These homemade broccoli tots are a healthy alternative to store-bought tater tots. I made them with chopped vegan shreds, minced onion and panko, then baked. They tasted similar to potato-based tots and were perfect dipped in a quick curry ketchup sauce.
This isn’t my idea. Like a previous post I did on Bang Bang Cauliflower, these Broccoli Tots were made as a result of them repeatedly popping up in my Facebook feed. I just swapped out the egg with some aquafaba and white rice flour, the cheese with Daiya, and everything else was already vegan.
How to make these homemade broccoli tots
Once baked, these tots tasted kind of potato-ey, which led Jeff to ask me why I didn’t just make store-bought tots in the first place. 🙂 I had no good answer for that other than these were fun to make and looked like little pakoras, which made me think of curry, which made me make a curry-kissed ketchup sauce to go with them. For best results, make the sauce first and allow it to chill completely to allow the flavors to blend a little.
Homemade Broccoli Tots
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 40 tots
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
for the tots
- 6 cups broccoli florets
- 1 cup Daiya cheddar (chop finely first, then measure)
- 1/3 cup onion, very finely miniced
- 1 cup panko
- 3 TB white rice flour
- 3/4 cup aquafaba
- cooking spray
for the curry ketchup
- 1 TB neutral oil, like canola or grapeseed
- 1/2 small onion, pureed
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed and finely minced
- 1 teaspoon curry powder
- 2 TB water
- 1 cup ketchup
Instructions
to make the tots
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add some salt, then carefully add in the broccoli florets. Simmer for 2-3 minutes. Drain, allow to cool, then pat the florets dry. Dice very fine by hand by chopping each floret up as finely as possible, then spread it out in batches and redice again and again until it is almost like sawdust. A food processor will be too aggressive here and turn the florets into mush.
- Add the diced florets to a large bowl and mix in the Daiya and onion, using your hands to gently combine everything together. Add in the panko and white rice flour, toss, then drizzle the aquafaba over the top and mix gently with a large spoon. Place in the refrigerator to chill for a few hours or overnight.
- Once you are ready to assemble the tots, preheat your oven to 400. Line a baking sheet or two with a silpat, set aside.
- To shape the tots, scoop out a tablespoon of the mixture. Squeeze it tightly with one hand to create a football shape. Then hold that in the palm of your hand while you use your other hand to press on the top and bottom to make a cute tot shape. Place the shaped tots onto the silpat. Once everything is assembled, spray each tot with a generous mist of cooking spray.
- Place into the oven to bake for 15 minutes or until slightly golden on the bottoms. Flip, spray the tops again with a little oil, then bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, keeping a close eye on them towards the end to prevent burning.
to make the curry ketchup
- Warm the oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add in the onion and saute until translucent, 4-5 minutes, adding little splashes of water as needed to ensure it does not brown.
- Add in the garlic and curry powder stir and saute for another minute or two. Deglaze the pan with the water and stir. Add in the ketchup, turn the heat down to low, and allow to simmer for 7-10 minutes, giving it a stir often. Remove from the heat and chill before serving.
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Appetizer, Snack
- Method: Simmered, Baked, Sautéed
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: vegan tots, broccoli tots, vegan snack
coco youssef says
Can you offer a suggestion for panko replacement, I’m gluten free. Thanks!
erinwyso says
Coco, you can probably use gf panko or even crushed Chex cereal here. I can’t guarantee they’ll work, as I haven’t tried either, but it’s worth a shot!
Manda says
Can you tell me the purpose of the aquafaba in this recipe? Thanks!
erinwyso says
Manda, aquafaba is a substitute for eggs here. It acts as a binder and makes the tots a little fluffy.
Karly says
Now THIS is smart! All the tots without all the guilt- sign me up! Can’t wait to try these out with the fam!
Mihl says
How cool! My kid will love these. And I had no idea curry ketchup was a thing outside of Germany!
Lydia Clarke says
I loved making these! So delicious. Do you think they would freeze well right after step 4? I am planning to make them for a party and it would be nice to already have some steps completed.
Thanks!
★★★★★
erinwyso says
Hi Lydia, so glad you enjoyed them! I’ve never tried freezing them after step 4, but I think that should work. Good luck, and thanks for your feedback!