Broccoli

Look closely at a head of broccoli and you're looking at a bouquet. Those tight green florets are hundreds of unopened flower buds ¹. Broccoli is the same species as cabbage, cauliflower, kale and Brussels sprouts, all bred from one wild cabbage over thousands of years ¹². Italian farmers shaped it, Italian migrants carried it abroad, and one American president made headlines by refusing to eat it ¹³.

Background

Broccoli is Brassica oleracea var. italica, from the cabbage family. You eat the large flowering head, the stalk and the small leaves ¹. The plant grows 60 to 90 cm tall and takes 14 to 15 weeks to mature ¹.

Its whole family tree fits inside one species. Wild cabbage grows on the coasts of France, Great Britain and Spain, and farmers have bred it into cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, collards and kale, vegetables "hardly recognizable as being members of the same genus, let alone species" ². Some growers picked plants for their leaves, others for stems, and Europeans who liked eating immature buds selected for flower heads. That's how broccoli and cauliflower came about ².

Raw broccoli is 89% water, with about 34 kilocalories per 100 g ¹.

China and India grow most of the world's broccoli and cauliflower, together about 73% of the 26.9 million tonnes harvested in 2024 ¹.

History

People were growing Brassica oleracea as a garden vegetable by Greek and Roman times. The Greek writer Theophrastus described three kinds of cabbage ².

Broccoli itself began in Italy more than 2,000 years ago. It most likely developed through selection in southern Italy or Sicily, from older cabbage crops grown in the Roman Empire ¹. The name is Italian too. Broccoli means "the flowering crest of a cabbage", from brocco, a "small nail" or "sprout" ¹.

It spread to northern Europe by the 18th century and reached North America in the 19th century with Italian immigrants ¹.

Plant breeders are still at it. Broccolini, also sold as baby broccoli, is a cross between broccoli and gai lan (Chinese broccoli), bred by Japan's Sakata Seed Company over about eight years. The aim was a milder vegetable that could grow in hotter climates ⁴. It reached US markets in 1996 ⁴.

Customs, rules and rituals

Broccoli doesn't star in religious law, but it has its own place in public life.

The presidential veto. On 22 March 1990, US President George H. W. Bush said: "I do not like broccoli. And I haven't liked it since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it." ³ He added that his wife Barbara loved it ³.
The growers' reply. California farmers, who grew more than 90% of America's broccoli, pledged truckloads for the White House. The head of the United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association gave Barbara Bush a bouquet and 10 tons of broccoli, which went to the Capital Area Food Bank ³.
The family table. Bush's line landed because so many people recognised it: the parent, the plate, the "eat your greens" rule ³.

Place in human experience

Broccoli is a fine example of what patient farmers can do. One scrappy coastal plant became a whole greengrocer's shelf, because different people in different places valued different parts of it ².

It's also the vegetable people love to say they hate. Bush's joke made broccoli a symbol of childhood dinner battles, and the growers' response turned a complaint into a donation to a food bank ³. That's a pretty good outcome for a vegetable.

Broccoli travelled with people, too. It went where Italian families went, and today it is a weeknight staple from Sydney to Shanghai ¹.

How to buy, store and use it

Picking good ones. Look for tight, firm, deep-green heads and a stalk that feels solid. Yellowing florets mean the buds are starting to open into flowers, which is a sign the head is past its best.

Where to find them. Coles, Woolworths, Aldi and IGA sell whole heads loose or wrapped, plus pre-cut florets and broccolini in bunches. Frozen florets are cheap and handy for stir-fries and soups.

Storage. Keep heads unwashed in a bag in the crisper and use within a few days. Wash just before cooking.

Using them.

Roast florets hot until crispy at the edges.
Steam, microwave or stir-fry rather than boil. Boiling cuts the levels of glucosinolates, the plant's natural sulphur compounds, while these other methods don't ¹.
Peel and slice the stalk into stir-fries or slaw.
Swaps: broccolini, cauliflower, gai lan or green beans all work in most broccoli recipes.

Sources

"Broccoli", Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broccoli
"Brassica oleracea", Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brassica_oleracea
"George H. W. Bush broccoli comments", Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_H._W._Bush_broccoli_comments
"Broccolini", Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broccolini