Cat, our Fresh Produce Department Leader, Veg Queen, and all round clever clogs has something to ask you and tips to help you make the most of your Broccoli. Over to Cat…
Are you a ‘Stalk Snapper’?
If you find yourself favouring florets when cooking calabrese, I’ve got a few tips to help you kick the habit when it comes to discarding stalks…
Loving food and hating waste are two very important things in my life. Finding ways to utilise produce in its entirety (throwing as little away as possible), can seem almost pointless when there are so many bigger problems going on in the world, but I can assure you it is a whole lot easier than you might think…
A head of calabrese, or broccoli to some, resembles a tree, and such like, all parts are important and have their uses during its life from field to fork. The familiar fluffy florets, all gorgeous and green, grow upwards and outwards from the ‘trunk like’ stalk, and are most commonly boiled or steamed. As habit has, most of us only think about the top, pretty part, and neglect the rest…
However, these hardy stalks have the same nutrient profile as the florets; an iconic part of your 5-a-day, this beautiful brassica is one of the top 10 most popular veggies in the world! So why do we waste 60% of it?! The stalk, if boiled or steamed, may take a few minutes longer to cook than its friends, but still has the flavour. Sure, it may not look as pretty as the little green clouds of goodness, but it can be used in ways that can mask its unfortunate appearance. My favourite hack is a good and green pasta sauce. This uses the stalk, florets, frozen peas, spring onions and garlic, and a bit of seasoning. Sauté your garlic and spring onions, boil the veg, drain (but keep the water), blitz the veg and your onions and garlic together, adding as much or as little of the cooking water to get it to the consistency you like. Season and heat on low to moderate whilst your pasta is cooking. I tend to add a bit of parmesan in towards the end for a nutty nuance throughout. So simple, and I waste NONE of my brilliant broccoli! There are plenty of recipes out there which can suit a variety of culinary abilities…from broccoli based soups, casseroles and stews, stocks and sauces, to more adventurous dishes such as ‘broccoli and walnut pesto’ and ‘broccoli frittatas’. Regardless of the skill involved, the thing they all have in common is they use the stalks in an advantageous and adventurous way. Clever cooking can help reduce food waste…
So please, break the habit, not the broccoli!