Rosie Makes General Tso's Cauliflower.

As you might have read,

I have vegetarian Hawthornelets now.

I don't know where I went wrong,

but I'm hoping this is just a phase.

Today, I'm making General Tso's Cauliflower.

And by God, it's going to be GOOD!

General Tso's Cauliflower

 1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets

peanut oil

1/2 cup flour

1/3 cup cornstarch

3/4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

2 eggs

3 TB soy sauce 

1 TB rice vinegar

Sauce 

2 tsp sesame oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 TB minced ginger

2 dried red hot chilies

1/4 cup vegetable broth

1/4 cup soy sauce

3 TB rice vinegar

2 TB mirin

3 TB sugar

1 TB cornstarch

toasted sesame seeds for garnish

1 scallion, sliced, for garnish

Whisk flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.  Whisk eggs, soy sauce, and vinegar in a liquid measuring cup.  Pour egg mixture into flour mixture, whisking until smooth.

Heat oil in cast iron skillet until 350°.

Dip each cauliflower floret in batter, shake off excess, and place in hot oil.  Do not crowd the pan.  Fry until cauliflower is golden on all sides -about 4 minutes.  Drain on paper towels.

In a medium saucepan, prepare the sauce.  Heat sesame oil over medium heat.  Add garlic, ginger, and chilies, and cook 1-2 minutes, until fragrant.  Add broth, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and mirin.  Bring to a simmer over medium heat.  Simmer for 5 minutes.

In a small bowl, whisk sugar and cornstarch.  Pour about 1/4 of hot sauce over mixture, whisking  until smooth.  Pour cornstarch mixture to pot and bring to a simmer, stirring until mixture thickens and is smooth.

Add cauliflower to pot and toss to coat.  Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and sliced scallions. 

Assemble ingredients for the cauliflower batter.

Coat cauliflower in batter.

Prepare the sauce.

Cornstarch mixture into sauce.

Frying cauliflower on left.

Sauce on right.

Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and sliced scallions.

Enjoy!

Now, this is the last of vegetarian recipes for a while.

I'm going to redeem myself with decadent chocolate cupcakes,

so stay tuned!