This Tangy Broccoli Stem Salad Is The Perfect Healthy Side Dish
There are no shortage of ways to prepare your vegetables to nourish your body and excite your taste buds, but it's not often that your veggie scraps go to good use in a recipe. Typically with broccoli, you'll cook with the crown and throw the base into compost (not the trash)! But what if we told you there was a healthy and delicious way you could use your vegetable leftovers to make the most of your groceries and function as the perfect summer side dish?
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From Nicole Berrie's new cookbook Body Harmony, this broccoli stem salad is the ideal complement to your picnic staples, complete with gut- and immune-supporting properties from the ginger and garlic.* Not to mention broccoli is high in satiating fiber, and it contains an array of vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients.*
"The town I grew up in has a famous joint called Baumgart's Café, which was part retro American diner, part Chinese restaurant," Berrie shares in her book. "With [their] dumplings came this tangy broccoli stem salad that was so incredibly tart, so incredibly crunchy and garlicky, that I've always wanted to recreate it. They've since taken it off the menu, so here is your only chance," she writes.
Quick Pickled Broccoli Stem Salad
Makes 1 to 2 servings
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Ingredients
- Stems from 2 to 3 heads broccoli, or 1 to 2 cups (150 g to 300 g) sliced broccoli stems
- ½ cup (120 ml) white rice vinegar
- ½ cup (120 ml) filtered water
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced
Optional
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- Chili flakes
- Black sesame seeds
- Fresh cilantro leaves
- Flaky sea salt
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Method
- Peel the rough outer layer of the broccoli stems using a vegetable peeler or paring knife.
- Thinly slice the peeled stems on a diagonal. You don't want them paper thin, but they shouldn't be too thick either. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the vinegar, water, salt, sugar, ginger, and garlic.
- Add the broccoli stems and let sit in marinade to pickle for 30 minutes or overnight.
- Drain the stems. Drizzle with the oil and top with the chili flakes, sesame seeds, cilantro, and salt, if using.
- Serve.
Note: You can let the stems sit in the pickling solution in an airtight container for up to a week.
Recipe excerpt from the new book Body Harmony: Nourishing, Plant-Based Recipes for Intuitive Eating by Nicole Berrie, published by Abrams. Text copyright © 2022 by Nicole Berry. Photography by Sasha Israel.
Merrell Readman is the Associate Food & Health Editor at mindbodygreen. Readman is a Fordham University graduate with a degree in journalism and a minor in film and television. She has covered beauty, health, and well-being throughout her editorial career, and formerly worked at SheFinds. Her byline has also appeared in Women’s Health. In her current role, she writes and edits for the health, movement, and food sections of mindbodygreen. Readman currently lives in New York City.