Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the broccoli florets and cook, uncovered, until tender, 2 to 3 minutes depending on the size of the florets. Drain into a colander, transfer to a plate, sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve with lemon wedges.
Ways to Prepare Broccoli
Broccoli can be eaten raw, but blanching it quickly in boiling water helps give it a more crisp-tender texture and bring out its flavor. Broccoli can also be steamed, sautéed, and roasted.
To boil, place in a pan of boiling water and cook the florets for 6-8 minutes. To steam, place in a steamer over boiling water and cook for 6-8 minutes. Broccoli to be stir-fried should be separated into bite-sized florets, heat 1 tbsp of oil in a frying pan and add the florets, cook for 4-5 minutes or until tender.
Boiled broccoli comes out perfectly bright green and crisp tender after just 2 minutes in hot water.
Place 3/4 to 1 inch of water in a saucepan with a steamer and bring to a boil. (Note that if you don't have a steamer, you can simply put the broccoli directly into an inch of boiling water.) Add broccoli, steam 5 to 6 min: Add the broccoli to the steamer and cover; reduce heat to medium and let cook for 5-6 minutes.
Rule number one of steaming vegetables is this: bring the water to a boil first! Don't be tempted to just throw everything in the steamer and bring the water to a boil. Add about 1 inch water to the bottom of the saucepan or pot, then place in the steamer basket.
What's the difference between boiling and steaming? While both use water as a cooking mechanism, you're entirely submerging your veg into the water when boiling. Whereas with steaming, the vegetables are placed above the water, allowing the steam produced to cook them gently.
The broccoli should be bright green and somewhat tender when you carefully remove it with a slotted spoon. Then immediately plunge it into the ice bath. What is this? This stops the cooking process and keeps your broccoli from getting overcooked, which could leave it looking mushy and tasteless.
Break apart the florets. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the broccoli florets and cook, uncovered, until tender, 2 to 3 minutes depending on the size of the florets. Drain into a colander, transfer to a plate, sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve with lemon wedges.
Broccoli water isn't a new concept. In fact, the 1999 Harvard Medical School Family Health Guide suggested that you store broccoli water to later use in soups, sauces, or even gravy, LiveStrong reported.
Once the broccoli is done you add it to an ice water bath. This keeps the broccoli green and crisp.
Treat your fresh broccoli like a beautiful bouquet of flowers: Put them in a vase! To do this, all you need to do is fill a jar or glass with a few inches of water.
Steamed broccoli may be one of the healthiest ways to cook broccoli because it's quick and nutrients and vitamins won't be lost in the cooking water, as can be the case with boiled broccoli.
To extend its life, blanch broccoli in boiling water for 3 minutes, rinse with cold water, or dunk in an ice bath, then drain and dry well.
Heat a large pot of water to a boil on high. Season with salt. Add the broccoli and cook 4 min. Add the carrots to the same pot and cook 2 min., until broccoli and carrots are tender.
Blanching ― quickly cooking it in boiling water for 1-2 minutes, then shocking it in ice water to stop the cooking ― produces a crisp-tender texture and brings out the flavor of broccoli. This method will seriously upgrade your veggie platter, salads and frittatas.
Do you have to boil broccoli before stir-frying? Whilst you don't have to, I prefer to. A quick boil in hot water, or a steam, will softened up the stem a little, making it tender before adding to the hot wok. This way the stem will be a little more tender, but the broccoli will retain some crunch.
Do not overcook broccoli. Overcooking will cause it to break apart, lose its color, diminish its taste, and will cause the lose of many nutrients. If adding broccoli to a cold salad, first blanch in boiling water for 2 minutes and then immediately rinse with cold water.
Blanch broccoli in boiling water for 1 minute. This set is optional but highly recommended. Blanching the broccoli will give it a vibrant green color and make it easier to bite on. Be sure not to blanch for more than 1 minute or it will become soggy.
Starting them in cold water brings the temp up slowly and evenly all the way through so that they cook perfectly inside and out." - Steven Satterfield.
Is blanching broccoli necessary? Blanching broccoli helps maintain the bright green color, texture, and flavor. If you're serving the broccoli right away, blanching will tenderize it while keeping it crisp. Blanching is also necessary for freezing to retain the color, texture, and flavor.
While boiled broccoli is often soggy, steamed broccoli is characteristically crisp-tender. Plus, when you boil broccoli, some of the nutrients leach into the boiling water. You don't have to worry about that with steaming. Your steamed broccoli will be a great meal-prep building block because it's like a blank canvas.
“Boiling vegetables causes water soluble vitamins like vitamin C, B1 and folate to leach into the water,” Magee said. “So unless you are going to drink the water along with your vegetables, such as when making soups and stews, these vitamins are typically poured down the sink.
The reason for the distinction is that Steam, which conducts heat as well as Boiling water, contains much more radiant energy*. The extra energy is the reason that Steaming cooks so much more quickly than Boiling and has to be much more closely monitored.