Wendy's Singapore Cauliflower (V, GF Options)

A delicious twist on Singapore rice noodles. The cauliflower bites can be deep fried, my preference, air fried or baked. It's crispy, spicy, savory with a hint of sweetness. The end result is cauliflower that is coated in aromatic spicy glaze. There are many ways to create the cauliflower bites for this recipe. I use braised cauliflower then coat with the batter.

Course Entree, Lunch, Main Course, Side Dish, small plate

Cuisine American fusion, Asian fusion

Keyword cauliflower, cauliflower bites, dry curried cauliflower, singapore curry

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 15

Rest time 30

Total Time 1

Servings People

Calories 819kcal

Author Dr. Wendy Dearborne

Equipment

Large bowl
Whisk
Forks x 2
Wooden spoon
Wok
Deep fryer

Ingredients

1 Large braised cauliflower head broken into large bite size florets
1/3 cup potato starch
1/3 cup corn starch
1/3 cup AP flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp black pepper ground
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
1-2 tbsp Wendy's Singapore curry mix
1/2 cup cold water + 2 tbsps Perrier or carbonated water
4 dried red chilis
1/2 cup pineapple chunks squeeze, by hand, each chunk to remove as much juice as possible. Set aside
1 tbsp vegetarian oyster sauce or soy sauce
1 tbsp squeezed pineapple juice
1/4 cup broccoli washed drained and cut into small florets
15-20 green beans, trimmed, wash drained and cut in half
2 Green onions cut into 1” pieces
10 cherry tomatoes cut in half
1/4 large onion cut into large squares
2 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp ginger finely minced
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp roasted sesame seeds
2-3 cups oil for deep frying

Instructions

Making The Batter
Whisk starches, flour, salt, pepper and garlic in a large bowl. Add water and mix with a spoon until a batter is formed. The batter needs to be thick enough to completely coat the back of the spoon, but not to thick, so it won’t coat the cauliflower.

Frying Cauliflower

While the oil is heating prepare your batter your cauliflower. Heat cooking oil 350°F

Double Tap Method

Double tapping is a method of deep-frying food at two different temperatures. The first fry, at the lower temperature, focuses on cooking the food. The second fry makes the exterior super crispy, crunchy and less oily.

Breading The Cauliflower

Put all the cauliflower into the batter. Mix well, making sure that each piece is thoroughly coated. Drain off excess batter. To help with the dipping process, I used 2 forks instead of my hands.

1st Fry

Remove the breaded cauliflower from the refrigerator and put into the hot oil. Fry until a light golden beige in color. Because the cauliflower was braised, you don’t have to worry about the interior being undercooked. Once a light golden beige color has been achieved, remove from oil and drain. Allow to cool.

Vegetables

Heat wok to medium high heat. Add a splash of oil to the wok and when hot sauté red chili peppers for 15 seconds. Add ginger for 30 seconds. Then add garlic and cook for 60 seconds. Add cubed onions with a generous pinch of salt and cook for 2 minutes.
Add green beans and broccoli. Cook for 2-3 minutes. finally, add pineapple chunks and cook for approximately 30 seconds. Remove all the vegetables from wok and set aside. Do not wash or rinse wok.

Blooming the curry

On medium low heat, add 1 tbsp of oil to the wok and immediately add the Wendy's Singapore Curry Mix, vegetarian oyster sauce and pineapple juice sauté for 2-3 minutes. Stir continuously. As the curry powder blooms becomes fragrant and darker in color. Be careful not to burn it as this will make the curry bitter. If you burn it, wash your wok and start the blooming process of the curry mix again.
While blooming the curry powder, give the cauliflower its second flash fry.

2nd Fry

Increase temperature of oil to 375°F. Refry the cauliflower bites for 60-90 seconds only. They should be a deep golden brown. Remove from hot oil. Drain for 30 seconds. This will be added directly into the wok.

Putting It All Together

Increase wok to medium heat, and add the double tapped cauliflower, and sautéed vegetables and pineapple back into the wok. Stir well to coat the entire contents of the work with the curry sauce. 30-60 seconds. Add cherry tomatoes, green onions, drizzle with sesame oil and sprinkle with sesame seeds toss once or twice. The residual heat will warm the tomatoes. Remove from heat and serve immediately.

Notes

Wendy's Singapore Curry Mix Recipe

Click the link to get the recipe for Wendy's Singapore Curry Mix

The Cauliflower

You don't have to braise, nor marinade the cauliflower in plant based buttermilk for this recipe to turn out delicious. I personally feel that the end product has a better texture and taste when either of these methods are used. But, try it and see what you think. At the end of the day, what you think is what counts the most.

Vegetables

You can add cubed capsicums, sliced cabbage, julienned carrots, turnips, celery root etc.

Gluten Free

To make this recipe gluten free: Replace wheat flour with gluten free AP flour. Or use a combination of 1/2 corn starch and 1/2 potato starch.

Instead of using braised cauliflower, you can create a seasoned plant-based buttermilk and marinade the cauliflower for several hours or overnight. This process tenderizes the cauliflower.

Plant Based Buttermilk

3/4 cups of plant-based milk
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice or vinegar
Mix well set aside for 5 - 10 minutes. During this time the milk will thicken. Add your desire seasoning to the buttermilk and marinade your cauliflower florets for a couple of hours or overnight. Make your batter and proceed as instructed in the recipe.

Nutrition