Oven-roasted lemon broccoli

I’d like to think that nowadays I’m quite an adventurous eater; as long as there’s no meat in it (maybe no liquorice or coffee either) I’ll give it a try. As a child, however, I was very fussy. Eggs, cheese, tomatoes, even broccoli - seen as one of the more “child friendly” vegetables - I did not want to eat any of it. Why exactly I didn’t like these foods is generally a bit of a mystery. I suspect, however, part of it was in fact how we tend to cook our vegetables in Britain traditionally. From our homes to our school kitchens, us Brits tend to favour the “boil the life out of them” approach when it comes to food like carrots, cauliflower, broccoli etc. Don’t get me wrong, there is a place for a pile of boiled veg on the side of your plate, cooked for not too long and smothered in gravy, but I think as a nation we are slowly coming to the realisation that our vegetables can be cooked in a myriad of ways that lend themselves to more flavour and a better texture.

(Thankfully I grew out of my fussy eating, and no longer try to hide food that I don’t like down the sides of the sofa (sorry Mum)).

Enter, the roasted broccoli. This recipe only takes a fraction longer to cook than its boiled counterpart, doesn’t take up a ring on the hob (a precious resource when you’ve got a roast dinner on the go) and gives the broccoli an entirely different flavour than if you were to boil it - more of a savoury, earthy taste, and no waterlogging either. The broccoli is cut into florets, including the stalk which in my opinion is the tastiest part. Olive oil and lemon juice are whisked together with some salt and pepper, then the broccoli gets to take a nice bath in the mixture to soak up the flavours. After its soak, the broccoli is placed on a hot tray and roasted in the oven for just under twenty minutes, leaving you with still crunchy but tender pieces of the vegetable with a slightly crisp finish.

Don’t forget to use both the “trees” and the stalk in this recipe

This broccoli works great as a side to traditional British meals: your roast dinners, toad in the holes, cottage pies and the like. It can also be used as a component of a dish; it works wonderfully stirred into some pesto pasta or thrown into a curry. If you’re not a fan of lemon in savoury dishes you can leave out the juice and just use the oil and seasoning if you prefer. The broccoli is best fresh, but can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge and reheated in the microwave the next day if necessary.

Oven-roasted lemon broccoli

Serves: 4 | Total time: 25 mins | Source: vicki cooks veggie

Ingredients

• 1 head broccoli

• 3 tbsp olive oil (or another vegetable oil)

• 1 ½ tbsp lemon juice (about half a lemon)

• Salt and pepper

Method

• Preheat the oven to 200°C (390°F) and place a non-stick baking tray into the oven to warm up.

• Chop your broccoli up into florets (or trees if you will!). Don’t forget to also chop up the stalk into bitesize pieces, removing any woody areas first.

• In a large bowl, add the olive oil and lemon juice with a good grinding of salt and pepper and whisk. Add the broccoli to the bowl and mix well, ensuring that the broccoli soaks up the lemon and oil mixture. Leave to soak for five minutes.

• Once the oven is hot, tip the broccoli onto the preheated tray (drizzle any remaining lemon and oil mixture over the broccoli). Place in the middle of the oven and roast for 15-18 minutes (you don’t want the broccoli to get too dark), then serve as a tasty side or added to another dish.