How to cook broccoli soup?

Broccoli cabbage is one of the most useful, but unfortunately, unpopular vegetable crops in the culinary arsenal of any hostess.Possessing a huge amount of nutrients, this vegetable has not received deserved recognition in the mass public. Today we will learn how to cook broccoli soup, try to look into the history of this culture, consider its useful properties and present the most popular recipes for its preparation.

Broccoli is an annual vegetable plant of the cabbage family, which is a type of garden cabbage.

Some people often confuse broccoli with cauliflower, but this is not the case. Cauliflower is, so to speak, the founder of broccoli, its founder. They are similar in both genetic composition and beneficial properties, and have a number of certain differences.

Data on the emergence of this amazing culture vary to this day, but many suggest that the first broccoli cabbage was bred in the 6th-5th centuries BC. Like it or not - to decide unequivocally difficult. And then, and now broccoli was not the most famous vegetable. The homeland of broccoli can be considered the northeast of the Mediterranean - the Ancient Roman Empire.

The earliest official and documented mention of broccoli is an entry in the treatise on plants and their varieties of the Historia Generalis Plantarum (1587) by the French scientist Lugduni, Apud G. Rouillium. The next couple of centuries, any information about broccoli is lost in the pages of history, as scientists assume, due to the low popularity of the plant among cooks and housewives.

Only in the XVIII century, this vegetable crop appeared in England and received the unusual name "Italian asparagus". Some researchers associate this vegetable culture with the cult personality of Thomas Jefferson, but this is also not quite true. The third president of the United States was not a broccoli promoter. He only took some effort to spread this plant, but there was no response from a wide audience.

The flourishing or present birth of this culture could only occur in the early to mid-20th century. Then the d'Arrigo brothers from California, after writing out broccoli seeds from Italy itself, began to grow this vegetable in large quantities and supply it to the food market. It was easy to grow it - classical broccoli did not need particularly careful care and could grow on fertile and relatively poor soil.

The very first deliveries of broccoli to the market were still in 1926, and now California is considered a monopolizer of broccoli production in the United States. If we talk about world production, then China and India are in the first places, then some European countries (Italy, Spain and others).

Perhaps some will be surprised, but even after distribution, broccoli has been subjected to hybridization many times - attempts to create new, more sophisticated and useful types of cabbage. From these studies, several types of broccoli were born, including:

• Classic - Some call this type Calabrian, but the latter type has a slightly larger head. The most widespread in Canada.

• Romanesco. This broccoli can be found in different color combinations: white, red, even purple. This species has closer roots with cauliflower. Distributed in Italy and France.

• Stem. We see this species with you most often, precisely because of the long stems of this species, some confuse broccoli and asparagus.

• Chinese broccoli. A view that is similar to the analogue only in taste characteristics, the external similarity is almost lost. There is also a subspecies called "broccolini" - the Japanese version, obtained in the late XX century.

You can not ignore such items as the benefits and harm of broccoli, because you can rarely meet plants or vegetables without any side effects with improper cooking or growing.

So, consider the most important properties of the culture:

• Low calorie and, as a consequence, the absence of harmful fats and carbohydrates. This is probably one of the main points for those who seek physical harmony. 100 grams of fresh broccoli contains 28 kcal, 100 g of boiled cabbage - 35 kcal, frozen broccoli has a slightly lower caloric saturation - 23 kcal. On what type of broccoli should choose for a particular recipe, we'll talk a little later.
• High content of nutrients and vitamins. Do not think that such a small interest in the vegetable arose because of the uselessness of its biological composition. On the contrary, broccoli contains the whole range of anti-carcinogens most needed for humans (vitamins of groups E, C, A, zinc, iron, phosphorus, carotene, certain amino acid compounds, and many others). In the protein, which is contained in large quantities in this vegetable, there is no cholesterol, and beta-carotene and cellulose help to keep the body in good shape, to remove harmful slags from the body. The amino acids contained in broccoli allow you to produce endorphin (the hormone of happiness).
• Nutrients in Broccoli make it a necessary medicine in the treatment or prevention of cancer, diseases of the cardiovascular system, the gastrointestinal tract. The element chromium, which is found in some types of broccoli, reduces the likelihood of diabetes. Some advise eating broccoli for radiation-related diseases. The presence of broccoli in the diet of pregnant women has become traditional - folic acid stimulates the regeneration of body cells.

It is difficult to overestimate the role of broccoli in the improvement of our body. The above list of useful properties and functions is not a complete series of all the positive aspects of eating this vegetable. It remains only to be surprised that not much attention is paid to it, as to citrus fruits, sea kale, onions, or carrots.

There are many ways to cook broccoli: from nutritious salads and vegetable soups to vegetable cutlets and pancake pies. This vegetable was appreciated by many cooks, and every day there are more and more unique recipes with it.

In addition to the mass of positive elements and compounds, broccoli, or rather, a decoction of this vegetable, secretes badly influencing the processes in the body guanine and adenine. The same guanine is a natural psychostimulant - affects the cerebral cortex, which does not always have positive effects in certain diseases. Adenine has about the same effect on the body. It is up to you to use the decoction with such substances, but some are convinced that the content of these elements in vegetables is scanty and does not cause significant harm.

The heat treatment of fruits and vegetables is a necessary process for preparing many dishes, but we often forget that at high temperatures, the nutrients and nutrients in food are destroyed. Broccoli is not an exception to the rule.

Due to the rapid pace of life, even broccoli lovers often warm up food in the microwave (where food warms at fairly high temperatures), so remember that your desire to eat quickly will rather bring nothing to the body than it will have a beneficial effect. The same applies to chefs who are trying to experiment with taste over high heat and with a huge addition of oil and fat - we advise you to beware of such bold practices. Do not forget that carcinogens can reduce the usefulness of any product to nothing.

Some gourmets like to eat raw uncooked broccoli. This is considered the safest and most beneficial option, however it is not recommended for people with high acidity or problems with the gastrointestinal tract.

Along with high temperatures, broccoli can be exposed and low - when stored in freezers. Opinions about the dangers or benefits of frozen vegetables vary. Some believe that there are more beneficial elements in frozen vegetables. It is definitely difficult to determine this, but in the case of broccoli it is not recommended to store the vegetable in the freezer for more than 1 week.

Since broccoli can be found more often on store shelves than on vegetable beds, we will consider the conditions of choice when buying cabbage. So, in stores, we can meet broccoli only in two versions - fresh and semi-finished. Both fresh and frozen types must have the following characteristics:

• Vegetable must be tight and firm - avoid too soft or vegetables with half-open heads - it only says that the fruit is overripe (so do not trust the seller’s assurances of damage during transportation).
• Careful about broccoli - a ripe and healthy product will be a deep green, rich color, sometimes with some violet hues. If the vegetable is too light and the yellowish color of the buds is noticeable - do not hesitate, it overripe.
• Pay close attention to the overall appearance of the product. and try to choose only solid heads without damage and stains - the latter may be evidence of rotting.

These tips should not be disregarded. Most stores buy semi-finished broccoli with small heads. In this situation, it is difficult to determine the color or damage to the vegetable, as the housewives pick them up with special vanes several dozen at a time. This is convenient and fast, but you are much less likely to risk a selective selection.

To prepare a nutritious and incredibly tasty broccoli dish, you do not need to have some exceptional culinary skills.

There are several ways to cook this vegetable, and one of the most common is soup. The first recipe, which we consider, is cooking creamy soup. There are many options for using butter or cheese in the preparation of this dish, the option below is just one of the possible variations.

What we need:

• 4 tablespoons butter;
• 0.5 kg fresh or frozen broccoli;
• 1 medium onion;
• 3 tablespoons of flour (sifted or not - as it is more convenient to whom);
• 1 liter cooked broth;
• 1 glass of milk;
• 1 cup of cheddar cheese;
• salt, pepper to taste.

Stages of cooking:

• 4 tablespoons of butter are melted in a saucepan at medium temperature, then chopped onions and seasonings should be added, carrots can be added;
• hold the bow on the fire until its pieces become transparent;
• flour is added, broth is added in a minute (do not forget to stir the mixture from time to time);
• after boiling it is worthwhile to reduce the heat, add ready-made pieces of broccoli to the soup and wait until they are soft (about 20 minutes);
• only after that cheese is added and the soup is cooked until it melts;
• after serving, you can decorate the dish with dill or parsley.

It has already been said that by itself this vegetable has an extremely small amount of calories, does not contain fats and harmful carbohydrates, therefore any type of broccoli is already more than a dietary vegetable. This vegetable is considered one of the most innocuous and very useful for young children. Therefore, imagine the most popular recipe for broccoli soup (can be used for weight loss).

Cooking this dish will take you no more than half an hour. What you need:

• one and a half liters of chicken broth;
• 350-400 grams of frozen broccoli (which should be removed from the freezer half an hour before cooking);
• 250-300 grams of fresh potatoes;
• 150-200 grams of onions;
• vegetable and butter;
• salt and some seasonings can be added to taste (do not forget that we are preparing the dietary option).

Steps of cooking step by step:

• First, let's prepare the broth. It should be noted that this recipe requires a strong, rich chicken broth. Since his cooking is an elementary recipe in the arsenal of any hostess, we omit this item. One has only to say that the use of bones in cooking broth is recommended for our soup, and you can add all spices (for example, parsley or bay leaves, garlic) to taste - it all depends on what kind of taste you want to achieve.
• Next, melt the butter and add the vegetable oil, pour the pre-cut onion into the pan and wait until it becomes transparent and soft.
• If you see that the onion begins to burn, but it has not yet fully prepared - add one or two tablespoons of broth and continue cooking over medium heat for about 2 minutes.
• Then boldly pour broth and chopped potatoes into the pan. The degree of readiness at this stage is determined by the readiness of the potato itself. Then broccoli is added to the soup. We wait 10 minutes after boiling and turn off.

Then it all depends on what kind of soup you prefer - hot or slightly cooled. In the first case, we immediately take the blender and gently grind the soup to a uniform consistency (at high temperatures, the potatoes and hard food elements are ground easier), after that all the seasonings are added.

This pureed broccoli soup is served warm. If you want to soften the taste, you can add some greens or milk / cream on top.

One can not say a few words about vegetarian lenten dishes and the role of broccoli in the creation of purely vegetable delights. You can find many options for cooking such a soup, and they are probably very nutritious and helpful, but the ingredients that are required for cooking are usually not available in the kitchen by any hostess. Therefore, we present to your attention the easiest and most delicious cooking option for vegetarian soup.

Ingredients:

• large head of broccoli (fresh or frozen);
• two small potatoes;
• leek (only one stalk is needed);
• one clove of garlic;
• bay leaf, salt and other seasonings as desired;
• 1-1.5 liters of broth (if the soup is vegetarian, then the broth, of course, must be vegetable).

All ingredients need to be cut into small pieces, put in a saucepan and pour warm broth. The soup should be cooked before cooking the potato itself (depending on how finely you cut it, it will take up to 20 minutes on medium heat). After that, the soup is ground by a blender. If suddenly mashed potatoes turned out too dense and thick, you can add hot water or broth ,.The soup is seasoned according to your desire with fresh herbs or spices. This dish can be prepared in a slow cooker.

To learn how to cook broccoli soup, see the next video.