The Best Sauteed Garlic Broccolini Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between broccoli and broccolini? ›

Broccoli has a thick, woody stem and a large, flowering head. Broccolini is a cross between broccoli and Chinese broccoli, and also belongs to the cabbage family. Broccolini have long, firm stalks (thinner and more tender than those of broccoli), a few small leaves and small florets.

You do need to trim off the very end of broccolini before cooking, which takes all of 20 seconds (I line up the stems and trim the whole bunch at once). Other than *maybe* this Roasted Frozen Broccoli, vegetable prep doesn't get much easier or faster than when you are cooking broccoli.

The best way to experience the health benefits of broccolini is to eat it raw. The stems, leaves, and florets are all edible. You can also choose to steam your broccolini and serve it as a side to complete a tasty, nutritious meal.

How Do You Reduce the Bitter Taste of Broccoli Rabe? The easiest way to rid broccoli rabe of some of its bitter flavor is by blanching it first. Just a quick dip in boiling water extracts enough of the bitterness and jumpstarts the cooking.

Broccolini – by a hair's breadth! Nutritionally, the two brassicas are very similar. But the excellent vitamin A content of broccolini, together with the fact that it needs less prep and there's no waste, gives it the edge over broccoli for us.

Broccolini will also have longer stems and smaller heads in comparison to broccoli. Broccolini is still a fairly new cruciferous vegetable, as it was invented in 1993 in Japan. Because of its newness and because it provides less quantity in a stalk, broccolini is typically more expensive than broccoli.

It's mellower and less bitter than standard-issue broccoli, with a mild sweetness much more akin to Chinese broccoli. But our favorite part of broccolini is its texture. The long stems have a pleasant crunch, and the ratio of stem to leaf to bud is pretty perfect, if you ask us.

This means you can more easily eat broccolini stems than broccoli stems, which are much tougher and could be more difficult to eat and digest raw. Plus, you don't need to peel broccolini stems before preparing them. The texture of broccolini is more like that of asparagus than broccoli.

It's got the same delicious mixture of sweet and bitter that regular broccoli has, but in a form that is concentrated more on the long leggy stems than fully flowering heads. The main drawback with most broccolini is that those stems can get big and tough enough that they need to be peeled. After that, no problem.

Despite what you may have heard, Broccolini is not baby broccoli. This lanky vegetable is a hybrid first created in 1993. Broccolini a cross between broccoli and Chinese broccoli. It has small florets, long stalks, and a few small leaves — all of which are edible.

What is the Chinese name for broccolini? ›

Broccolini®, also known as baby broccoli, is a popular new Brassica crop on the market. It is a hybrid of broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. botrytis) and gai lan (Brassica oleracea var. alboglabra) also known as Chinese broccoli, Chinese kale, or kailaan.

Broccoli and cauliflower both are high in fiber they aid to digestion. But consuming these in larger quantity can cause bloating, excessive gas and discomfort. They can also interfere with the thyroid function. It can contributes to the formation of kidney stones when consumed in large amount.

Broccoli rabe's bitter flavor comes from chemical compounds known as glucosinolates, which are found in other bitter greens like kale, collard greens, and mustard greens.

Rich in folate

Just half a cup of cooked Broccolini^® provides nearly half of your recommended daily amout of folate. Here are some benefits of consuming folate rich Broccolini^® daily. Folate energises the mind and body by supporting psychological function and reducing fatigue*.

Like other vegetables, broccoli can harbor a host of contaminants. "It's important to wash any vegetables, as they can carry Salmonella, E. coli, and Listeria,” registered dietitian Chelsea Edwards tells Southern Living. "Not washing your produce increases the risk of one of these foodborne illnesses."

If you're focused on florets, broccoli and Broccolini can easily be used interchangeably. If you're cooking with the broccoli stalk, Chinese broccoli also has a thick stem and makes a good substitute. And if the leafy greens are what you're after, broccoli rabe and Chinese broccoli can be used for one another.

*Soak in water: Place the broccoli in a dish and cover with cold water. To assist clear out any leftover particles, swirl it around in the water. Give it some time to soak. *Use a vegetable brush: If you'd like, you can scrub the broccoli with a vegetable brush as you rinse it.