Truth time—vegetables were an acquired taste for me. I’ve grown to love them and sauteing and roasting them are my top two favorite techniques to prepare vegetables. After spending a lot of time in Italy and devouring sauteed spinach with lemon wherever I could, I was inspired to quick saute vegetables in a hot skillet like this easy and quick sauteed broccolini.
p.s. there are some veggies to this day that I just can’t with (I’m speaking to you, beets).
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What is broccolini?
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Before we get into why you’ll love this easy sauteed broccolini, we probably should have the discussion of what is the difference between broccolini and broccoli. Many think that broccolini is baby broccoli. And that just isn’t the case.
DEFINITION
Broccolini is actually a hybrid or cross-breed of Chinese broccoli (a leafy green vegetable) and traditional broccoli.
-Josie + Nina
What broccolini isn’t
Contrary to what you might hear on the streets, broccolini isn’t broccoli rabe (which is actually rapini and is a green) nor is it baby broccoli.
Just an FYI.
Why broccolini is better than broccoli:
- Cooks faster. Because broccolini has a thinner stem, it takes less time to cook.
- Better flavor. Broccolini is sweeter and not as “gassy” or strong flavored as regular broccoli making it have better flavor in my book.
- Delicate texture. First, unlike broccoli you can eat the entire stem from top to bottom. And florets are smaller but flatter giving more surface area to brown in the pan all which helps create better texture (and again…flavor!)
Ingredients you’ll need
Three ingredients. Just three. I love recipes with short ingredient lists (hint, hint…like these awesomely sweet oven roasted tomatoes).
- broccolini (as thin of stalks in a bunch as you can find, if possible)
- olive oil
- kosher or sea salt
- lemon (optional)
- crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
How to Cut Broccolini (or trim)
Broccolini is really easy to trim. Here’s how you’ll do it:
- Using a sharp paring knife, cut off the bottom by about 1/4″ or so.
- Remove any leaves.
- Cut the small stalks from the thicker stalks.
- Thin any thick stalks (larger than 1/2″ or so) by cutting down the length of the stalk floret to stem.
Sauteed broccolini step-by-step
Grab your favorite skillet that heats evenly like a stainless steel or cast iron skillet. My favorite is this All Clad 10″ Skillet.
Heat some olive oil over medium-high heat until shimmering.
Add the trimmed and cleaned broccolini with tongs to the pan in one layer, gently toss and allow to brown for about 2 minutes on one side. Flip to the other side for another two minutes until you see char developing. Cover with a lid and allow the broccolini to steam for a bit before serving.
Add a big splash of lemon at the end for freshness.
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10-Minute Sautéed Broccolini with Lemon
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Equipment
- 10" stainless skillet can use cast iron as well
Ingredients
- 1 bunch broccolini, 8-10 stalks
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt, or sea salt
- lemon, squeezed, optional
- crushed red pepper, optional
Instructions
- Using a sharp paring knife, cut the bottom ¼" of each stalk. Trim broccolini by removing any leaves and separating smaller stalks from the larger ones. Thin any stalks thicker than ½" but cutting from floret (top) to stem (bottom.1 bunch broccolini
- Heat a 10" skillet over medium-high heat and add olive. Heat oil until it shimmer in the pan.1 Tablespoon olive oil
- Add broccolini in a single layer in the pan, season with salt and cook for 2 minutes. The broccolini will start to char (that's a good thing!). Flip and cook on the other side for another 2 minutes or so. Cover and allow the broccolini to finish cooking to a beautiful bright green.. Soften to your desired texture but keep things crisp. We don't want soft broccolini but up to you!½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Remove the lid and give the broccolini a big squeeze of lemon, sprinkling of crushed red pepper (both optional) and additional salt, if neeeded.lemon, crushed red pepper
WOW. This was so freakin’ good, and it was just as fast and easy as it was delicious! This will be a new regular!
Yay! That makes my heart happy – and I know that char flavor gets me everytime! Thanks for trying it Shoshanna!