Beautiful seasonal purple sprouting broccoli with a super savoury seasoning made with seaweed and sesame.
SERVES around 2. Vegan.
For the seasoning:
You’ll need a clean, dry, jam jar and a spice grinder, or something else that will help break down the seaweed.
· 3 sheets/15g of Nori Seaweed (the kind for wrapping sushi. But any seaweed will work)
· 30g sesame seeds
· 1tsp chilli flakes or dried chilli
· 3tsp sea salt
· ½ tsp of citric acid
For the broccoli:
you’ll need a large frying pan
· 1 bunch of purple sprouting broccoli (or regular broccoli) from PFMG.
· Olive or rapeseed oil
· Sesame oil (optional)
· Toasted sesame seeds (optional)
1. This recipe makes 4-6 servings, so make less according to your needs or make the full batch and keep for a few weeks in a clean jam jar. The seasoning uses citric acid as the acidity, which means it can be used as is. If you don’t have citric acid (it’s available in international shops) just use a little squeeze of citrus or a splash of vinegar when serving the broccoli.
2. Add the sesame seeds to a dry frying pan and heat gently. Keep moving them around (tossing the pan or with a spatula). Toast until they are just browned but careful not to burn them as they will become bitter. Alternatively, use pre-toasted sesame seeds. Leave to cool.
3. Cut the seaweed into smaller pieces. Grind the sesame and seaweed in the spice grinder. This will probably need to be done in batches- add any ground powder to a clean jam jar.
4. With a little of the sesame & seaweed powder, add half quantities of the remaining seasoning ingredients. Add to the jam jar and shake.
5. Taste the powder. Blend a little more chilli, salt and citric in at a time and add to the seasoning until the balance of salt, acid and heat is right for you. The quantities given are my preference.
6. Try this seasoning (which is similar to Japanese Furikake) on other roasted or steamed vegetables, salads, avocados, tofu, noodles or rice or even freshly made popcorn.
For the broccoli.
1. Pre-heat the oven to around 200°C (just to keep the broccoli warm if you’re cooking in batches).
2. Trim any long broccoli in half (so nothing is longer than you’re frying pan) and wash.
3. Heat the frying pan until it’s good and hot. Add the broccoli in one single layer. Don’t crowd the pan.
4. Add a splash of water (just 1-2 tablespoons) so it sizzles and creates steam. This will cook the broccoli slightly making it turn a bright green. It doesn’t need a lid to steam it.
5. Once all the water has evaporated, drizzle a little oil over the broccoli. Keep the heat high and let the broccoli fry and char in the hot pan. Move it around slightly with tongues to get an even roast on the broccoli.
6. If cooking in batches, transfer the first round of broccoli onto a tray and keep warm in the oven.
7. Repeat until the rest of the broccoli is cooked, browning and crisping it as much as you like. It can also be roasted in the oven, but this takes slightly longer.
8. To serve, add 2-3 tablespoons of seasoning and mix in. Serve with a little sesame oil and toasted sesame seeds (optional).
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