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by Clake and Klake

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Tuesday, September 04, 2007

Pan-Roasted Broccoli
posted by clake at 12:19 PM

Last night for dinner I made this adaptation of a recipe seen on America's Test Kitchen (free registration required). Klake has never liked broccoli, but when we saw this being made she thought it looked delicious. I made certain substitutions to the original receipe - mainly due to not bothering to buy special ingredients I don't normally keep around the house. The secret to this dish's deliciousness comes from the star ingredient of most popular restaurants: fat! I'd seriously like to see how this dish compares with french fries.

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Pan-Roasted Broccoli with Lemon Browned Butter
Serves 4 as a side dish

For Broccoli
3 tablespoons water
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 3/4 pounds broccoli , florets cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces, stems trimmed, peeled, and cut on bias into 1/4-inch-thick slices about 1 1/2 inches long (about 5 cups florets and 3/4 cup stems)

For Sauce
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 tablespoons minced red onion
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (I would have loved to use 2 cloves fresh garlic, but had none on hand)
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

1. For Broccoli: Stir water, salt, and pepper together in small bowl until salt dissolves; set aside. In 12-inch nonstick skillet with tight-fitting lid, heat oil over medium-high heat until just beginning to smoke. Add broccoli stems in even layer and cook, without stirring, until browned on bottoms, about 2 minutes. Add florets to skillet and toss to combine; cook, without stirring, until bottoms of florets just begin to brown, 1 to 2 minutes longer.

2. Add water mixture and cover skillet; cook until broccoli is bright green but still crisp, about 2 minutes. Uncover and continue to cook until water has evaporated, broccoli stems are tender, and florets are tender-crisp, about 2 minutes more. Transfer broccoli to medium bowl and set aside.

3. For Sauce: Melt butter in now-empty skillet over medium-high heat and continue to cook, swirling occasionally, until butter is browned and releases nutty aroma, about 1 1/2 minutes. Off heat, add onion, garlic, salt, and pepper, and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in lemon juice and thyme. Add broccoli to skillet, toss to coat with browned butter, and serve immediately.
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The main difference from our version is that on Test Kitchen they used shallots instead of onion. They also used fresh thyme and garlic.

We served this with a nice, lean piece of breaded tilapia. On the show, they served it with Chicken Kiev, which is a chicken breast wrapped around a big hunk of butter. The only meal with more fat that I can imagine would have to include a steak cut from a butter-sculpture cow.

Comments:

Another excellent recipe with pan-roasted broccoli I like to make a lot consists of tomatos (sometimes oven-roasted), a bit of fresh garlic, red wine vinegar and orecchiette pasta (shells work well too). Normally, I like stuff with spices, but this one is very simple and very delicious.
# posted by juBlie : 8:58 AM