One of the beauties of cooking in the summer is you get to take it outside to the grill.

While my family and I thoroughly enjoy grilling together, I absolutely hate cleaning my grill afterward. In the past, I have used the brush with the steel bristles. My advice to you: avoid at all costs. The bristles sometimes stick to the grill and can get into your food. Once, I had a friend who had to go to the hospital because he had one of these bristles stuck in his throat. They had to take him to the OR and take it out. At the time, I thought it was a fluke thing and continued to use the steel bristle brush to clean my grill.

One night, after I grilled some chicken, my son felt something stuck in the back of his mouth. Luckily he was able to take it out with his fingers, but sure enough, it was one of the bristles from the steel brush! I have never used it since and will never use it again. I loathe cleaning the grill now, and nothing seems to work.

Because of this terrible inconvenience, I do not use my grill as much as I would like. I know frying isn’t a summer thing, but now you know my reasoning! Since I like to find different ways to make vegetables, I had a strong feeling this recipe would be special to me.

As it turns out, I was right. The cauliflower came out a lovely golden brown, and the cayenne pepper added subtle yet evident heat. The lemon aioli dipping sauce is a refreshing addition to these beautifully fried cauliflower nuggets. I have a saying, “anything fried is good”. If you do not agree, try this recipe and it will make you a believer.

This recipe is courtesy of Purewow and will serve 4 people who will be so grateful that you decided to fry cauliflower in spite of the warm summer evenings.

Ingredients for Cauliflower Nuggets

2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1 head cauliflower, cut into bite-size florets

Lemon-Pepper Aioli

1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, or as needed for garnish

For the Cauliflower Nuggets:

Pour 2 to 3 inches of oil into a large saute pan.

Heat the oil over medium-high heat until it shimmers on the surface and a thermometer placed in the oil reads 350°F. (If you drop a small piece of cauliflower in, and it bubbles and stays at the surface, then you are good to go).

Line a baking sheet with a few layers of paper towels.

Whisk the eggs in a small, shallow bowl.

Whisk the flour with the garlic powder, salt, black pepper and cayenne in another large, shallow bowl.

Working with a few pieces at a time, dip the cauliflower into the egg until it is well coated. 

Then dip the cauliflower into the flour mixture and toss to coat.

Repeat with the remaining cauliflower.

Set the pieces aside.

Working in batches, fry the cauliflower until evenly golden brown, 6 to 9 minutes.

Remove the cauliflower with a slotted spoon and drain on the prepared paper-towel-lined baking sheet.

For the Lemon-Pepper Aioli:

In a medium bowl, whisk the mayonnaise with the lemon juice, lemon zest, and pepper to combine.

Garnish the finished cauliflower with parsley and serve immediately, hot, with the aioli on the side for dipping.

It’s that simple!