Broccoli Raab

A green leafed vegetable or cooking green, often used in Italian cooking, that is related to both the broccoli and turnip family of vegetables. The shoots of the flower buds and the stems of the Broccoli-raab are typically added as an ingredient to pasta or chicken dishes, or mixed into soups and salads, or served as a vegetable dish garnished with cheese and garlic. This vegetable can also be added to other foods with strong flavors such as sausages, seasoned meats, olives, or hot peppers to add a tangy or spicy enhancement to the flavors.

The stems of the raab are bitter tasting so the leaves and the florets, which look like broccoli floret, are most often considered the most desirable parts for cooking. The leaves have a peppery, radish-like flavor that becomes milder when blanched and cooked. This vegetable is also referred to as broccoli rabe, broccoli de rape, brocoletti di rape, brocoletto, rapini, and rape.