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Get your daily dose of veggies in the most delicious way possible with sticky Korean-style cauliflower! Trust me, besides my crazy cauliflower, this is another flavorful cauliflower recipe you’ll want to make.

A white skillet contains a large portion of sticky orange cauliflower.
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Cauliflower’s been the star of the show as far as vegetables go for a while now. And it’s not hard to see why! It’s packed with vitamins, it’s super low in calories, and it’s extremely versatile.

So versatile, in fact, that smothering it in homemade sticky Korean-style sauce is downright delectable.

So vegetarians/vegans, rejoice! You’ve just stumbled upon your new favorite cauliflower recipe. It’s created with ingredients like gochujang sauce and will truly make your mouth water.

If you’re a meat eater like me, you’ll still love this easy recipe. Sticky Korean-style cauliflower is a perfect appetizer, or side dish for entreés like Korean beef and Korean bulgogi!

If you’re serving this cauliflower to a crowd, I suggest making a double batch. It usually disappears pretty quickly.

Chopped green onions and black sesame seeds garnish a skillet full of cauliflower.

Ingredients for sticky Korean-style cauliflower

  • Vegetable oil
  • Scallions
  • Garlic
  • Cauliflower
  • Low sodium soy sauce
  • Gochujang sauce
  • Dark brown sugar
  • Rice vinegar
  • Cornstarch
  • Sesame seeds
Orange sticky sauce completely covers pieces of cauliflower in a white skillet.

My sauce isn’t thickening. What happened?

You might have added too much vegetable oil to your pan or too much soy sauce to the sauce mixture. Additionally, I noticed pre-chopped cauliflower florets give off a lot more liquid than a giant head of cauliflower that you chop yourself. I know, I know, a lot more work but worth it.

If your sauce is too thin, you can thicken it by stirring in some more cornstarch and water mixture! It’s a thickening agent that should give you the desirable sticky textured sauce.

If the cornstarch just isn’t doing the trick, try tossing in some rice flour.

Can I adjust the flavor?

One thing I really love about this easy recipe is how versatile the flavor can be!

If you want sweeter sauce, you can toss in another tablespoon of brown sugar. You can also add a tablespoon or two of honey! Honey will make the sauce a bit thicker and sweeter.

Want to heat it up? Add a tablespoon (or more) of crushed red peppers to the sauce.

How long will it stay fresh?

In an airtight container in the refrigerator, sticky Korean-style cauliflower will stay fresh for 2-3 days.

When it’s time to reheat it, I highly suggest not using the microwave! The microwave tends to make this sticky cauliflower pretty soggy.

Instead, toss it back in the pan and stir it around over medium heat for just a few minutes. That should do the trick!

A small spoon is picking up a few pieces of sticky Korean-style cauliflower out of a green bowl.

Clean up your diet with these deliciously satisfying veggie recipes!

Crazy Roasted Cauliflower

Roasted Parmesan Broccoli

Roasted Garlic Brussels Sprouts

Roasted Lemony Pesto Asparagus

Roasted Cabbage Steaks

5 from 3 votes

Sticky Korean-Style Cauliflower

Sticky Korean-style cauliflower is coated in a sticky, sweet, and spicy sauce! It's another great way to enjoy cauliflower!
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients 

  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • ¼ cup (25 g) scallions, chopped (the white part only)
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 4 cups (400 g) cauliflower florets
  • cup (85 g) low sodium soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon gochujang sauce
  • 4 tablespoons dark brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • Sesame seeds, for garnish

Instructions 

  • Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the scallions and cook until soft, around 2 minutes. Add the garlic cloves and the cauliflower florets and cook until the cauliflower florets are fork tender, around 6 to 8 minutes.
  • While the cauliflower is cooking, prepare the sauce. In a small bowl whisk the soy sauce with the gochujang sauce, brown sugar, rice vinegar and cornstarch.
  • Pour over the cauliflower and cook, stirring constantly until the sauce has thickened and caramelized. Remove from heat and finish with sesame seeds.

Notes

You can serve this with rice or with noodles.
The sauce is sweet and garlicky and super sticky so it’s perfect to serve with a delicate side.
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Nutrition

Serving: 1serving, Calories: 197kcal, Carbohydrates: 24g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 11g, Saturated Fat: 9g, Sodium: 744mg, Potassium: 391mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 14g

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition information can vary for a variety of reasons. For the most precise nutritional data use your preferred nutrition calculator based on the actual ingredients you used in the recipe.

The default measuring system for this website is US Customary. Unit conversions are provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. While we strive to provide accurate unit conversions, please be aware that there may be some discrepancies.

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Recipe Rating




3 Comments

  1. Maia Hu says:

    This is very good. And so easy to make. My family liked it better than the main meat dish!

  2. Emily says:

    I made this tonight and it was so good!! My 2.5 year old loved it as well. Thank you for another great recipe!

  3. Mary Jo says:

    WOW what flavor. I am always in search for new recipes for “Meatless Monday” and this cauliflower with a rice was perfect. Will make it again. Sweet, Salty, Sour and a little spicy. THANK YOU.