- just before the flower buds open
purple-broccoli-spear
- about 10cm long
sprouting-broccoli-spear
- when young, so very tender & not stringy
early sprouting rudolph
- leaving some stem on the plant, so that the buds will produce more spears – cut & come again!
The central head on the sprouting broccoli plant will be larger than the side shoots, but not as big as the standard broccoli sold in the shops. This is actually calabrese – quite different from sprouting broccoli harvested in the early spring.
Cut the large central head out before the flower buds open, when still tender. Cutting out the central head will encourage the side shoots to develop.
whitesprouting-brocoli
Pick sprouting broccoli every few days to make sure the shoots are young and tender. It is often difficult to see the sprouts in amongst the leaves, particularly the purple sprouts, but white sprouting broccoli is easier to see and pick!
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Hi Topveg,
I love purple sprouting brocolli do you have any good recipes or ways to cook it?
Thanks
Sara from farmingfriends
Comment by farmingfriends — February 3, 2010 @ 5:56 pm
Hi Sara
I agree – sprouting broccoli is very special. Try this recipe:
http://topveg.com/2007/02/home-grown-vegetable-stirfry/
Good to hear from you
TopVeg
Comment by TopVeg — February 3, 2010 @ 7:20 pm