Air Fryer Cauliflower Wings with Sourdough Discard
You don’t have to tell me you’re skeptical about these air fryer cauliflower buffalo wings with sourdough discard. I know you are, but just look at the delicious picture above. They taste even better than they look, I promise.
I have to admit, regular chicken wings on a bone just aren’t my jam. Any time my husband smokes wings I go to the freezer and pull out these air fryer cauliflower wings with sourdough discard, just for me. My husband still ends up devouring his fair share of cauliflower wings along with the chicken wings (that’s how good these are). Cauliflower wings air fry very nicely and crisp up great right out of the freezer. They are perfect to have frozen on hand for a busy weeknight. I would be thrilled to have these cauliflower wings for dinner every single week. They are incredibly tasty, satisfying, a little spicy, and a tad healthy (yay cauliflower).
Out of everything I eat, I especially love buffalo sauce and ranch, (I know I’m not alone) so when all of my favorite things are combined into the same dish, I’m a happy gal! Food that gives me the same happy feels include buffalo chicken dip, buffalo chicken baked potatoes, buffalo chicken sliders, buffalo chicken oven taquitos and buffalo chicken chili, just to name a few. Oh, and don’t forget these buffalo pretzels!
I always prefer home cooked meals over fast food, though Jimmy Johns, Culver’s and Chik-Fil-A all hold a special place in my heart. The remaining fast food restaurants could fall off the face of the earth tomorrow and I wouldn’t care (sorry). Of course, none of my favorite fast food joints are in my small town. Oh well, I’ll just eat more air fryer cauliflower wings and be happy!
About the binder
The sourdough discard in this recipe works as an effective binder and is an easy way to use up sourdough discard just chilling in the fridge. We have an egg allergy in the house, which is why I don’t use an egg binder. I have tried a buttermilk binder as well, but the cornflake crumbs stay on much better with sourdough discard. DID YOU KNOW: They sell boxes of cornflake crumbs. It made my day when I saw it on the shelves.
What if you’re not a person with sourdough discard just laying around? Substitute 3 eggs for the sourdough discard and milk.
Air Fryer Cauliflower Wings with Sourdough Discard
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower, cut into small/medium florets
- 200 grams sourdough discard
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 1/2 cups cornflake crumbs
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- Black pepper to taste
- 1/2 – 1 cup buffalo wing sauce (I prefer Franks wing sauce because it is egg free)
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, set aside. Add the cornflake crumbs, smoked paprika, salt and pepper to a small bowl and mix together, set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the sourdough discard, milk, garlic powder and onion powder until combined. Add in the cauliflower florets to the bowl with the sourdough discard mixture and toss to coat the florets. Take a few cauliflower pieces at a time and toss them into the cornflake crumb mixture to coat. Place the breaded cauliflower wings on the prepared baking sheet and either air fry right away or freeze to make later.
- Option 1: Make Now: Preheat your air fryer. I use a parchment paper liner in my air fryer, if you don’t, you may want to spray the bottom of your air fryer basket with cooking spray if things seem to stick. Place half or 1/3 of the cauliflower wings in the air fryer, spray with oil cooking spray and air fry for 8 minutes at 380 degrees, flip over and air fry at 380 degrees for another 8 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl and toss with buffalo sauce and air fry at 380 degrees for another 5 minutes. Repeat steps with remaining buffalo wings, or follow the instructions below to freeze the rest for another time.
- Option 2: Freeze and Make Later: Freeze wings on the parchment paper lined tray for a few hours and then transfer to a plastic freezer bag. When ready to make, use the instruction in the make now version above to air fry.