Get More Out of Your Broccoli With This Knife Trick

My friend and colleague Dan Souza demonstrated this technique for cutting broccoli on his Instagram account a while back and I've been using it ever since.

The way I used to cut broccoli, I'd run my knife through the whole stalk. It worked fine for separating florets, but I'd inevitable leave behind a scattering of broccoli flowers strewn across my cutting board that were too small to cook.

To prevent this, they key is that rather than cutting through the whole stalk and head, you cut through the stalk only, leaving your knife clear of the flowers. Afterwards, pick up the brocolli and pull the stalk apart where you made your cut. The florets will naturally and cleanly separate along fault lines.

And don't throw out stems you've trimmed either! As Jacques Pépin likes to remind us, it has the most intense broccoli flavor in the plant. Stems can be roasted, sauted, blanched, or steamed just like florets (procided you trim or peel off any extra-woody bits.

Shopping and Storage

The thing to remember is that broccoli is a flower, so most of the rules for buying flowers apply to buying broccoli. Appearance and vitality are key.

Here's what to look for:

• Leaves (if attached) are often the first indicator of broccoli freshness as they will be the first thing to start to go limp or turn yellow.

• Color  should be vibrant green or, in certain types of broccoli, green to purple or bluish, especially at the flowering "treetop" ends. Avoid broccoli that shows any sign of yellowing.

• Florets should be tight and compact. Look for heads where the individual buds (florets) are tightly closed together. Open or spread-out florets indicate the broccoli is either starting to wilt or to bloom, both of which indicate it's past its prime.

• Stalks should be firm and sturdy, not limp or floppy. The ends of the stalks should also appear vibrant and moist rather than dry or brown.

To store broccoli, it's perfectly fine to keep it wrapped in plastic, a compost bag, or a re-usable bag or tight-fitting container in the fridge. Stored this way broccoli should last a few days. But for optimal storage length, I once again look to the florist for tips. By keeping the cut end of the stalk submerged in water, you can keep the broccoli moist, extending its longevity.

For the longest-term storage, line a container or bowl with a plastic bag, fill the bottom with water, and place the broccoli inside it stem-side-down, then wrap the bag around the top of the head.