How to Use Broccoli or Cauliflower Stems and Leaves (2024)

FAQs

How do you use cauliflower stems and leaves? ›

Cauliflower stems (and leaves) are totally edible. Try adding them to stocks, soups or even grating and using for coleslaw or salads. To prepare, we usually peel the outer “skin” of the stem and discard since that can be a bit tough, but after that, everything is completely tasty!

Broccoli stalks can be added to both cold and hot salads. This is especially healthy for those who have a taste for raw vegetables. Broccoli stalks can be cooked with the florets either while you're steaming the veggie, making soup out of it or adding it to a mixed vegetable sabzi.

Use cauliflower leaves as a side dish instead of spinach, kale or chard, or as an ingredient in their own right, stir-fried with ginger and honey or fermented into a zero-waste cauliflower leaf and floret kimchi. Or, for a show-stopping drinks snack or side dish, just roast them.

Broccoli leaves can be prepared the same ways as kale, Swiss chard or collard and mustard greens. Try them in soups, salads or sandwiches, or even blended into a smoothie.

Broccoli stalks and leaves are edible and not toxic. Broccoli leaves are great in salads, sauces, and soups and the softer broccoli stems are great cut or shaved in salads or sauces. The harder bottom parts of broccoli stems are tougher to consume, so stick to the softer parts that are closer to the florets.

Basically, if they're being cooked for a long time, leave the skin on, and if it's just for a few minutes, peel it. And if you're eating the broccoli stems raw—which we highly recommend—peeling and chopping or slicing thinly as possible is non-negotiable. Peeling broccoli stems is easy.

It can be boiled or steamed for no more than a couple of minutes or thrown in as part of a stir-fry. You can also roast tenderstem in a hot oven with a good drizzle of olive oil.

Well, long-stemmed or long stalk broccoli is a variety of broccoli that is otherwise known as Broccolini or Broccolette. It is a long stem vegetable, tenderer than normal broccoli.

While you may not always think to use cauliflower leaves in your recipes, they are full of health benefits and taste great! Choose leaves that are green, bright and tender and remove the main stems. You can eat them raw or cooked, and they can be added to many side dishes and entrees.

Cauliflower stalk is perfectly edible, healthy, and delicious. Grate them and add them to salads or use them to make coleslaw, or add them to soups, stews, or vegetable stock. To prepare the stems, we recommend peeling and removing the outer skin, especially on the lower parts of the stalk.

Are the leaves of cauliflower plants edible? ›

Abstractly, we probably all realize that cauliflower leaves are perfectly edible—they can be used just like any of your other favorite dark leafy greens.

Large leaves work best in braises, soups, and stews, where they'll stand up to a long simmer and soak up loads of rich flavor. They can even take a quick sear on the grill (try misting them with a little oil and seasoning with salt and pepper). You can make broccoli leaf chips the same way you make kale chips.

1. Broccoli leaves are their own super food. Broccoli leaves hold their own among super foods like kale, chard, and other dark, leafy greens. Like the florets, they are loaded with sought after vitamins A, C, and K as well as fiber, thiamine, niacin, calcium, iron, and potassium.

Wash and trim the stalks, removing any leaves and thick stalks. Arrange the broccolini in a single layer in a large rimmed sheet pan. Drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle the salt and red pepper flakes over the stalks. With your clean hands, toss so that everything is distributed.

You can use the outer leaves just as you would spring greens, or as an alternative to leafy greens like collards or kale. They are ribbed and a bit chewy, but the ribs can be removed just like you would remove the stems of collard green leaves. The smaller, tender cauliflower leaves are great in salads or wraps.

When the curd (the white head) is 2 to 3 inches in diameter, blanch it: Tie the outer leaves together over the head and secure with a rubber band, tape, or twine to keep light out. (This is not necessary for self-blanching or colored varieties).

Toss broccoli heads and stems into your juicer for a nutritious addition to your green juice recipe. Summary Broccoli is rich in potassium and vitamins A, B6, and C. It also packs several antioxidants like kaempferol, which may decrease cancer growth, inflammation, and mental decline.

Place a large sauté pan over medium heat and add the butter. When butter is melted, add leeks and salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally until the leeks have softened. Add broccoli leaves with the vegetable stock and cook, stirring occasionally until the greens have wilted, about 8 to 10 minutes.

There are so many ways you can eat your broccoli leaves for our recipes. Remove the mid-rib, tear or chop the supple leaves, and mix them into a saute. Toss them in hearty salads where you might otherwise rely on kale. Or, blend them into a smoothie for a nutrient-rich, not-t00-sweet smoothie.

There are many wonderful ways to incorporate broccoli stems into your cooking. You can blend them into soups, chuck them into broths, roast them into fries, spiralise them into noodles or even blitz them into pesto.

What happens if you eat broccoli stems? ›

A: You definitely can, and should! Broccoli stems are full of fibre and nutrients. I usually take off the outer 'rind' as this can be a bit stringy, then slice the stalk thinly and add it to my dishes just like that. Broccoli stalk is great in stir-fries, curries, pasta – wherever you use the rest of your broccoli.

Broccoli stems, though not as colorful nor flavorful as their more desired florets, are just as nutritious. Actually, gram for gram, the stems contain slightly more calcium, iron and Vitamin C. No seriously. The dark green florets only provide more Vitamin A.

Put a little water into a pan and bring it to a boil. 2. Put the broccoli into the pan, cover and turn down to a simmer. Cook for 3-4 mins or until you can pierce the stem easily with a sharp knife.

Boiling leaches out the vegetable's water-soluble vitamins in these vegetables, such as vitamin C and folate, as well as many of the glucosinolate compounds, which are water-soluble, too.

Steaming broccoli is a fast and healthy way to cook this nutritious vegetable. It preserves broccoli's vibrant green color and fresh flavor without the addition of oil. While boiled broccoli is often soggy, steamed broccoli is characteristically crisp-tender.

Broccoli stems contain all the same nutrients as the florets, which makes them an extremely healthy food. Broccoli is what is known as a 'nutrient dense' food, which means that it packs a lot of vitamins and minerals into relatively few calories, so you can get everything your body needs without piling on the pounds.

Broccoli has large flower heads, usually dark green, arranged in a tree-like structure branching out from a thick stalk which is usually light green. The mass of flower heads is surrounded by leaves. Broccoli resembles cauliflower, which is a different but closely related cultivar group of the same Brassica species.

Rhubarb leaves are very high in oxalic acid, which quickly causes kidney failure in humans. About 25 grams of pure oxalic acid is the average amount needed to kill a human.

Rhubarb leaves

These leaves contain a high level of oxalic acid—a toxin that in high doses can cause kidney damage, various stomach problems and even death, in rare occasions, according to Hampshire College.

But you actually get more cauliflower leaves than you do florets, so I'm always looking for ways to use them. Sometimes, I strip off the green leaves from the stem and use them as I would use cabbage leaves. Then use the stem, sliced up in a stir fry, a curry, a casserole or soup, or just as a vegetable side.

Do all cauliflower have worms? ›

While most veggies have them, cabbage and cauliflower are specially notorious of harboring them. These worms are so small that they cannot be seen with naked eyes as they are hidden inside the layers of cabbage or cauliflower. They even survive on high temperatures because eggs of these worms are hard-shelled.

It can cause bloating, gas, or cramping, and definitely avoid if you have irritable bowel syndrome. Other cruciferous vegetables like cauliflower and cabbage shouldn't be juiced for the same reasons.

Once it has been cooked, the stalk and tougher leaves have a similar texture to leek but will taste like cauliflower. The leaves are a little more bitter than other types and have a taste that could be likened to kale.

After you cut off the head, you should remove the leaves as well. Rip the leaves off with your fingers, or use garden shears to snip them off where they meet the stem. This helps the plant continue to grow new cauliflower. You can sauté the leaves as a hearty side or look for cauliflower leaf recipes, for instance.

You can eat cauliflower leaves. They're just as edible as the cauliflower stems or florets (the immature flowers of the plant) we usually cook up. They're also a versatile ingredient which adds tasty flavour to many dishes.

Be sure to leave some of the leaves around the head to keep it protected. If the heads are too small, but have already started to open up, they will not improve and should be harvested immediately. If the cauliflower has a coarse appearance, it is past maturity and should be tossed.

Cauliflower stalk is perfectly edible, healthy, and delicious. Grate them and add them to salads or use them to make coleslaw, or add them to soups, stews, or vegetable stock. To prepare the stems, we recommend peeling and removing the outer skin, especially on the lower parts of the stalk.

Harvesting Your Cauliflower

Your cauliflower will be ready harvest when the heads are 6-8 inches in diameter, roughly 10 days after blanching. Harvest by cutting the stalk just below the head, leaving a stem of about 1-2 inches.

Broccoli plants can be harvested two to three times for a period of up to three months. The plant first produces a large head in the center of the plant. Once this main head has been harvested, it will grow several smaller side heads for the next several weeks.

Yes, you can compost cauliflowers.

That said, you can of course eat the leaves rather than throwing them into your compost heap – the tips of the leaves are a bit like cabbage (unsurprisingly, since they're from the same veg family) while the stems can be sliced thinly and stir-fried (like broccoli stems).

Do cauliflower leaves grow back? ›

Does cauliflower grow back after you cut it? Once the heads of the cauliflower plant have been harvested, it will no longer develop any new, edible heads and can either be pulled up and discarded, or left in the soil to produce seed.

Support: For a tight head of broccoli, tie a string around the base of the plant to keep the leaves together while the head forms. Otherwise, the broccoli head can get rangy. Fertilizing: Fertilize broccoli regularly with a product formulated for vegetables. Follow package instructions carefully for best results.