Crunchy baked breaded cauliflower pieces are coated with honey garlic sauce. It’s an easy and delicious weeknight meal.
I can’t get enough of this honey garlic sauce. It’s savory, spicy, and sweet, all at the same time. And crunchy bites of cauliflower are the perfect vehicle for soaking up the thick sauce. The sauce is so versatile, too. I’ve used it to make Honey Garlic Shrimp which are delicious, too.
Last week we had a pretty packed schedule. Dinners with out-of-town friends, a wedding rehearsal dinner, a weekend trip for my friend’s wedding, and more. Now we’re trying to get back to a normal and healthier eating schedule. It’s definitely hard, but this tasty dish made things a little easier.
This sauce was so delicious, I was tempted to lick my bowl clean.
If you enjoy this recipe, check out the rest of my cauliflower recipes here!
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Honey Garlic Baked Cauliflower
Ingredients
- 1 small head of cauliflower cut into bite sized florets
- 2 cups panko bread crumbs (see note)
- cooking oil spray
- 2 large eggs whisked
- 2 scallions finely sliced
for the sauce (see note)
- 6 tbsp honey
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 6 tbsp water + 2 tsp cornstarch
- 1 1/2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 tbsp sriracha sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread panko crumbs in a thin even layer across the surface of the baking sheet. Spray panko crumbs with cooking oil spray. Bake crumbs about 5-7 minutes or until golden brown.
- Set whisked eggs aside in a small bowl. Line another large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Dip cauliflower in egg mixture and then shake a few times so that excess egg drips off. You don't want to dampen your breadcrumbs with excess egg because then they won't stick to the cauliflower. Then place into sheet with panko crumbs. Cover cauliflower with panko, pressing the crumbs gently against the cauliflower to help them stick. Place coated cauliflower on empty prepared baking sheet. Repeat until all cauliflower is coated.
- Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until cauliflower is cooked and the coating is a dark golden brown.
- While the cauliflower is cooking, make sauce on the stove. In a small bowl, completely dissolve cornstarch in water and set aside.
- Add all sauce ingredients except the cornstarch + water to a small pot or saucepan. Bring to a gentle simmer and stir a few times until ingredients are mixed. This should only take a few seconds. Then add cornstarch water to the sauce. Stir immediately to dissolve cornstarch into the sauce. Stir occasionally and let sauce come to a simmer (make sure to stir otherwise the cornstarch will clump up) and cook until sauce starts to thicken (about 2 minutes).
- Allow sauce to cool a few minutes and thicken even more. Drizzle over cauliflower. If you wish to completely coat cauliflower in sauce, it's best to double the sauce and brush it on with a pastry brush. Garnish with scallions.
Video
Notes
- You most likely won't need all of the panko breadcrumbs, but to ensure the cauliflower is completely coated it's easier to start with more than you need. The nutrition estimate was calculated with 1 cup of panko and does not include the excess.
- The recipe above makes just enough sauce to drizzle over a small head's worth of cauliflower florets. If you are using a medium or large head of cauliflower or you wish to coat the cauliflower completely in sauce, you should double the sauce.
- If you make any adjustments to the sauce (i.e. add more soy sauce or other liquids) you may need to also add more cornstarch to thicken the sauce. Remember to dissolve any additional cornstarch in a little water before adding it.
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
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Related Recipes
Find all my cauliflower recipes here.
Hey what’s the calorie amount and other nutritional info.
Thanks! Excited to try it out for this fortnights meals plan
All of the nutritional info is at the bottom of the recipe card.
I’ve never liked cauliflower until my brother turned me on to this recipe,gthanks brother I needed to add a veg to my intake.
We’re glad you enjoyed it!
My family loved this recipe! I did cook the cauliflower for a little over 30 minutes instead of the 15-20 minutes that the recipe called for but other than that I followed the recipe exactly. It came out great! I will definitely make it again!
We’re happy that your family loved it!
The first time I made this it didn’t turn out, but I kept trying because I knew it would be delicious and I was right! I made sure not to cut my cauliflower too small (otherwise too much work and it crumbles) and to thoroughly shake the egg off. I also only used 1C breadcrumbs and 1 egg, which was the perfect amount for just under one small head of cauliflower with just a tiny bit of sauce left over.
Thank you for sharing! I’m glad it worked out for you
Made this last night for my kids, they loved it> My dad who does not like cauliflower demolished it too. Sauce was awesome, great recipe.
I’m so glad your kids and dad loved it!
Although this recipe was delicious, I would 100% have everyone triple the sauce amount to get anywhere need what the picture looks like. Also it took me about 5 mins for the sauce to start thickening.
I’ve only ever doubled the sauce to cover all the cauliflower. But feel free to make triple.
Awesome recipe – got the full five stars from both me and my partner! Sooo tasty with the crunch of the crispy cauliflower and the moreish sauce!!! Will definitely make this again. We had to crush rice crackers and use tamari as partner is GF, but these came out lovely too. Thanks so much!!! Served it with some simple pakchoi and some white rice – nomnom!!
I’m so glad you both enjoyed!
Advice appreciated! I lightly coated the cauliflower with eggs but the Panko would not stick even when I gently pushed it on I ended up with cauliflower with breadcrumbs sprinkled on top. Any advice for next time? Thanks!
I’m sorry to hear that. I haven’t had this issue. Did you take a look at the video right above the recipe box? It shows how I coat my cauliflower and you might find it helpful, hopefully.
I’m eating this right now and loving every bite! I realized halfway through cooking that my sriracha was gone so I just skipped it and I have a lovely sweet-salty garlic sauce. I can’t wait to get some more hot sauce and try this again!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this and I hope you try it again with the sriracha!
Delicious! I doubled the sauce, as recommended for a large cauliflower head. I used only 7 tbsp. honey because I couldn’t bring myself to use 12 tbsp. ….the result was an AMAZING spicy sweet sauce. I also bumped the temperature up to 400 and baked for close to 30 min. We will definitely be enjoying this recipe again soon!
glad you enjoyed!
This was amazing! I do t really like cauliflower but want to get on the bandwagon and this sold me! I had to use a little more cornstarch to get the sauce to thicken up. And I added a little extra sriracha to give it more kick.
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
This recipe is flagged as vegan on Pinterest. I’m not sure why, considering eggs and honey are in the ingredient list…just wanted to give you a heads up ?
thanks for the head’s up. Unfortunately I don’t have any control over that.
Pinterest has this listed as a vegan recipe but this calls for 2 eggs. I was pretty bummed when I went to print this recipe for dinner. Not sure if that was Pinterest’s error, but may want to have them update that.
I’m sorry to hear that. Unfortunately, I have no control over how pinterest or other users categorizes these recipes.
This recipe would still work if you made a buttermylk dip out of a non-dairy milk and some vinegar or lemon juice 🙂 I do this all the time!
This recipe was awesome!! My husband loved it (he’s a big fan of cauliflower), so I will definitely make again! I did double the sauce recipe.
I’m so glad you liked it!
WOW! I am in love!!! I made this with brown rice and IT WAS AMAZING. I am a college student trying to figure out cooking easy vegetarian meals, and this is a winner. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!! I am so excited to try some other stuff of yours!
So glad you enjoyed it! I like mine with brown rice too
Careful on the honey! I used the reccomended amount and it was far too strong and sweet. I think it may be because I used a high quality single origin honey which is quite floral. Next time I’d probably use ? of the suggested amount and add more water and soy sauce. Thanks for the recipe!
I’m glad you were able to get the recipe to work for you. I haven’t had issues with the honey being too strong, but the type of honey you use can make a difference.
How would you modify for chicken?
I have a chicken version here! https://kirbiecravings.com/2014/07/baked-honey-garlic-chicken.html
Did this yesterday for dinner with rice and OMG it was sooooo good! The only thing is that the panko is not crispy anymore after you add the sauce to it, but still, the taste is amazing!
I’m so glad you enjoyed! I would recommend adding the sauce right before eating so that it doesn’t soften the panko too much
This recipe is SO GOOD! I made it for my meat-loving friends and they were blown away. We ended up tripling the sauce and added sambal oelek, and I think those were nice additions. I also served it with rice and stir-fried veggies. Definitely recommend this recipe!!
Thank you for taking the time to leave such a sweet comment! I love reading comments like this. =)
Hi! This looks delicious. If I were to have leftovers, would it be best to refrigerate the cauliflower and the sauce separately? Or to refrigerate the cauliflower tossed in the sauce? Thanks!
it’s probably best to keep them separate otherwise the sauce will just soak into the cauliflower
Family loved it. Double the recipe for the sauce. Definitely will make again
i’m so happy to hear that! thanks for taking the time to leave a comment!
I don’t have a tolerance for spice. Is the sriracha sauce just for taste or will it mess up the recipe if I remove it?
it’s there for taste. it also helps to balance out the sweetness so you may want to add a tiny bit more salt, soy sauce or garlic powder so it’s not too sweet.
I’m not a great chef, but I tried this and LOVED it! Even my cauliflower-hating roommates asked for seconds! Absolutely making this again. I paired it with brown rice and quinoa.
yay! thank you for taking the time to share such a wonderful comment!
Delicious. My only problem was I made more cauliflower than sauce – double the sauce if you buy a large head. I started at 15 mins and ended up going to 19 minutes and they turned out perfectly. My advice about coating; put the Panko into two bowls so you have it fresh and fluffy using one bowl at a time and make sure you let the majority of the egg drip off. Can’t wait to make more!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing your tips and experience.
Hi Kirbie,
I am planning on making this soon, looks great! Could I use tapioca starch instead of cornstarch? I only have that in the pantry.
Thanks!
I have not attempted with tapioca starch before but from my understanding, it doesn’t work as well or the same
I’m not a vegetarian and I absolutely love this dish. My wife had made it twice now. I was skeptical at first but am sold now. Delicious! Awesome recipe. The cauliflower comes out so crispy, it tastes like its fried. The honey garlic sauce makes the dish.
yay! Thanks for letting me know! So glad you enjoy this one so much!
Hi I tried the recipe with cauliflower and it was yummy. Just curious if this would work with broccoli
I think so, but I haven’t experimented with a broccoli version yet.
This is one of the best recipes I have ever made! The sauce is DELICIOUS- a perfect balance of sweet, tangy & spicy. I used GF panko crumbs and they worked fine. I also did the breading in small batches and kept the sauce recipe as-is. Bravo! ????????
I’m so glad you love this sauce as much as I do!
I’m so excited to try this! Unfortunately, I somehow missed seeing Sriracha as one of the ingredients when I went to pick them up. Any suggestions on substitutes, or should I just suck it up and make another trip to the store?
You can replace with another hot sauce!
I made this recipe and I personally loved the crispy baked cauliflower but wasn’t crazy about the sauce. I think it is because I love the taste of cauliflower and with the sauce, I couldn’t taste it at all. Thank you for posting it though.
it’s true that the honey garlic sauce will probably cover most of the cauliflower taste, but I do love the sauce!
Made these for lunch today they were delicious and easy
Yay! so glad you enjoyed them!