Oven Baked Bang Bang Cauliflower is truly crispy and crunchy with a lip-smacking sweet and spicy bang bang sauce. Perfect for an appetizer, snack, or made into cauliflower tacos!
Looking for more cauliflower inspiration? Try this Asian roasted cauliflower and cashews recipe next!
👉 This oven baked bang bang cauliflower recipe has been a reader favorite since I first shared the recipe in 2018. It was updated with new photos and short video in March 2025.
Bang Bang Cauliflower
This is a vegetarian twist on the popular shrimp recipe, typically deep-fried. Instead of frying, the cauliflower is baked in the oven, achieving a wonderfully crispy exterior and makes an addictive snack similar to our deep fried cauliflower or the air fried buffalo cauliflower wings.
It's served with a delicious bang bang sauce for dipping, similar to the air-fried bang bang chicken thighs.
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Short video
Why Our Recipe
- Truly crispy and crunchy. You can hear the crunch in our short video!
- Oven baked!
- Served with the most delicious bang bang sauce.
- Perfect for appetizer, snack or make into tacos!
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Featured comments
From Mariana Lopez: "Just made these and they are AMAZINGGGG !! super crispy and flavorful. thanks for sharing this recipe 🙂" ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
From Vicki: "I did the panko crumbs, made the marinade, added the cauliflower and made the sauce earlier so putting it all together was quick and easy. My husband is STILL raving about it!!" ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Ingredients you'll need
- Cauliflower: You will need ½ medium cauliflower, cut into medium size florets.
- Panko breadcrumbs: It’s a Japanese-style breadcrumb that provides a light, crispy coating, far crunchier than regular breadcrumbs.
- Flour and cornstarch: All-purpose flour provides structure and helps the batter hold together, while cornstarch adds crispiness and a light, delicate crunch.
- Buttermilk: Helps create a thick coating for the batter, which helps it stick better and results in a crispier, more flavorful crust. If you are out of buttermilk, refer to our homemade buttermilk recipe.
- Egg: Helps the batter bind together.
- Sauces: Sweet chili sauce and Sriracha together create the perfect balance of sweet and spicy flavor.
Crispy and Crunchy Baked Cauliflower
The secret to achieving golden, crispy baked cauliflower bites is toasting the panko breadcrumbs in a skillet first. Plain breadcrumbs won’t give you an even golden color or the desired crispiness in the oven. By toasting panko in a skillet with a bit of oil until golden and crispy, you create a coating that helps the cauliflower pieces become perfectly crisp and beautifully browned when baked.
Serving Options
Appetizer or Snack: These baked bang bang cauliflower are perfect for a snack or appetizer for a party, similar to the jalapeno deviled eggs.
Tacos: Pile them into charred corn tortillas with shredded cabbage, jalapeños, cilantro, and a drizzle of bang bang sauce.
Can I cook the cauliflower in the air fryer?
If you would rather use your air fryer for this recipe, you will still get crispy cauliflower. Follow the same instructions up to baking. Then, spray each coated cauliflower with cooking spray. Place a few into the basket of your pre heated air fryer, making sure not to overcrowd the basket. Air fry at 400°F for 10 minutes. And then, drizzle with bang bang sauce and enjoy!
Check out our crispy air fryer breaded tilapia or air fryer breaded mushrooms, both made using a similar method.
Recipe notes
- Sweet chili sauce can be found in all Asian super markets, major grocery stores and Amazon.
- Adjust sriracha based on your spice tolerance.
- Freeze the cooled cauliflower bites for up to a month.
More snackable bite-sized recipes
Baked Bang Bang Cauliflower
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups panko bread crumbs
- 2 tablepsoons vegetable oil
- ½ medium cauliflower cut into 1 to 11/2 inch florets
Marinade ingredients
- ½ cup all pupose flour
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 1 large egg beaten lightly
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon sriracha sauce
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Bang Bang sauce
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablepsoons sweet chili sauce
- 1 teaspoon sriracha sauce
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Toast panko - Heat a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the panko and oil. Cook, stirring constantly, until the panko is evenly golden and toasted. Transfer the toasted panko to a bowl and let it cool slightly before proceeding.
Baked cauliflower
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a baking sheet with cooking spray and set aside.
- Stir all marinade ingredients in a medium bowl, until smooth and lump free. Add cauliflower pieces and toss around until every floret is well coated.
- Remove a floret from the marinade, allowing any excess to drain, then coat it thoroughly with the panko. Place the coated floret onto the prepared baking sheet. Repeat the process with the remaining florets.
- Bake cauliflower for 25 to 30 minutes, until crisp.
- Serve with the sauce on the side or make into tacos!To make tacos, pile them into warmed corn tortillas with shredded cabbage, jalapeños, cilantro, and a drizzle of bang bang sauce.
- To make the sauce. stir all bang bang sauce ingredients together. Sauce can be made ahead and refrigerated for up to a day.
Notes
- Oven: Place in a preheated 400°F oven and bake for 9 to 12 minutes or heated through.
- Air fryer: Place in a preheated 375°F oven and air fry for 5 to 7 minutes or heated through.
Nutrition
Nutritional information, based on third-party calculations, should be seen as estimates, not guarantees, as various factors like product types, brands, processing methods, and more can alter the nutritional content in recipes.
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Katherine | Love In My Oven
These are making me yell inside with excitement!! I would eat the whole serving and not even feel too guilty.
Maria Doss
Right? I love these so much:) Have a great weekend Kathy.
Beth
I baked these on convection bake on a wire rack @ 400 degrees for 25 min. I did spray them with olive oil before putting in the oven (not in recipe) but highly recommend. Crazy crunchy! In lieu of garlic powder in the bang bang sauce, I grated 2 garlic cloves (not in recipe). I ate the entire thing myself! Very, very, very good.
Patrick@looneyforfood.com
Love all things cauliflower and crispy!
Maria Doss
Thanks Patrick:)
Kelly @ Kelly Lynns Sweets and Treats
Bang! Bang! Pow!! I want some of these now!! What a fun recipe 🙂
Veena
Love cauliflower, and this looks like an amazing recipe. Want to try it soon.
Could you please suggest a replacement for mayo, if possible!!
Thank you Maria
Maria Doss
You could sub greek yogurt but with compromises in flavor. I'd suggest greek yogurt + little sugar (to cut down the tartness) + sweet chili sauce + sriracha + garlic powder + water. Hope it helps:)
Mariana Lopez
Just made these and they are AMAZINGGGG !! super crispy and flavorful. thanks for sharing this recipe 🙂
Maria Doss
Thank you so much for trying, glad you liked it:)
Helen
I have out of town guest, and I'm trying them today,
MK
Do these freeze well to be reheated later on?
Maria Doss
Hi MK, Honestly, you can freeze cooked & cooled cauliflower and re heat them later (just like frozen chicken nuggets) with a little compromise to the texture. Hope it helps:)
Vicki
I did the panko crumbs, made the marinade, added the cauliflower and made the sauce earlier so putting it all together was quick and easy. My husband is STILL raving about it!!