Broccolini… What’s that??? Well, I am glad you asked. Broccolini is the tall slender Japanese cousin to broccoli. Originally grown in Japan it has longer more slender stalks and smaller florets. I love broccolini because it is a great way to switch up the usual routine for the staple vegetables.
There is always that initial shock factor that comes in to place when I prepare this for company. Trying to impress that first date? Cook some broccolini instead of broccoli; not only does it look amazing you now have a new talking point! You’re welcome.
There’s a couple things going on in this post. First I am going to show you something new to a lot of people this is called, Blanching. Not Branching, this has nothing to do with trees. Blanching is a preparatory cooking method that will keep your vegetables looking as bright and colorful as they are in nature. It helps in cooking as well, no more mushy vegetables! Secondly, knowing about blanching vegetables will make your life so much easier when it comes to meal prepping for the week! You can blanch vegetables a few days ahead of time and just pull them out to prepare them how you like the day that you are ready for them.
So what is this blanching thing I am talking so much about, and how do you do it? Well first you want to get a big stock pot of boiling salted water going on your stove. When I say salted I mean SALTED! Make it taste like the ocean. Don’t worry it will not make your vegetables too salty. Remember you are just pre-cooking these vegetables. You will also want to have a big bowl of ice water, this is called an ice bath, waiting off to the side. Once your water is boiling you want to take a portion of your vegetables and drop in to the water, being careful not to get the water on you. It’s HOT! Also, do not over crowd pot it will drop the temperature of the water too much. Let the vegetables cook until the color becomes bright. This is going to be different for whatever you are doing. For example, broccolini is going to take less time than carrots just because of the density difference.
Once those vegetables have that bright color, about 20-30 seconds depending on vegetable, remove from boiling water and immediately add to ice bath to stop cooking. Remove them from the ice bath and let them dry on a paper towel. You can continue to do this until all your vegetables are done. A word of advice though, if you plan on doing asparagus, DO IT LAST! Asparagus will turn your water green! So now that we know what blanching is let’s get to why you are here. Garlic Broccolini!
Garlic Broccolini
Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 5 mins Total time: 15 mins Serves: 4
Ingredients:
2 bunches of broccolini
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 Tbsp. Ghee or Coconut Oil
Salt
Pepper
Instructions:
Blanch broccolini ahead of time
In a skillet, over med-high to high heat, heat ghee or oil until a drop of water sizzle and pops
Add broccolini to pan and toss to cover in ghee or oil
Add chopped garlic, salt, and pepper
Toss to cover broccoini with garlic and seasoning let cook until warmed through. Careful not to overcook the garlic
Remove broccolini from pan and set aside or on plate