Purple Sprouting Broccoli

Name: Purple Sprouting Broccoli
Brand: LE MARCHE
SKU: SPRBRO500
Price: 3.50 GBP
Availability: InStock

£3.50

Net: 250g Whole-stem eating: florets, stalks and leaves all edible French-grown

A winter brassica that needs frost to reach its best — the cold converts starches to sugars, giving the stems a sweetness that standard broccoli cannot match. Slender purple spears, edible from tip to stalk, at their peak when cooked fast and simply.

£3.50

Purple sprouting broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica) from France — the winter brassica with slender purple-tinged stems, small flowering heads and a flavour that is sweeter, nuttier and more complex than the standard calabrese most people know as broccoli. Purple sprouting broccoli needs cold weather to develop properly. The plants overwinter in the field, and it is the exposure to frost that converts starches to sugars and gives the stems their characteristic sweetness. The colder the winter, the better it tastes.

Everything on the stem is edible: the florets, the stalks, the small leaves. Unlike calabrese, where you eat the crown and discard the rest, purple sprouting broccoli is a whole-stem vegetable — which means very little waste and a range of textures on the plate, from the snap of the stalk to the softness of the flowering head. The purple colour, like purple asparagus, comes from anthocyanins and will fade towards green with cooking — this is normal and does not affect the flavour. At its best when cooked simply and quickly: blanched, charred, or roasted until the stems are tender and the tips are beginning to crisp. One of those vegetables that needs nothing more than heat, salt and good butter.

Origin: France

Ingredients: Purple sprouting broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica)

Storage: Refrigerate immediately. Store loosely in a bag in the crisper drawer. Use within three to four days — the florets yellow and the stems soften with age.

Trim any dry or woody ends from the base of the stems. If any stalks are noticeably thicker than the others, halve them lengthways so everything cooks at the same rate. Leave the small leaves attached — they are edible and add texture.

To blanch: bring a large pan of well-salted water to a rolling boil. Add the stems and cook for 2–3 minutes until just tender but still with bite. Drain and toss immediately with butter and a squeeze of lemon.

To char or griddle: toss the stems with olive oil and salt. Cook on a hot griddle pan or under a grill, turning once, until charred in places and tender through the stalk — 3–4 minutes total. The charred tips should be beginning to crisp.

To roast: spread on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and season. Roast at 200°C for 10–12 minutes until the stems are tender and the edges are caramelised.

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Description

Purple sprouting broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica) from France — the winter brassica with slender purple-tinged stems, small flowering heads and a flavour that is sweeter, nuttier and more complex than the standard calabrese most people know as broccoli. Purple sprouting broccoli needs cold weather to develop properly. The plants overwinter in the field, and it is the exposure to frost that converts starches to sugars and gives the stems their characteristic sweetness. The colder the winter, the better it tastes.

Everything on the stem is edible: the florets, the stalks, the small leaves. Unlike calabrese, where you eat the crown and discard the rest, purple sprouting broccoli is a whole-stem vegetable — which means very little waste and a range of textures on the plate, from the snap of the stalk to the softness of the flowering head. The purple colour, like purple asparagus, comes from anthocyanins and will fade towards green with cooking — this is normal and does not affect the flavour. At its best when cooked simply and quickly: blanched, charred, or roasted until the stems are tender and the tips are beginning to crisp. One of those vegetables that needs nothing more than heat, salt and good butter.