This teriyaki cauliflower is made by tossing oven-baked breaded cauliflower bites in a sweet, sticky and easy-to-make homemade teriyaki sauce. It is so delicious and perfect as a satisfying dinner, finger food or even a fun party appetizer.

Showing are teriyaki cauliflower bites garnishing a rice bowl with avocado, edamame, pineapple and green onion. On the side, there is a grey hand towel and a set of chopsticks on the side of the bowl. You can also see more of the sauce, sliced green onion and more cauliflower bites on the side of the bowl.

If you love take out Asian food, then this recipe will be right in your alley. It has the same addictive rich and savory flavor than the one from delivery, but in a much healthier way. This recipe is a must-try!

Why you will love this teriyaki cauliflower

Very satisfying
Great texture without using any oil (no frying)
Healthy
Easy and tasty way to eat more vegetables
Kid friendly

Showing are teriyaki cauliflower bites garnishing a rice bowl with avocado, edamame, pineapple and green onion. In the background, there is a bowl with more teriyaki sauce and sliced green onion.

How to make teriyaki cauliflower

Just like in this orange cauliflower, breading cauliflower florets before cooking them brings lots of interesting texture and makes them more hearty and filling. You will cover the pieces with a batter (flour and water based) and then roll them in panko. This will help get the cauliflower pieces get nice and crispy, even without using any oil. And it is very easy to make!

1- Make the oven-baked breaded cauliflower bites

Chop the cauliflower in florets. Keep them large enough, see the picture below.

Close up on a hand holding a cauliflower floret to show the size recommended

Prepare the batter: combine the flour, water, onion and garlic powder and whisk until there are no clumps anymore (expect a thick batter). Place the panko breadcrumbs on a plate or shallow bowl.

Ingredients needed to make this recipe showing vegetable florets, panko breadcrumbs, whole wheat flour, garlic powder and onion powder.

Showing is a batter in a white bowl with a hand holding on the bowl and another hand holding on a whisk.

Dip the floret in the flour-water batter one at the time. Don't be afraid to get your hands covered!

Then, roll each florets in the panko to completely coat the pieces.

There is a hand breading cauliflower floret. You can see a bowl with the batter, a plate with panko, a bowl with the floret to be breaded and a baking sheet with the breaded cauliflower.

Place the covered cauliflower pieces on a parchment paper covered baking sheet and cook in the oven.

There are battered and panko covered floret of vegetable on a parchment paper covered baking sheet.

2- Make the homemade vegan teriyaki sauce

While the cauliflower bites are cooking, make the sauce: Combine the soy sauce, maple syrup, water, rice vinegar, garlic, ginger, green onion and corn starch together in a sauce pan and cook, while whisking, for about 5 minutes until bubbly and thick. That's all!

Showing are the ingredients needed to make a homemade teriyaki sauce displayed in small white bowls. There are soy sauce, rice vinegar, maple syrup, garlic, ginger, green onion and cornstarch.

There is a homemade teriyaki sauce in a sauce pan cooking.

3- Combine cauliflower + teriyaki sauce

Once the cauliflower bites are done and the sauce is nice and thick, then simply toss the breaded florets in a little more than half of the sauce, just enough to coat the pieces. Keep the rest of the sauce for drizzling!

There are battered and panko covered floret of cauliflower on a parchment paper covered baking sheet that just got out of the oven.

There are breaded vegetable being tossed in a Asian sauce in a white bowl. You can see a hand holding on a spoon and stirring.

Watch how to make it

Tips when making this oven-baked teriyaki cauliflower

When preparing the cauliflower bites, keep the florets big enough rather than small. This will prevent the vegetable from getting too soft while giving enough time for the breading to cook and brown.
When breading the cauliflower florets, try to remove the exceeding batter before rolling them in the panko breadcrumbs. To do this, after covering the florets, simply hold them by the stems and hit the side of the bowl for the extra batter to drip (see video).
Using a panko type of breadcrumbs helps the florets get crispier without frying. You could also use regular breadcrumbs if that's all you have, but it won't be as crispy. I actually made it without the panko all together while testing the recipe and it was still good.
When placing the breaded cauliflower on the baking sheet, give enough space in between the pieces. If too close to each other, the florets could steam instead of roasting, which might make the bites less crispy.
I love making my own teriyaki sauce, but if there is a brand that you already love, then you can simply use a store-bought one. In this case, you can skip all the ingredients to make the sauce, bread the florets then toss them in your warmed up teriyaki sauce.
When tossing the cooked cauliflower in the teriyaki sauce, I recommend you use only a little more than half of the sauce you prepared. I found that coating the pieces with less sauce prevented the cauliflower bites from getting softer, plus it gives leftover sauce to drizzle on top at serving.
If you know you will want lots of sauce (especially if you make a rice bowl), then don't hesitate to make double batch of the sauce for more drizzling!

How to make teriyaki cauliflower gluten-free

If you are following a gluten-free diet, then this recipe is very easy to adapt to your diet needs:

Choose a gluten-free flour when making the batter. Any type of flour will work well here, like rice flour and gluten-free wheat flour.
Choose gluten-free panko breadcrumbs. I love this panko from Kikkoman.
Choose tamari instead of regular soy-sauce.

Close up on a cauliflower bite being hold with chop sticks with more of them in the background.

Serving suggestions

This teriyaki cauliflower can be served in so many ways! I like to serve it as part of a meal and top brown rice, quinoa or noodles with it. It also makes for a perfect appetizer or finger food served at parties. Or make a teriyaki cauliflower buddha bowl as seen in the pictures!

How to make a teriyaki cauliflower buddha bowl

My favorite way to enjoy teriyaki cauliflower is to include it in a colorful and nourishing buddha bowl. It's simple, very appetizing and easy to customize. Here is how I make it:

Brown rice. Start cooking the rice before making the cauliflower bites as it can take up to 40 minutes to cook on the stove. You can also keep some in your freezer so it's ready within 2 minutes! I love this frozen cooked brown rice from the brand 365.
Diced pineapple. Adds a fresh and sweet touch to the meal and pairs so well with the teriyaki sauce. I use fresh pineapple, but frozen then thawed or canned works too. Kids love mixing up sweet fruits in savory meals!
Edamame. Adds a nice bright color and extra valuable protein. I buy these frozen and already shelled edamame from the brand 365. When in a rush, I simply thaw them in a bowl filled with water in the microwave for about 2 minutes, then drain.
Avocado. Adds healthy fats and a delicious creaminess.
Top with sliced green onion and a good drizzle of the leftover teriyaki sauce.

Recipe variations

I love adding garlic and onion powder when making the flour-water batter, but you can be creative and use the spices of your choice. Red pepper flakes, black or white pepper or ginger powder would also work well.
You can also add pineapple (fresh, frozen or canned) right to the sauce pan when making the teriyaki sauce. It adds extra sweetness and a fun texture! To do this, simply dice the fruit in small cubes and add about ½ cup to the sauce pan with all the other ingredients.

Can I prepare teriyaki cauliflower ahead of time?

Yes, you can, although you will loose some of the crispy texture as the breading from the cauliflower bites will absorb the sauce during storage. When I make this recipe, I still make a lot so we have leftovers for lunch the day after and it remains very good.

If you want to give the recipe a head start, then you could make the teriyaki sauce ahead of time and store it in the fridge until ready to coat the cauliflower bites. I recommend you to reheat the sauce and give it a good whisk before coating the veggie (if it thickens too much during storage, then thin it with a splash of water).

Other easy Asian recipes you might like

I hope you enjoy this teriyaki cauliflower as much as we do! If you try it, please leave a comment below and rate the recipe to let me know how it was. Your feedback is so helpful!

Let's stay in touch with Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook. Also, don't forget to subscribe to my newsletter to be sure not to miss anything.