Roasted Broccoli

Broccoli is my favorite vegetable.  I’ve always wondered if people thought Chinese people bathe in broccoli given the amount of broccoli found in most fast-food Chinese restaurant cooking.  Let’s see – there’s Beef and Broccoli, Chicken and Broccoli, Broccoli and Garlic Sauce just to name a few.  In actuality, Chinese Broccoli is different from American Broccoli.  Chinese Broccoli (aka Gai Lan) looks more like tuffets of leaves whereas American Broccoli looks more like budding flowers. 

I will spend some time later discussing Gai Lan and how I like to cook it.  But here, I’ll share how I like to roast broccoli. 

What You’ll Need:

2 Lbs of Broccoli Florets

Salt

Black Pepper

Garlic Powder

Olive Oil

1. To make clean-up easier, I lay aluminum foil along my roasting pan. 
2. Start with about 2 Lbs of broccoli.  I typically buy the 2 Lbs of already washed broccoli florets that Sam’s Club or Costco carry.  If you buy the broccoli with the stalk on it and you don’t like roasting the broccoli stalk, I’ll show you how to pickle the stalk later.
3. I put the broccoli directly into the roasting pan.  Less clean-up with a mixing bowl later.
4. I’m not a big salt eater but some people are.  Excessive salt increases risk of hypertension but again, everything in moderation.  For 2 Lbs of broccoli, ½ tablespoon of salt is typically enough for me but if you’re into more salt, then 1 tablespoon of salt.  I’m a big fan of black pepper.  Not everyone is.  I’ll probably use about 1½ tablespoons to 2 tablespoons of black pepper for 2 Lbs of broccoli.  I’ll also add about 2 tablespoons of garlic powder to 2 Lbs of broccoli.  If you’re not a garlic fan, then either use less garlic powder or skip it all together.
5. I always sprinkle the dry spices onto the broccoli first prior to covering it in oil.  I do this because once there’s oil and you oversaturate an area with spices, it’s really hard to get the spices off to start over. 
6. After I’m done sprinkling the dry spices, I pour some extra-virgin olive oil throughout the broccoli mixture.  ¼ to ½ cup of oil will generally suffice for 2 Lbs of broccoli.  I mix everything around with my hands to make sure the broccoli is well-coated.  If it’s not, no worries.  I sometimes spray some PAM on top of the broccoli before putting the whole thing into the oven.  There’s nothing wrong with a little imperfection.
7. 350 degree Farenheit oven for about 25-30 minutes.  Once the timer goes off, I turn off the oven and just leave the broccoli in there for another 10 minutes.  Nothing wrong with saving some electricity by using the residual heat of the oven to finish cooking the broccoli.
8. Once the broccoli is out of the oven, sometimes I’ll sprinkle it with lemon juice to give additional flavor.  I just use the lemon juice that comes in the plastic lemon-shaped jars at the grocery store.

Roasted broccoli is so versatile.  It is delicious by itself and goes along with anything.  Sometimes I’m feeling the spicy kick and will add Siracha or this yummy sauce called Lao Gan Ma (available at the Asian grocery store) to the broccoli.  If you’re into a protein and vegetable type of deal (what my husband likes), you can add any type of protein to the broccoli.  For example, sometimes I’ll make meatballs.  Couple meatballs with some roasted broccoli = lunch for my husband.