Cauliflower is a very versatile vegetable. Because it’s fairly bland on its own, it can be combined with all sorts of ingredients and served with a number of ways. It’s a terrific option for people that are trying to cut back on carbs, and it makes a wonderful meat substitute. Trader Joe’s Kung Pao Tempura Cauliflower is a fantastic alternative to kung pao chicken, and it’s something meat-eaters can enjoy as well.
You’ll have to go through a few steps when preparing this cauliflower, but the process isn’t all that complex. The kung pao sauce, which is packaged separately, needs to be thawed in hot water and heated in the microwave. Meanwhile, the cauliflower needs to bake for about 20 minutes. Once the sauce and cauliflower are ready, you can coat the florets in the sauce and serve!
If you’re expecting a perfect replica of kung pao chicken, you’re going to be disappointed. While the tempura batter has a nice crispy texture, the cauliflower beneath the batter is extremely soft. One of our staffers compared it to cotton candy. Personally, we found the mix of crispy and softer textures to be very appealing, but the combination isn’t going to work for everyone. Because the cauliflower stems are slightly harder, we thought the smaller, bite-sized florets were a bit more satisfying.
Even though the cauliflower is very tasty on its own, it’s the kung pao sauce that really makes the meal. The sauce is a fantastic blend of flavors. The combination of soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, and pineapple juice is incredibly satisfying. The sauce has a hint of heat, but it’s nothing overpowering. The tangy sauce is the perfect coating for the crispy cauliflower. Our only complaint is that we didn’t have quite enough sauce to coat our cauliflower completely.
The instructions recommend pairing the cauliflower with rice, and we heartily agree with that suggestion! We combined our cauliflower with Trader Joe’s Vegetable Fried Rice and wound up with a great meal. Because the kung pao is so flavorful, you could serve it over plain steamed rice as well. We wouldn’t recommend eating the cauliflower on its own; even though it’s very tasty, it’s not designed to be a complete meal.
Even our cauliflower-hating staffers had to admit that Trader Joe’s Kung Pao Tempura Cauliflower is delicious. Whether you’re a vegetarian trying to satisfy your cravings for Chinese, or someone that’s trying to add more cauliflower to their diet, this is a treat worth adding to your Trader Joe’s shopping list.
To learn more about the nutrition content or ingredients in this Trader Joe’s frozen food, check out our package scans below.
These tasted super good, but gave me such bad gas, I don’t think I’ll ever get them again
Best cooked in the air fryer.
I made my own sauce.