Scientists have found: This is the healthiest way to eat broccoli

Scientists from China have come out of the market straight to the lab to test which way of cooking will cause broccoli on your plate to give you the most health benefits possible.

They have an answer, but not sure you have the strength for it

Walla!

health

17/01/2022

Monday, 17 January 2022, 07:39 Updated: 09:02

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Broccoli still enjoys the reputation of being one of the healthiest foods you can add to your plate.

Even his look cries out to heaven for a sensible and healthy diet, and he is also known as a vegetable that contains high and beautiful amounts of vitamins and minerals as well as dietary fiber.

In addition, like the rest of its members of the cruciferous vegetable family (like cauliflower and cabbage) it also contains a natural compound called sulforaphane.

Studies have shown that these compounds play a role in regulating blood sugar levels and there are signs that they may even reduce the risk of cancer.

Some people try to achieve these benefits through dietary supplements as well, but the scientific evidence suggests that consuming the vegetable as a whole has a greater benefit than consuming it in the form of a supplement.

This is why scientists from China have decided to focus on finding the best way to cook and eat broccoli, in order to get the most out of its health benefits.

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Is that how good it is?

Broccoli inflorescences in a steaming pot (Photo: ShutterStock)

At the end of their research, they found the answer, and even published it in an article in the journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, but if you like light and quick meals that do not require too much fuss - their findings may deter you.

First it should be understood that the sulforaphane compound is not completely present in the broccoli in its normal state.

Instead the vegetable contains some compounds called glucosinolates and also an enzyme called mirosinase - which was developed by plants as a means of protection against grass-eating animals.

Through a process called "mirosinase activity" the glucosinates are converted to sulforaphane - which is what you want to happen.

Need to do some damage for the benefit

To get the mirosinase activity started, you need to "damage" the broccoli.

But despite what you might think, cooking it is not enough.

Studies actually show that most common cooking methods for making broccoli - such as cooking in boiling water or in the microwave - actually significantly reduce the levels of glucosinates in the vegetable - even if you do quick cooking of only a few minutes.

Mirosinase is also found to be very sensitive to heat.

So the way to get the most sulforaphane is by eating uncooked broccoli inflorescences.

Mirosinase is very sensitive to heat.

Roasted broccoli (Photo: Dror Einav)

But then, the researchers (Chinese, to remind you) thought of testing another cooking method - the most common in China, in fact - frying in a pan. "To our surprise, we found that very few studies have examined the levels of sulforaphane in pan-fried broccoli and to the best of our knowledge, no study to date has examined the stability of sulforaphane compounds in the pan-fried broccoli process," the researchers wrote.

The researchers bought some broccoli inflorescences at the local market, and went to work. They measured the levels of the various natural compounds in the vegetable at each stage of the preparation process. In the first stage, they pretty much crushed the broccoli into pieces - chopped it into small pieces about 2 mm in size, in an attempt to extract as much of the enzyme mirosinase from it (which, as mentioned, is secreted when the plant is damaged).

They then divided the produce into three groups - one was left nice without cooking, another was bounced in a pan for 4 minutes immediately after the cut, and the third group lay aside for 90 minutes after the cut and only then was boiled in a pan for 4 minutes as well.

The reason the second group was left to rest for an hour and a half was to see if the extra stay would allow the broccoli to excrete and produce a greater amount of the beneficial compounds, before undergoing a short cooking process.

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And this is indeed what they found - the broccoli that was sautéed immediately after being chopped contained 2.8 times less sulforaphane than the broccoli that was given "rest time".

"Our results suggest that after cutting the broccoli inflorescences into small pieces, the chopped vegetable should be allowed to rest for about an hour and a half before cooking," the researchers concluded.

Now of course the question arises how practical is a preparation process that requires a wait of an hour and a half between chopping the vegetable and cooking it?

The researchers apparently thought about it themselves, and so added that in their estimation, "a 30-minute wait would also be helpful," although this period of time was not examined in their experiment.

• health

• Nutrition and diet

• Preventive nutrition

Tags

• broccoli

• vegetables

• healthy nutrition