Broccoli

There are several types of broccoli:

• Broccoli is the stem, leaves and flowers of the broccoli plant. Broccoli has thick, green stalks with groups of small green flowers on individual stalks (florets) – a bit like a tree with branches. A head of broccoli is actually a flower head.

• Broccolini has thinner, longer stalks than broccoli, with a smaller cluster of florets at the top. Is generally sold as a bunch (of flowers!), broccolini is a cross between broccoli and Chinese broccoli. Flavour is milder and sweeter than broccoli, with green and grassy notes.

• Chinese Broccoli is a green leafy vegetable with thick, glossy stalks and large grey-green leaves, with small yellow flower heads in the centre. The flowers should be in bud rather than in full bloom. The flavour is similar to broccoli, with green and grassy notes and some pepperiness. You can use Chinese broccoli in any dish where you would use broccoli, especially stir-frys. Cook the stems for a few minutes before adding the leafy tops to a stir-fry, for best results.

Cabbage

There are several types of cabbage:

• Red Cabbage is generally large, smooth and round in shape, with layers of tightly packed purple-red coloured leaves. Red cabbage may have added nutritional benefits over white cabbage, due to the additional content of anthocyanins (red pigments) and has a more robust flavour.

• Chinese Cabbage, or Wombok, has a different form to most other cabbages. It is large and cylindrical in shape, with layers of loosely packed leaves, pale yellowish green to mid-green in colour. It has a mild flavour with a gentle peppery kick. Chinese cabbage is lighter in colour than most other Asian cabbages such as bok choy, which is also sometimes called Chinese cabbage.

• Savoy Cabbage is a dark-green winter cabbage with crinkled and curled leaves. It has a milder flavour and is more tender than standard white cabbage. The leaves are more loosely layered and less tightly packed than green or red cabbage, although its uses are similar.

• White or Green Cabbage is round in shape, with tightly packed layers of leaves white cabbage is the most common of the cabbages. They can vary in colour from very white to mid green, although the inner leaves are usually pale.

Cauliflower

• The name cauliflower means cabbage flower. Cauliflowers have a compact head (called a ‘curd’), which are actually tight white flower clusters, attached to a central stalk. When broken apart into separate buds, cauliflower looks like a little tree, something that many kids are fascinated by.

• Although most cauliflowers are white there are also orange, purple and green (sometimes called broccoflower) variants.

• All brassicas can be eaten raw, or cooked.

• The whole of the plant can be eaten, including the stalk and any leaves.

• Simply wash, and using a sharp knife, separate the parts you want into the correct sized pieces.

• The stalk can be chopped and cooked, or grated and added to salads, pasta sauce or muffins.

• For best flavour, texture and health benefits, cook any brassica for a maximum of 3 minutes by steaming, microwaving or stir-frying. Grilling or roasting are OK too.

• Don’t ever, ever, ever:

  • Boil brassicas.

  • Overcook brassicas - serving brassicas which are over-cooked or past their best risks putting your family off them, as they will taste too sulphurous (rotten egg smell).

  • Soak cut brassicas in water prior to eating or cooking (this reduces Vitamin C a lot, and changes the flavour and texture, for the worse).

• If you are going to overcook broccoli (because you prefer it that way), or you are using frozen broccoli (for example, in soup), add a pinch of freshly ground mustard seeds to the broccoli before eating. Mustard seeds contain the special enzyme which helps your body get more of the good stuff (i.e. sulphur compounds) from the broccoli.

• Make broccoli easy and yummy for your kids, rather than something to hate. Eat it yourself, serve it regularly, and try starting with Broccolini as this can be eaten with their hands, has a milder taste, and the stalks have a yummy texture when steamed for just 3 mins.

• If all else fails: you can hide broccoli and other brassicas in meatloaf, meatballs, pasta sauces, and muffins by grating or blending broccoli into small pieces and adding to the mixture.

Broccoli, Broccolini and Chinese Broccoli:

• Flavour is green and grassy, with some pepperiness, and (if over-cooked) a sulphurous odour.

• Store in the refrigerator in a plastic bag. Most brassicas should last up to 1 week stored this way; cabbage and Brussel sprouts may last longer.

• Broccoli heads that have developed a very dark purply/blackish colour, or have gone slightly yellowish are past their best, so discard them. If yellow flowers are visible, the whole thing will taste more cabbage (although yellow flowers on Chinese Broccoli are OK).

• Limp and floppy broccoli is also past its best, although may be able to be revitalised by trimming the end and standing this in water (it is a flower head, after all!).

• All brassicas will develop a sulphurous odour if over-cooked.

• Always either eat broccoli as soon as possible after harvesting or buying it, or store it in a tightly wrapped plastic bag in the vegetable drawer of the fridge for up to 5 days.

• To slice wholehead broccoli, trim only 1 cm off the bottom of the stalk, then find the inner angle where one of the outermost florets branches away from the stem; remove the floret by cutting all the way to the base of the stem (giving you a single floret with a nice long stem). Turn the broccoli slightly, find the next outermost floret and repeat. Keep turning the broccoli head around til all the florets are separated from each other. The stems are juicy, crunchy and sweet tasting. Enjoy them too!

• Wash and slice 1-2 hours prior to eating/cooking broccoli (this lets some of the beneficial reactions in the broccoli happen before you eat it).

• Eat broccoli raw. If you haven’t already, try raw florets dipped in crunchy peanut butter, or blue cheese dip/sauce.

• Broccoli teams up well with: Oyster, anchovy and soy/tamari sauces; bacon, beef and pork (especially sausages); blue and parmesan cheeses; peanuts, garlic, chilli and walnuts. Famous combinations are broccoli (pasta or risotto) with anchovies, chilli, garlic and parmesan; broccoli and blue cheese (Stilton) soup; Broccoli and beef with black bean sauce.

• Broccolini is a great choice if you want a simple, hassle free meal, or are trying to tempt your kids to eat vegetables, because they can eat broccolini with their fingers, and it tastes sweeter and milder than broccoli.

Cabbage:

• Red Cabbage: Red cabbage makes a great change from white or green cabbage in coleslaws and stir-frys. Add a grated apple and some sultanas to thinly sliced red cabbage and grated carrot, plus some finely chopped spring onions. Stir through some hommous thinned down with lime juice and black pepper for a new take on coleslaw. Slice, shred or chop red cabbage and let it sit for a few minutes before cooking to enhance the content of phytonutrients called glucosinolates, which contribute to the peppery flavour, and which have been shown to impact positively on heart health and in some studies, to reduce the risk of cancer. When cooked, the purple colour changes, becoming darker or more blue. Add a squeeze of lemon juice or a dash of vinegar to bring the rich purple colour back somewhat. We recommend eating red cabbage raw or steaming or stir-frying for a maximum of 3 mins to preserve the health benefits.

• Chinese Cabbage/Wombok: The mild flavour and crunchy texture of Chinese cabbage makes it perfect for coleslaw, cabbage wraps, stir fries, and soups. Wombok may also be used as an ingredient in Kimchi, a fermented vegetable product made in Korea, which also contains chillies and radishes. Kimchi is becomingly increasingly popular, and is thought to have many benefits associated with the vegetables as well as the fermentation process.

• Savoy Cabbage: We recommend eating Savoy cabbage raw or steaming or stir-frying for a maximum of 3 mins to preserve the health benefits. Add a knob of butter or a drizzle of olive oil and some cracked black pepper to Savoy cabbage, delicious. Or top a baked potato with steamed Savoy cabbage mixed with grated cheese.

• White or Round Cabbage: Slice, shred or chop cabbage and let it sit for a few minutes before cooking to enhance the content of phytonutrients called glucosinolates, which contribute to the peppery flavour, and which have been shown to impact positively on heart health and in some studies, to reduce the risk of cancer.

Cauliflower:

• Cauliflower is a much maligned vegetable, usually because it has been served over-cooked for generations. Cauliflower is much valued in Asian cookery. For something new, try cauliflower florets with other raw vegetables and hummus, pesto or beetroot dips.

• Or blend up raw cauliflower as fine as you can in an electric blender - which will be either crumbles or rice-sized grains. Stir-fry spices in a little oil, such as cumin, ground coriander, turmeric and garam masala then add the fine cauliflower crumbles and stir-fry for a few minutes, add half a cup of water a few mins before finishing, and stir through lemon juice and fresh coriander at the end. Serve instead of rice or cous cous.

• Cauliflower florets are the part of the plant that most people eat. However, the stem and leaves are edible too and are especially good for adding to soup stocks or juices.

• To cook cauliflower florets, steaming, stir-frying and microwaving are preferable to boiling with regard to flavour, texture and retention of Vitamin C, beta-carotene which becomes Vitamin A in our bodies, total phenolic content and anti-oxidant activity.

• We recommend eating raw, or steaming or stir-frying for a minimal time. But you can also bake and BBQ cauliflower to add extra flavour and crunch to your meals.

One serve of brassicas is 75g; or 5 large broccoli florets. One serve of most brassicas covered herein provides

• A source* of Fibre

• A source* of Folate

• A source* of Potassium

• A good** source of Vitamin C (ascorbic acid)

• A good** source of Vitamin K.

*A source means one serve provides at least 10% of the Recommended Daily Intake, or at least 2g in the case of fibre.

**A good source means one serve provides at least 25% of the Recommended Daily Intake, or at least 4g in the case of fibre.

As a source of Fibre, Folate, Potassium, and a good source of Vitamins C and K, one serve (75g) of brassicas contributes to:

• A healthy brain and nervous system.

• Energy and normal metabolism.

• Healthy bones and joints.

• A Healthy heart and circulation.

• Healthy immune system.

• Healthy skin.

• Healthy digestion.

• Good hydration.

For more information check out www.veggycation.com.au.

• The key unique phytonutrient in brassicas are sulphur compounds (actually called “glucosinolates”, and these produce things with even more complex names: “isothiocyanates” when they are sliced up. Brassica sulphur compounds are similar to the sulphur compounds found in Alliums (onion family) in that they change rapidly when the produce is sliced.

• Sulphur compounds contribute to the flavour of brassicas (including the ‘rotten egg’ smell if you really overcook them, which is hydrogen sulphide gas), and are probably the source of the many scientifically supported health benefits (reduced risk of dying early from cancer and cardiovascular disease, and reduced severity of these) from eating 4 serves of broccoli each week. This is specific to brassicas like broccoli, and is above and beyond the benefits from eating fruit and vegetables regularly.

• The science behind this is complicated and evolving, but basically: a series of chemical reactions happen to water-soluble “precursors” (glucosinolates) within brassicas when you start chopping and chewing them, producing a number of fat-soluble “reaction products” (isothiocyanates). The reaction products combat carcinogens and inhibit bacteria like Helicobacter pylori (the cause of stomach ulcers) in your body, and are also called “mustard oils”. To get the best result, an enzyme in brassicas (called myrosinase) needs to be present as well as the precursors. If you overcook brassicas*, you kill the enzyme and don’t get the best health benefits. If you eat raw brassicas you get both the enzyme and the precursors (tick); if you add the enzyme back to over-cooked, or frozen brassicas (by adding freshly ground mustard seeds), you also win.

• The Vitamins in Brassicas reduce the risk of dying early from cancer or cardiovascular disease. So whether it’s the mustard oils or the vitamins that have the benefit, the key message is: Eat More Broccoli!

• Brassicas also contain carotenoids including beta-carotene which are active antioxidants and good for you in many ways.

• Red/purple brassicas like red cabbage, purple cauliflower, purple sprouting broccoli and red cress contain anthocyanins, which are the same water-soluble pigments that make blueberries blue. Anthocyanins are also active antioxidants and we may contribute to many health benefits including reduced risk of developing dementia.