Braised Broccolini, also known as baby broccoli, is such a simple but elegant and delicious side dish. Serve it with a quick weeknight meal or as part of a weekend dinner party menu.
Another side dish you might enjoy is how to roast cauliflower recipe.
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Why you'll love this recipe!
- Broccolini is so easy to prepare. You barely need to prep it. I usually rinse it and just cut off the ends.
- The stalks becomes tender so quickly.
- Also know as baby broccoli, broccolini has many attributes of a Chinese vegetable known as gai lan, one of my favorite things to order at dim sum brunch. Gai lan and broccolini are both slightly bitter and sweet at the same time.
- Broccolini presents very elegantly on a plate if you are serving it at a dinner party.
- Add all kinds of flavors to broccolini or just keep it simple with butter, salt and pepper.
What ingredients will you need?
Really you just need the fresh stalks of baby broccoli. This is so simple, I promise.
- Broccolini or baby broccoli: Available at farmers' markets, Trader Joe's and most supermarkets almost year round.
- Butter: Nothing special here - just unsalted butter. Salted could work too - just reduce the added salt.
- Salt and pepper: I use kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.
Let's make braised broccolini step-by-step!
(Printable recipe card is at the end of the post with ingredients, measurements and step-by-step instructions. This section includes more and larger pictures and high level explanations of the process.)
1. Rinse the broccolini and trim off about ½ inch of the ends.
2. Place the stalks in an 8- to 10-inch sauté pan. Add water and cubes of butter.
3. Cover the pan and put the heat on about medium.
4. Let it cook for about 3 minutes and note that the liquid will start boiling and bead up on the lid.
5. After about 5 minutes, pull of the lid and check the tenderness of the stalks. You should be able to easily pierce the stem and the color should still be bright green.
6. Remove the stalks to your serving platter. Add some salt and pepper.
OR
6B. Add some lemon juice, salt and pepper to the liquid left in the pan, reduce it briefly and pour it over the broccolini. The first time I did this, I walked away (heat off) and when I came back, the butter had browned and was even more delicious!
Expert Tips
- Usually I braise the broccolini as whole stalks, but another option is to cut the stems/stalks into smaller pieces so you have bite size pieces of stalk and smaller florets. Just depends on how you plan to serve them.
- If the stalks are thicker, cook time might increase just a bit. That's why I suggest checking at 5 minutes and then cook a bit longer if needed.
- Roasting is another great way to cook broccolini.
- Adding some sauce or crunchy toppings is a great option. Tahini sauce, oyster sauce, pomegranate molasses, sesame oil & soy sauce, for example. For crunchies, almonds, sesame seeds, pine nuts are a few examples.
Recipe FAQs
Broccoli has thicker stalks and more dense florets than broccolini. Broccoli is often one large connected stalk that needs to be cut up, while broccolini is usually several thinner stalks that may not even need to be cut except for a trimming of the end of each stem.
Broccolini is a cross between broccoli and gai-lan. Gai-lan is a chinese vegetable that is a wonderful combination of slightly bitter and sweet flavors. When we go out for Chinese brunch (dim sum), it’s one of my favorite things to order, flavored with some oyster sauce. Broccolini has the essence of gai-lan but has the florets at the top, instead of the leaves of gai-lan, making it more familiar looking and possibly more approachable for picky kid or adult eaters.
Broccolini is almost always available at Trader Joe's and frequently in most large-chain grocery stores nearly year round now. Also check your farmers' market as growers will carry it when it is in season locally wherever you live.
I store mine in a produce bag or plastic bag loosely closed allowing just a little air in the produce drawer of the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
What to serve with braised broccolini
Honestly, there are so many main courses that this braised vegetable pairs well with but some of my favorite ways of using it are:
- Super quick mid week meal like pan-fried dumplings or even a store-bought roast chicken leveled-up with this fresh side dish.
- Sometimes I marinate firm or extra-firm tofu in soy sauce, sesame oil, maybe a squirt of vinegar and topped with sliced green onions and roasted sesame seeds. Pair this with baby broccoli/broccolini and you've got yourself a meal. Bonus points for steamed rice and crispy seaweed on the side too!
- Any grilled or baked chicken dish will be happy next to braised broccolini! I also love serving it with my Korean-style meatballs!
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Braised Broccolini
Beth LeeIngredients
- 1 bunch broccolini
- 1-2 tablespoons butter
- ⅓-1/2 cup water
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon fresh ground pepper or to taste
- lemon wedges optional
Instructions
- Wash the broccolini and just trim the bottom of the stalk a smidgen - maybe ½ inch.
- Place the broccolini in the saute pan with the water and dot the top with the butter.
- Cover the pan and put the stove on about medium (if your stove is not very hot, try medium high, at least until you hear it boiling). It will come to a boil quickly - in 2 or 3 minutes.
- Once it boils, turn it down to medium low (should still hear it making some noise in the pan as it cooks) and leave it covered. Check it after an additional 2-3 minutes. If a fork can pierce the stalk, it’s ready. If it is no longer bright green, it has already cooked for too long so better to check earlier than later!
- The butter will melt into the broccolini and what’s left of the water and create a bit of a sauce. Take the broccolini out of the pan once it is ready so it will stop cooking and place it on your serving platter of choice. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Optional finishing sauce: Add some lemon juice to the remaining butter/water mixture in the pan along with the salt and pepper and let it reduce for a minute (if that). Then pour this over the broccolini.
Notes
- Usually I cook these as whole stalks, but another option is to cut the stems/stalks into smaller pieces so you have bite size pieces of stalk and smaller florets. Just depends on how you plan to serve them.
- If the stalks are thicker, cook time might increase just a bit. That's why I suggest checking at 5 minutes and then cook a bit longer if needed.
- Roasting is another great way to cook broccolini.
- Adding some sauce or crunchy toppings is a great option. Tahini sauce, oyster sauce, pomegranate molasses, sesame oil & soy sauce, for example. For crunchies, almonds, sesame seeds, pine nuts are a few examples.
Nutrition
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Laura
I love learning new ways to prepare my favorite foods! I usually steam or quick roast broccolini. I'm going try braising it like this next.
Beth Lee
Roasting is great for broccolini too! But this is just so quick and easy that I end up doing this almost every time!
Jenni
I call this method "steam saute," and it is such a great method! Thanks for walking us through one step at a time!
Beth Lee
Oh I like that description because it's exactly what is happening! Thanks Jenni!
Anastasia
I have never liked broccolini. But this sounds like a good recipe to try anyway. Thanks for the background info. I love food trivia like that.
Minnesota Mamaleh
yum, yum and more yum! seriously divine! (um, can you tell how much i heart broccoli? weird, but true!) thanks for the delish recipe! 🙂
omgyummy
I love broccoli too but broccolini, for me, is like broccoli but stepped up a notch. So flavorful on its own but can withstand some pretty great additions as well - see the comment below - Irene uses red pepper flakes and garlic with it. That sounds pretty yum as well.
Irene Saiger
Great dish! I like to throw some red pepper flakes and thinly sliced garlic into hot oil and add the Broccolini.
omgyummy
Thanks for the idea - sounds delicious. We all love spicy in this house and that would be great with an Asian-themed main dish. Loved your latest post about egg creams!
Selena Cate
I'm a huge fan of broccoli but have never purchased broccolini ever. I need to after reading this recipe. It looks so delicious.
omgyummy
Hi Selena! Great to hear from you. Let me know if you like it after you try it. If you love broccoli, it's pretty hard not to love broccolini. I love your new blog design, by the way. Hope all is going great since last we saw each other at BlogHerFood.
Georgia B.
How fabulously simple. I have yet to try Broccolini, but now I will. I've looked at it from afar in the grocery store but always passed it by for something more familiar.
Thank you.
gb
omgyummy
Oh go for it Georgia B! It's so easy to prepare and is a real flavor treat. Let me know if you try it and if you like it (that kind of sounded like a Life Cereal commercial, didn't it?) Hope all is well in New York.
kjanzen
Oooh yummy! I have never seen this before but probably because I didn't have my eyes open for it. I'll look for it next time!
Eve
That sounds wonderful... I'll have to try it when I get back home to my own kitchen! 😀
Christine Leiser
Yum! Delicious. I never buy broccolini because my family eats so much of it that it's too expensive. I do love it though and this looks delicious. Maybe I'll treat myself.
sandy corman
what did you make with the broccolini?
Diane
When you turn the heat down, do you turn it off or turn it down to simmer? Sounds great!
omgyummy
Good catch and good question Diane. I just edited the post to be more specific. Turn it down to medium low - you still want it to be making some noise in the pan but you don't want it to cook too quickly.