For the Best (and Quickest) Broccoli, Burn It

Most of us are taught from a young age to avoid “burning” food at all costs. We’re told to keep a close eye on the pan, watch the edges, and rescue anything that starts to go too dark, too soon. But when it comes to broccoli, the line between browned and burnt is one that can and should be crossed.

Broccoli can handle the heat, and letting the tree-like tops of your florets go dark under the broiler—charred and blackened in spots—is one of the easiest ways to get a lot of deep, savory, almost smoky flavors from the vegetable in a very short time.

In about 10 minutes, with just broccoli, oil, salt, and your broiler, you get an intentional, beautifully burnished, wood-fired restaurant-quality plate of florets that you can serve as-is or play around with. It’s my favorite way to eat broccoli, and a worthy technique that any home cook can master.

How to Make Burnt Broccoli

I prefer making burnt broccoli in the oven using the broiler, as it’s the quickest, most foolproof, and most hands-off way to get the color and flavor I’m looking for. There are plenty of recipes out there that use a pan on the stovetop, but I always find this leads to steamed broccoli that becomes overcooked and mushy before it gets the color I desire.

To make it, preheat the broiler to the highest setting; if you don’t have a broiler, just preheat your oven as high as it will go on a regular setting (skip convection for this). Toss the florets (any size will do, though smaller ones will obviously cook more quickly) with olive oil and salt and spread them onto a baking sheet, leaving ample room between each floret so they don’t steam.

They’ll take between 8 and 12 undisturbed minutes in the oven to get that deeply burnished, nearly blackened look, with fork-tender stems.

The Key to Burnt Broccoli

The hardest part about making burnt broccoli is getting the spacing correct. If you pile a baking sheet with tons of broccoli all at once, you’ll get a mess of steamed florets with very little color and flavor. If you then try to cook them longer to get the color right, the broccoli will be completely overcooked, mushy, and limp.

So, it’s paramount that you leave at least one inch, perhaps even two inches, around all sides of every floret on your baking sheet. It might sound unimportant, like something you can skip, but I promise you, it’s the key to achieving perfectly cooked burnt broccoli.

If your baking sheet isn’t big enough to do a whole head of broccoli at once, work in batches—it’s more than worth the extra time.

Serving Suggestions

One of the best things about burnt broccoli is that it’s wildly versatile. You can eat it straight off the sheet pan (which I do quite often), but it also tucks neatly into just about anything you’re already making.

Toss it with pasta (I love chopping it and adding it to mac and cheese), spoon it over yogurt or hummus with a squeeze of lemon, or fold it into a grain bowl or hearty salad. Pile it next to a piece of roast chicken or a steak, stuff it into a grilled cheese or quesadilla, mix it through a simple risotto, or chop it finely with some fresh herbs and grated Parmesan cheese to make a burnt broccoli pesto—the possibilities are just about endless.

Though I prefer to eat this broccoli warm, it’s also really tasty straight from the fridge, making it ideal for meal prepping. If you make a big batch at the beginning of the week, you can pull a handful of florets out here and there to add flavor and nutrition to your meals throughout the week.