Have you tried this with broccoli?

For a long time I have been experimenting with broccoli trying to find a way to prepare it that people will find irresistable, because it is so good for you! I tried chopping it up fresh and mixing it with mayonnaise, thinly sliced red onions, salt and pepper. This wasn't bad when the salad was just freshly made; but not so good as a leftover. When I included broccoli in my stir-fried vegetables, even when I added the broccoli last and tried not to over cook it, the color and texture were disappointing.

A few weeks ago on a DVD of Julia Child's original cooking show "The French Chef", I saw Julia prepare fresh green beans by blanching them prior to stir-frying them in butter and olive oil. I had blanched green beans before packing and storing them in the freezer; but the idea of blanching vegetables just prior to cooking them had never occurred to me. I decided to try this with broccoli.

I soaked about 2 lbs of fresh broccoli in cold water; then drained and trimmed it into flowerettes. I plunged the flowerettes into a large kettle of boiling water for 90 seconds; then drained and plunged it into a bowl of ice water. After draining the cooled flowerettes, I spread them on a clean flour sack towel. The broccoli was a lovely color and texture. Finally, I stir-fried it in butter and olive oil. Broccoli prepared this way has been a big hit at my house! For me it has taken the guess work out of preparing broccoli.

Are you thinking about all the soaking and draining and trimming and boiling and draining and cooling and draining and drying and stir-frying and pots, kettles, bowls, towels, and so on and so forth? (It looks worse in print.) It is not bad after you get into a routine. I prefer to get the broccoli blanched, dried and stored in the refrigerator until I am ready to stir-fry it for a meal. It stays very nice in the fridge. Happy Day!