Your New Favorite Vegan Snack: Buffalo Sauce Cauliflower-Quinoa Bites

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Cauliflower rice and quinoa combined into crispy homemade veggie tots. Easily make them by hand or use a mold for uniform bite sized pieces. These spicy buffalo flavored quinoa bites are a delicious addition to a meatless menu.

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Nothing like a Pinterest success story. When recipes or projects you find online turn out even better in person. Congrats, you found a winning pin.

But what happens when you follow a flop? Or a seemingly simple recipe that has multiple (doable) steps, 3 cooking methods (eh, not such a fan) AND tons of dishes—I’m talking 2 pots + 1 pan + 2 bowls + a food processor! (deal breaker and yes, I counted them!!)

You update it with your own twist.

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Lucky for you. Because that flop turned into these crispy baked cauliflower bites that you’ll want to add to your meal prep rotation.

Reasons you’ll love these quinoa bites

• bite sized & delicious
• uses a single pot to prep
• not too spicy – the buffalo flavor is placed inside the veggie tots, instead of being brushed on to coat the outer layer
• vegan
• can be made gluten free or vegetarian (with minor substitutions)
• served as an appetizer, snack, side dish, salad topper

Ingredients

• quinoa – either white, red or tricolored can be used
• cauliflower – raw, minced to resemble grains of rice. Purchase it premade or cut it yourself from a whole head or florets.
• hot sauce – I used Frank’s. If necessary, you can also substitute with enchilada sauce.
• oil – avocado
• maple syrup – to balance out the heat. Substitute with honey if these don’t need to be vegan.
• bread crumbs – use plain or your favorite flavor; homemade or store bought
• flour – whole wheat; since such a small amount it used, substituting with other flours should be fine.
• spices – including coarse black peppers, onion powder & granulated garlic

Secret to making uniform tots

Is using sushi rice molds to shape them into tater tots. Instead of forming each one individually by hand, this tool helps efficiently make multiple bites at a time that are consistent in size and shape.

It’s one of my favorite kitchen gadgets for making different bite sized recipes. That’s why it’s on my what to buy at daiso shopping list

How to make cauliflower & quinoa bites

To start, make sure you have the cauliflower rice prepared and haven’t run out of bread crumbs. Mentioning the latter from experience.

If necessary, use a small food processor to make your own crumbs (from pieces of bread). Then pulse cauliflower florets to turn it into “rice.”

Prepare quinoa cauliflower rice

Cook quinoa in a covered pot on the stove top. Add your choice of liquid. This recipe uses tap water but you could use vegetable broth instead.

While waiting, stir together the hot sauce, oil and maple syrup to make a buffalo sauce. If you want to skip creating another dirty dish, these can be added separately in the next step.

Once the liquid absorbs, the quinoa seeds pop open & soften, mix in the cauliflower rice and buffalo sauce. Cook uncovered for an additional 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat and allow to cool for 15 minutes. To speed this up, transfer the mixture to another bowl & refrigerate.

Form veggie tots

Mix the remaining dry ingredients into the cooled buffalo cauliflower rice & quinoa mixture. Now we’re ready to shape into tots.

Work over a large sheet pan lined with parchment paper. This will help manage the mess & you’ll use this to bake the tots on later.

Use a measuring spoon to remove a tablespoon of the mixture at a time. Use your hands to roll into a ball. Then flatten two opposing side (with your other hand) to create the classic cylindrical shape of a tater tot.

To skip the shaping & make more than one at a time, use a nigiri sushi mold where you fill a cavity, press it down, then flip it out to get uniform pieces.

If you want more of a dump and go method, use this handheld rice ball mold. Or just avoid the shaping and use a cookie scoop.

Arrange the quinoa bites so the flat side is facing down on the pan. Spread them out to give them some space to breathe. But they don’t need the extra room to expand as they cook.

Bake in a preheated 375°F, until crispy and golden brown, approximately 45-50 minutes.

More cauliflower quinoa recipes

Quinoa, spinach and cheese baked into a bite sized recipe. These vegetarian spinach quinoa balls make a delicious hors d’oeuvre, snack or side dish.

A cheesy cauliflower patty recipe baked with a carrot inside to resemble vegetarian pigs in blankets.

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Pin for Later

Get the quinoa bites recipe

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This post was originally published in 2017 and has been revamped and republished in July 2023.