Crispy Parmigiano Cauliflower Bites

Simple yet so palatable, we fried the cauliflower florets wrapped in a breadcrumbs and grated Parmigiano cheese breading. They are perfect for an appetizer.

Serves 2-3, Preparation time 10 minutes, Cooking time 15 minutes

1 small cauliflower head
2 eggs
Plain Flour / All-purpose Flour, to taste
Breadcrumbs, to taste
Grated Parmigiano cheese, to taste
Salt and black ground pepper, to taste
EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil or Peanut seeds oil for deep-frying, 1 lt

Method

Chop cauliflower into size florets. Boil in salted water for 8 minutes or until tender, drain, dry and set aside.

Prepare 3 different bowls: one for the flour, one for eggs beaten with a pinch of salt and pepper, and the other one for grated Parmigiano with breadcrumbs, 50-50.

Flour cauliflower bites – shaking them to remove the excess flour – then in the beaten eggs and drain them to remove the excess egg, finally in the breadcrumbs/Parmesan by covering them completely.

Tip: when breading food, the order should always be as follows:
Flour – Egg – Breadcrumbs.
Why? Because the flour ensures the egg does not slip from the surface of the food and the egg in turn acts as a glue for the breadcrumbs.

Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat, check if it is hot enough by dipping a stick, if bubbles are created around then the oil is ready for frying.

Fry cauliflower bites about 1-2 mins on each side until golden brown and for a maximum of 3 or 4 at a time, no more, otherwise the temperature of the oil will drop and they won’t be crispy.

Take them out of the oil with a skimmer, put them on a plate lined with kitchen paper.

Salt them lightly and serve hot.