Easy Crispy Cauliflower Recipe
Cauliflowers are one of the most versatile vegetables. With a subtle natural sweetness, it is perfect when coated in a light batter before deep-frying to golden brown. The result? This Crispy Cauliflower dish has a satisfying crunch on the outside while being tender and soft on the inside.
Taking only 22 minutes from start to finish, this deep-fried dish is the perfect side dish to curry and rice for the family. Super appetising in the aromatic fragrance and crunch, each bite becomes more and more addicting and satisfying.
Serves 5 to 6 adults.
Ingredients
Cauliflower is the main star of this dish. The wet batter is able to hold on to the florets, making it crisp. The stems have a high fibre and water content, which makes them soft and tender on the inside.
Crispy flour to make the batter. While I used my homemade crispy flour recipe, the store-bought ones can be used as well. Tempura flour is a great substitute for this recipe too. Just be sure to adjust the amount of salt and curry powder as the store-bought crispy flour tend to be sold pre-seasoned.
Water with 2-3 cubes of ice. Cold water is the recommended liquid for mixing with the crispy flour to make the batter quite fluffy and crispier than with normal-temperature water.
Salt, to taste.
Egg, to add a little volume to the wet batter.
Curry leaves, which are washed, pat dry and deep-fried to release their aroma and flavours into the cooking oil and dish.
Cooking oil, for deep-frying. I used unscented cooking vegetable oil to avoid any unwanted flavours transferring over to the crispy cauliflowers.
Steps
Here are the brief steps to make Crispy Cauliflowers:
- Make the batter.
- Heat the oil.
- Cut the cauliflowers.
- Coat cauliflowers in the wet batter.
- Fry the curry leaves.
- Fry cauliflowers.
- Rest crispy cauliflowers on a cooling rack.
- Layer cauliflowers and curry leaves on the serving plate.
Tips
- If using store-bought tempura/ crispy flour, adjust the salt according as they usually come pre-seasoned.
- Iced water is used to make the wet batter as it contributes to a crispier texture than normal room-temperature water.
- When the oil is hot enough, it will form bubbles when wooden cooking chopsticks are immersed. If no bubbles form, the oil is not hot enough.
- It is important to remove any water droplets on the curry leaves to prevent sudden and large oil splashes.
- Leftover batter can be added to the hot oil, or discarded if preferred.
- When the cauliflowers are added to the hot oil, they tend to sink to the bottom and float when cooked on the surface. Start stirring only when they are floating to prevent batter residue from getting stuck to the bottom of the pan.
- Allow the crispy cauliflower to rest on the cooling rack to drip off the excess oil.
- Make sure to watch the full video to see how I made it exactly!
Storage Instructions
Like most deep-fried food, it’s best to consume all of the Crispy Cauliflowers – the longer it is exposed to air, the less crispy they will get.
However, if there is too much, the leftovers can be kept in a dry air-tight container, in the fridge for no more than 1 day. To heat it up, use an air fryer, or re-fry in the pan of hot oil.
While it can be frozen as well, the soft texture of the cauliflower may become mushy once defrosted.
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Crispy Cauliflowers
Equipment
- Kitchen Towels
- Stainless basin
- Silicone Whisk
- Sharp Kitchen Knife
- Chopping Board
- Frying Pan
- Wooden Chopsticks
- Large strainer
- Mini-strainer
Ingredients
Batter
- 100 g crispy flour, or tempura flour
- 1.5 tbsp Indian curry powder, for meat, or for any type of curry
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 150 ml water, iced
Cooking
- 700 g cooking oil, or enough for deep-frying
- 500 g cauliflower, spots removed, cut into thumb-sized pieces
- 5 stalks curry leaves, washed & pat dry
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, add crispy flour, curry powder and salt. Mix with a whisk until evenly combined.
- Crack an egg and add it to the mixing bowl. Pour in the iced water and mix until well-combined and even in colour. The consistency should be thin enough to drip off the whisk.
- Add all the cooking oil in a stainless steel pan over medium heat. Let it warm up for 5-8 minutes.
- Cut the cauliflower to thumb-sized pieces.
- Add the cauliflower pieces to the wet batter. Toss gently until they are well-coated with the batter. Set aside.
- Pat dry the washed curry leaves in between kitchen towels. Make sure there are no moisture present on the leaves.
- Immerse wooden cooking chopsticks into the hot oil. If bubbles form at the tip, it is ready for deep-frying.
- Carefully strip the curry leaves and add them to the hot oil. Deep fry them until there are no more sizzling sounds. Remove the curry leaves with a strainer, shaking to remove the excess oil. Set them aside on a heat-resistant plate.
- Give the cauliflower another gentle mix. Carefully add them to the hot oil until the pan is filled. Let them fry for 3 minutes before stirring.
- After 3 minutes, use the strainer or wooden cooking chopsticks to stir the cauliflowers gently for another 3 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy. Remove them with a large strainer, shaking off any excess oil. Set them aside on the cooling rack.
- Repeat with the rest of the cauliflower. When all the cauliflowers have been added to the pan, carefully drizzle the leftover batter over them for fluffy crisps. Let the cauliflowers cook for 4 minutes before stirring for another 4 minutes or until golden brown. Remove them with a large strainer, shaking the excess oil. Set them to rest on the cooling rack.
- Switch off the heat.
- Transfer the cauliflower to the serving plate, layering them twice with half of the curry leaves. Serve immediately with some white rice and, optionally, curry.
Video
Notes
- If using store-bought tempura/ crispy flour, adjust the salt according as they usually come pre-seasoned.
- Iced water is used to make the wet batter as it contributes to a crispier texture than normal room-temperature water.
- When the oil is hot enough, it will form bubbles when wooden cooking chopsticks are immersed. If no bubbles form, the oil is not hot enough.
- It is important to remove any water droplets on the curry leaves to prevent sudden and large oil splashes.
- Leftover batter can be added to the hot oil, or discarded if preferred.
- When the cauliflowers are added to the hot oil, they tend to sink to the bottom and float when cooked on the surface. Start stirring only when they are floating to prevent batter residue from getting stuck to the bottom of the pan.
- Allow the crispy cauliflower to rest on the cooling rack to drip off the excess oil.
- Make sure to watch the full video to see how I made it exactly!