond?
Hey Cassidy,
If you can get gluten free corn flakes I think that would be your best option here! Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xx
This is the best homemade buffalo cauliflower recipe we have tried!
We used the air fryer and it came out great. Thanks for sharing!
Hey Liz,
Happy Monday!!⛄️ Thanks so much for making this recipe and sharing your feedback, I love to hear that it turned out well for you! xT
I made this with cauliflower and chicken for 3 people (had to triple the ratios for the breading) and people only ate one piece of the cauliflower, chicken was gone though. Cauliflower was gross. Its better just roasted in olive oil in the oven. I don’t know if recipes like this are just to appease the vegans or what because this recipe screams chicken, and tahini is expensive and has 4x more calories than buttermilk and doesn’t taste as good. It stuck soooooo bad too. Hence the 3 star rating.
Hi Cait,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback. So sorry to hear it was not enjoyed. Please let me know if there is anything that I can help with! xx
Hi! I am so excited to try this recipe, however my brother has an egg allergy. Any substitutions you would recommend?
Hey Kenzie,
Buttermilk should work well in place of the egg. Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xT
This is my new favorite recipe!!! Sooo soooo delicious 😋 best cauliflower ever!
Hey Valerie,
Amazing!! I appreciate you making this dish and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was a winner! xT
Absolutely fantastic and delicious! My daughter and her fiancé made this as an appetizer for dinner last night for our Sunday family meal. I grew up in Buffalo, NY – home of the “real” chicken wings – these are every bit as delicious and so much healthier! The head of cauliflower disappeared quickly with lots of ooh’s and aah’s. Several of us agreed we could have eaten the whole thing ourselves. We have wing sauce (they, too, used Frank’s – but the Buffalo sauce, not the original (which used to be called Louisiana Hot Sauce back in the day) leftover, and enough tahini ranch dressing that I’m going back to the grocery store tomorrow for another head of cauliflower – to make the recipe for my lunch over some romaine with some cut up carrots and celery. I loved the tahini ranch dressing with the nice hint of lemon – really yummy and light! And healthier than blue cheese for sure. Thanks for another winner, Tieghan!!!
Hey Shelley,
Amazing!! I appreciate you making this dish and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was a winner! xT
Hi. Good morning. I made this this weekend for a dinner party and it was a hit!!! Thank you so much. I thought the Tahini Ranch was ok, but it was very “dilly” – I’d probably use less dill next time. Maybe I inadvertently added too much but I thought I used what the recipe called for. But thank for this. It was so good and I’ll definitely be making it again.
Hey Lawrence,
Happy Monday!!☃️ Thanks a lot for making this recipe and sharing your review, I love to hear that it was a winner! xx
I want to try these! Have you ever cooked them in the air fryer?
Also, I read through the comments. Two answers based on my experience. I did these in the air fryer and they came out great. I then took them to a party and it’s cold winter here. By the time I got there they needed to be heated up. 8 mins in the oven at 425 did the trick!
Yes! Worked great.
Hey Mindy,
I haven’t, but I bet it would work well for you! Let me know if you have any other questions! xT
We had this today for lunch with some Ciabatta on the side. The buffalo cauliflower was very good, but the tahini ranch was not so much to our taste. We certainly will make this again with another die, do you have recommendations for a different dip?
Hey Tina,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback! Sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy the ranch, you could definitely use a store bought version that you like better for next time! I hope this helps! xx
This was so insanely delicious! I didn’t have cornflakes on hand, so used bread crumbs. The tahini ranch sauce was the perfect consistency and a healthier (even tastier – coming from a ranch fan) option. Will definitely add this to the rotation. Thanks, Tieghan!
Hey Mariam,
Happy Friday!! I appreciate you trying this recipe and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was a hit!⛄️ xT
Hi Tieghan,
A group of my girlfriends are going to take a class at the gym. Then we are going to go to someone’s house for wine and appetizers. I’d like to take your buffalo cauliflower. Can it be made ahead and just warmed up once I get to the party? Carol
Hey Carol,
Totally, that will work well for you! Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT