General Tso’s Cauliflower Wings

I’ve always been fascinated with how do people make these sauces that just seem to be so thick and rich, and I finally learned the secret! You cook it separately from whatever you’re cooking, and add cornstarch, so it can thicken!

How did I not think of that before? OMG I love all the things I’ve learnt because I have lots more ideas now that I know how to do this. In the past, I alwas thought I had to cook the veggies and sauce together, and sadly it didn’t give the same effect!

So yes, this is like, cauliflowers in the General Tso style, though I would love to learn more about the general and how he came up with the meal, I have been too lazy to read up about it. But I think having the cauliflowers replacing the chicken is still really awesome!

So yes, the concord grape juice is used for two reasons. First, it adds sweetness (so you can replace with broth and perhaps more maple syrup or coconut sugar if you must), and second, it adds more of the dark colour, since concord grapes are red/purple.

General Tso’s Cauliflower Wings

1 head cauliflower
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon pure maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger powder
1 tablespoons extra light olive oil

Sauce
1/4 cup concord grape juice
3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons vegetable broth
2 tablespoons white wine/white cooking wine
1 tablespoon red wine
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon rice vinegar/dark or aged vinegar
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger powder
1 clove garlic, minced

Garnish
1 scallion
A sprinkle black and white sesame seeds

Break the cauliflower into small florets, be aware that if they are big, they may take longer to cook.

Once done, add the 2 tablespoons cornstarch, 1 tablespoon sesame oil, 1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce, 1/2 teaspoon maple syrup, onion powder and ground ginger powder to the cauliflower. Use your hands to massage it until all the sauce and spices are evenly mixed. Leave it for a few minutes.

Put it in a frying pan with a tablespoon extra light olive oil and turn the heat to medium high-high, about 6 or 5-6.

Fry the cauliflowers for about 20 minutes, be sure to stir all the time.

Sauce: In a small saucepan, add all the ingredients for the sauce, be sure that you’ve minced the garlic into tiny bits. Mix it evenly with a spoon.

When the cauliflowers are 5 minutes from being done, turn the heat for the saucepan on medium or medium high (4-5). Simmer for about 5 minutes (or a little more/less), stirring constantly until the sauce thickens.

Assemble: After the cauliflowers have cooked for 20 minutes, they should be ready to eat. Drizzle the sauce on the cauliflower and give it a quick stir, and then turn off the heat.

Chop the scallion into rings and add on top, along with sesame seeds.