Baked Orange Cauliflower Recipe

Ingredients

For Orange Sauce

• Orange Juice: I use freshly squeezed orange juice.
• Oil: I use live oil for frying ginger and garlic. A little sesame oil to impart nutty flavour.
• Vegetables and Condiments: Fresh ginger, garlic, spring onion, brown sugar, rice vinegar, soy sauce, chill sauce/ any hot sauce, corn starch and a little water to make a corn slurry. Sesame seeds to garnish.

For Baked Cauliflower

• Cauliflower: Always use fresh cauliflower.
• Flour and Spices: Corn flour, plain flour, salt and paprika.
• Water: To make a batter.

See the recipe card for quantities.

Step By Step Instructions

To Bake Battered Cauliflower

 Wash and cut the cauliflower into bite-size florets. 

Put the florets in a deep bottomed container, pour boiling water over the florets until they are submerged and close the container with a lid/plate. Let it sit for 10-15 minutes.

Drain the water and leave the florets in the colander to remove any excess water.

Transfer the florets onto a kitchen towel to remove any excess water

Preheat the oven to 200C (395F)

Meanwhile, combine the plain flour, cornflour (corn starch), salt and paprika in a large bowl. 

Add water gradually and whisk to make a batter.

Dip the florets in the batter and coat well.

Arrange the florets in a lined baking tray with little spacing between florets.

Place the baking tray in the oven and bake for 20 - 25 minutes or until the florets are crispy and golden brown. Turn the florets halfway through for even baking.

Take the tray out of the oven and put it on the cooling rack.

To make an orange sauce

Combine the orange juice, soy sauce, vinegar, chilli sauce and sesame oil in a bowl.

To make cornflour slurry, combine cornflour and water in another small bowl. Keep it aside. 

Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat. 

Once the oil is hot, sauté the garlic and ginger for a few seconds until fragrant. 

Now slightly reduce the heat, add the orange juice mixture, brown sugar, cornflour slurry and stir well. 

Simmer it for 5 minutes until the sauce bubbles, slightly thicken and become sticky. 

Add the baked florets and toss well until they are well coated with orange sauce. 

Finally, mix in spring onion.

Enjoy the delicious baked orange cauliflower topped with sesame seeds on its own or with rice.

Tips & Tricks

Use freshly squeezed orange juice as store-bought juice may contain unnecessary preservatives and artificial sweeteners. Moreover, fresh orange juice imparts amazing flavour and taste to this orange cauliflower recipe. 

Soaking cauliflower florets in boiling water helps to remove any stubborn dirt and reduce the baking time. 

I haven't added salt in either orange sauce as the soy sauce has added salt and so has the baked cauliflower. However, be mindful if you consider adding salt to an orange sauce.  

Prepare the orange sauce while the cauliflower is baking. The sauce takes less than 10 minutes to make so start making it when cauliflower is halfway through baking. 

Keep an eye on the florets while baking as the baking time may vary with different ovens.

Flip the florets halfway through to ensure even baking.

Use just enough sauce to coat the baked cauliflower. Put the remaining sauce in a bowl so anyone who chooses to have extra sauce can use it. Alternatively, store it in an airtight container in the fridge to use for the next batch of orange cauliflower if you plan to cook in a couple of days. 

Sesame oil infuses a rich nutty flavour and elevates the authentic Asian flavours of the dish.

Variations

Gluten-free: Replace the corn flour (corn starch) with gluten-free flour such as tapioca starch and substitute plain flour with rice flour. Use tamari instead of soy sauce, however, consider using less than the quantity of soy sauce mentioned here.

Storage

Orange cauliflower tastes best when enjoyed immediately after cooking. However, leftovers could be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for a day or two. Ensure to reheat it in the microwave or oven until the florets are piping hot. However, the cauliflower bites may not be crispy.

If you want to make it ahead of time as a part of weekly meal prep, then I would suggest preparing the orange sauce, baking the battered cauliflower and storing them in an airtight container in a fridge 2 days before you plan to make them.

Reheat the sauce in the microwave and battered florets in the oven. Toss the florets in the sauce and garnish them with sesame seeds and chopped spring onion.