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Broccoli rabe (pronounced "rob" and also referred to as rapini) can be found in a refrigerator case sprinkled with ice because it wilts very easily. When selecting this vegetable, choose firm, green, small stems with compact heads and flower buds that are tightly closed and dark green, not open or yellow.
Traditionally, greens are boiled or simmered very slowly with a piece of ham hock for an extended period of time until they are quite soft. This softens the texture and decreases some of their bitter flavor.
Another way to decrease the bitterness of greens is to blanch them in boiling water for one minute prior to cooking. Greens can than be sautéed (do not use aluminum or iron pans), or added to various dishes during cooking. Broccoli rabe has 20 calories and zero grams of fat for a ½-cup serving, but plenty of disease-fighting phytochemicals.
Broccoli Rabe with Pasta
Ingredients: 1 lb pasta 2 lbs broccoli rabe 1 hot pepper, shredded 2 cloves garlic, minced 6 Tbs olive oil Grated Romano cheese
Directions: Chop the broccoli rabe into 3-inch pieces. Bring a pot of water to a boil, salt it, add the broccoli, and after a few minutes stir in the pasta and cook the two together until the pasta is just tender.
While the pasta's cooking, simmer the garlic and the pepper in the oil.
Drain the pasta and broccoli well, turn them out into the skillet with the oil and garlic, cook, stirring, for a few seconds to distribute the seasoning evenly, and serve with grated cheese.
Serves 4
Published 11/23/07
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Broccoli rabe sounds like it must be very closely related to regular broccoli—and it is in the same family. But the way it's prepared is quite different, because while regular broccoli focues on the fluffy florets, broccoli rabe concentrates on the stems and leaves. It is prepared more like a green than a steamed vegetable and is very bitter when raw so it is recommended to always cook this vegetable. Don't confuse broccoli rabe with broccolini—that really is baby broccoli and is quite tender!
