The Best of Broccoli

These ‘little trees’ are indeed part of the cruciferous family and known for its health benefits. Other veggies in this group include cauliflower, kale, spinach, Brussel sprouts and more.

Broccoli is an excellent source of fibre, potassium, calcium and iron as well as vitamins A, C, K and B. Another reason why broccoli is considered a healthy ingredient, is the fact that it is low in kilojoules, but has the ability to fill you up. This humble green veggie is also great for gut-health, strong immune system and a healthy heart. Sounds like more than enough reasons to include broccoli as often as possible in your meals.

Did you realise that we are actually eating the flowers and stalks of the plant? Yes, the stalks are equally delicious and healthy, so don’t cut the stalks off or discard them – it’s all part of healthy goodness. Even the leaves are tasty and great to eat.

The best way to prepare green veggies

The last thing you want on your plate, is dull, grey-looking and tasteless veggies. Green veggies, like broccoli, green beans, peas, baby marrow, or spinach should never be overcooked and should still retain as much of its characteristic taste, texture and nutritional value as possible. Remember that most green veggies are delicate and only need a short cooking time and preferably not too much water when boiling them. The aim is to keep them bright green in colour and they should still have some crunch.

Most green veggies can be enjoyed raw and can be prepared with a variety of cooking methods. Good options include steaming or lightly boiling, quick pan-frying or even just blanching them. An easy way to do this, is to just pour boiling water over the green veg and allowing it to stand for a few minutes in a bowl. Stir it once or twice and then drain the veggies. Plunge the veg into a bowl of ice-cold water to stop the cooking process. This will result in bright green, crunchy veggies. Pan-frying them is quick and easy and they can even be oven-roasted or air-fried, but take care that they don’t overcook. They only need a few minutes to be cooked and lightly charred.

Heleen Meyer’s 5 ideas with broccoli:

1. Make it in the air-fryer: cut broccoli into florets, toss in some olive oil and air-fry at 180 °C for 5-8 minutes to give them a slightly roasted flavour, without overcooking them.
2. Whether steamed, blanched or roasted, a sprinkle of toasted seeds like sesame, pumpkin or sunflower seeds on top is a healthy option for a nutty crunch. Broccoli no longer just needs to be served with a rich cheese sauce.
3. Use it in any of the interesting salads on our website, like this Broccoli salad with caramelised onions and blue cheese or this Grape and chicken salad.
4. Broccoli is delicious with eggs. Pan-fry a few broccoli florets and add it to a frittata or omelette.
5. It’s great in a meal like a one pot, stir-fry, tray bake or stew – just remember to add the broccoli during the last few minutes of the cooking time. Or try this vegetarian Brown rice and lentil salad with broccoli.

A great one-pot meal is this Rice with chicken & broccoli. The delicious nuttiness of brown basmati rice is perfect for this quick ‘new’ meal made with leftover chicken – ideal for a simple mid-week supper. You can use leftover rice or if you plan to make this for supper, cook the rice earlier in the day and allow it to cool down. This results in a fluffier mixture, once everything is tossed together. All you have to do is fry an onion with the aromatics and then toss in all the other ingredients.

 Rice with chicken & broccoli

Recipe by Heleen Meyer

Serves 4 – 6

500 ml (2 cup) uncooked brown rice or brown basmati rice

30 ml (2 tbsp) olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

15 ml (1 tbsp) dried mixed herbs

200 g broccoli, cut into large florets

500 ml (2 cups) cooked chicken, cut into pieces (see tip)

2,5 ml (½ tsp) Chinese five-spice or 5 ml (1 tsp) ordinary paprika to taste

salt and black pepper to taste

1. Place the rice with 1,25 litres (5 cups) water and a pinch of salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer with a lid on for 30 minutes or until just cooked. Drain and rinse with cold water. (This step can be done ahead of time.)
2. Heat half of the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and sauté onion and garlic until soft. Add herbs and broccoli and sauté until the broccoli is starting to turn bright green. Cover with a lid and steam broccoli for a few minutes.
3. Stir the remaining oil and cooked rice into the broccoli and sauté for a few minutes. Reduce the heat, stir in the chicken and spices and cover with a lid. Allow to steam for a few minutes until the rice and chicken is heated through.
4. Drizzle with a big glug of olive oil and season to taste with a little lemon juice, salt and pepper.

Tips:

1. Substitute chicken with 2 x 170 g tuna in water, drained.
2. Any leftover chicken is delicious in this dish and roasted chicken adds a lovely flavour. Alternatively cut two to three chicken breast fillets into strips and sauté with the broccoli. You may need a little bit of extra oil. You could also fry the chicken first and spoon it out so that it doesn’t become dry. Stir the chicken in at step 3.

For more recipes like this visit Heleen’s website.

Image by Neville Lockhart, for Make five/Maak vyf