I tried out a recipe for cauliflower buffalo wings. The flavor was great but the texture was a big problem. It was like cauliflower buried in a layer of biscuit.
The recipe basically involved mixing flour and milk, covering the cauliflower pieces in that, baking this for 15 minutes, then covering them with a mix of buffalo sauce and olive oil and baking that for another 10 minutes.
Of course the recipe was called “crispy” such and such, and the picture looked like wings you might get at Buffalo Wild Wings or something and the actual result was not much like that at all.
I am wondering if there is any way to get any kind of crispness in a baked food like this. Not really for health reasons as much as for ease of cooking.
I hope this gets a good answer because I’d also like to know to do this. I get a pretty good crust on chicken pailards by starting with a v-e-r-y light coating of flour, then into beaten egg with just a splash of milk and then into buttered panko. It’s OK in the oven but just not as good as when it’s pan fried.
While I have not roasted vegi’s like this, I have done many meats and there are things to help achieve what you are trying to do. First try roasting them on a wire rack, that helps greatly, you will need to put something under it to catch any drippings. They sell roasting pans for this, wire above, dripping pan below, or you can use the oven rack if the wires are close enough. The broil pan would be a step in the right direction.
Also keep it dry (of water liquid) to the extent you can, moisten the food by dipping in the liquid then taking it out and shaking it off or let dry slightly a bit before breading it lightly, apply the oil earlier in the cooking (with meat the fat serves this purpose), apply the sauce towards the end or even right before consumption, or make it a separate dip. The breading should have the oil in it and that will help keep the water out and help improve texture.
I don’t know if this would work with cauliflower, but you can make really good chicken nuggets using a method similar to what **Alpha Twit **posted. I spread the panko in a thin layer on a cookie sheet and lightly toast it first, then dip chicken tenders in flour, egg wash and roll in toasted panko. Bake til cooked through. It comes out quite crispy this way.
The suggestion about using a wire rack is great, but also, spray the item with Pam or similar oil spray–I’ve made baked onion rings this way and while it’s never going to be as good as deep-fried, it’s not bad at all.