Sweet, sticky, savory, and seductively crispy lemon cauliflower.
One of my favorite restaurants growing up was a local Chinese place just outside of Philadelphia.
We’d often go there on weeknights, because it was close to home, offered quick service, and the food was consistently good every time.
Upon sitting down at the table, I’d always immediately start on the deep-friend crispy noodles and duck sauce while waiting for my order of sticky glazed lemon chicken to arrive.
(I was pretty much on a sugar high before we even got to dessert.)
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Years later when my family moved to China, I remember being initially confused by the cuisine.
Where were the General Tso’s, the fortune cookies, the sweet and sour?
Where was the lemon chicken???
Much of what we in America know as Chinese food is not actually Chinese at all.
For example, fortune cookies were invented in San Francisco!
And in all my time living in Shanghai, not once did I ever see lemon chicken listed on a menu.
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This crispy lemon cauliflower is my healthier, vegan answer to Chinese-restaurant lemon chicken.
The sticky lemon glaze is absolutely addictive.
And if you’re not feeling cauliflower, you can easily opt to pour the sauce over chickpeas, tofu, broccoli, or anything else you think would taste good with lemon sauce.
Here are 25 more healthy and super simple Cauliflower Recipes.
Adapted from Sticky Sesame Cauliflower
Sticky Lemon Cauliflower
Ingredients
- 1/2 large head cauliflower
- 1/4 cup milk of choice
- 1/4 cup fine cornmeal or flour
- 1-2 tsp oil
- 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs, regular or gf
- 1/4 cup vegetable broth
- 1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 1/2 tbsp pure maple syrup, honey, or agave
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp powdered ginger
- 2 tsp cornstarch or arrowroot
- lemon zest, optional for garnish
Instructions
- Finely crush breadcrumbs, either in a blender (easiest method) or by placing them in a bag and crushing with a rolling pin or heavy object. Preheat oven to 425 F. Cut cauliflower into florets. Whisk milk, cornmeal, and oil, then toss with the cauliflower in a large ziploc. Put the cauliflower in a colander to drain off excess batter. Toss with the breadcrumbs. Arrange in one layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake 35-40 minutes. Meanwhile, make the lemon sauce by whisking together all remaining ingredients except cornstarch. Then quickly whisk in cornstarch. Turn heat to medium. Stir frequently – it thickens pretty quickly. Remove cauliflower from oven and stir into the sauce. (If you wish to omit the oil, feel free to experiment. I have not tried and so can’t say how it would affect taste/texture.)View Nutrition Facts
Notes
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So delicious!! My family absolutely loved it. It is definitely going into our rotation. I took some short cuts and it was still good – air-fried 1 bag of defrosted cauliflower (no breading) and a pack of extra-firm tofu and I also added a can of chickpeas. It wasn’t enough! Next time I will triple the sauce and add more cauliflower and tofu.
I didn’t have any veggie broth so I subbed water, & it was still really good! Thanks!
This came out absolutely fabulous! A few important changes: there is no way enough batter for the cauliflower; I doubled it for 1/2 of my large cauliflower and it was barely enough. Also increased the amount of sauce I made, and I added much more fresh lemon than called for as well as lemon zest which is pictured but not listed. Even then, it was not heavily sauced by any means. In the end, it was incredible and will definitely make again.
I’m a little confused by the instructions. It says to turn heat to medium, but in what? A pan? So do you put the sauce into the heated pan, stir, then add the cauliflower to coat?
Could you leave out the salt and it still taste good? My hubby is on a low sodium/heart healthy diet and even though it is only 148mg, it’s for 4 pieces. I’m thinking if he liked it, he’d want more and the sodium would add up.
Thanks for any help
Due to high blood pressure, I never use salt anymore. For this recipe, I suggest you increase the lemon juice by 50% and add orange zest to the sauce. Lemon juice and orange zest is often used in India to bring out citrus flavors without using salt. Definitely add lemon zest as a garnish, this too will serve to punctuate the flavors. Also, instead of adding salt to veggies while cooking them, add a pinch of sugar instead. This helps to enhance the flavor of the vegetables.
Made the cauliflower tonight for my daughter and she loved it. Thank you for sharing the recipe?
Lemon chicken is a traditional dish from Guangdong. It’s perfectly fine that you don’t see it in Shanghai because our signature dishes do vary a lot in different provinces – e.g. sweet and sour in Guangdong, hot and spicy in Sichuan, etc. Glad that you like ours 😉
Loved this!
Made several cauliflower recipes this is my favourite and certainly a keeper. Thanks so much for sharing!
It’s an amazing dish! Family loved it! Making again tomorrow!
So delicious! I made.it exactly as written. I can’t wait to eat the leftovers!
Am in the midst of making this but didn’t realize I was out of panko! Can I just Tempura batter mix instead and elimate the breading?
Looks yummy