How to deep fry cauliflower?

Question

I tried to deep fry cauliflowers (without breading; I am NOT making tempura), but they turned out soft.

I have seen that done on TV where cauliflowers are freshly deep-fried and turn out to be crunchy. But when I tried doing that, the cauliflower ended up soft and somewhat soggy. I increased the frying time thinking that may help evaporate the moisture inside the cauliflower but it then turned out soft and soggy with oil instead of water.

Are there preparations that I need to do to the cauliflower, or are there something special that I need to add to the oil?

Asked by KMC

Answer

You need to cover soft vegetables in egg or batter first. Normally the vege's are steamed first to actually cook, cooled, then egg washed or lightly battered and flash deep fried in hot oil just to set the thin batter

Try Indian style spicy pea/chickpea flour batters

Answered by TFD

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Cooking Cauliflower so it doesn't fall apart?

Question

How do you avoid cauliflower from being so delicate ? Often i'll cook it and it'll fall apart.

I heard there's a way from stopping it from doing this.

P.s. Often we'll boil it and cook it with a little salt and butter. Just simple and quick.

Answer

With broccoli or cauliflower, if you cook it for too long, it'll get mushy and fall apart. Boiling will exacerbate that a bit, so if you're looking for firmer cauliflower, I'd recommend steaming it, and keeping an eye on it. When the fork goes in without a lot of work, it's done.

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