How to cook broccoli rabe in a pan, quick and easy, even more delicious without boiling them, because it takes very little to make them truly special, without adding other ingredients besides the classics we add at the start of cooking. For me, garlic, oil, and chili pepper are a must, with a pinch of salt. I leave the chili whole so it adds flavor without spiciness to the dish. It’s important to get good broccoli rabe, tender and with nice florets. Cleaning them will be a breeze, by hand, without a knife, taking all the tender parts, leaves included. After washing them thoroughly, we prepare them in the pan, without boiling them, otherwise all the flavor would be lost in the cooking water. I always cook them this way, even when I want to prepare them with pasta, they become much tastier and give more flavor to the pasta compared to cooking the pasta directly in the pot with the broccoli rabe. To prepare the pasta, I cut them smaller and then toss the pasta in the pan with the broccoli rabe and a bit of pasta cooking water. If desired, you can also create a cream by blending the broccoli rabe with a little water. So let’s start seeing how to prepare the broccoli rabe.
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Very Cheap
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 2
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter
Ingredients for Sautéed Broccoli Rabe
- 1 bunch broccoli rabe (about 2.2 lbs)
- to taste Extra virgin olive oil
- 1 clove garlic
- to taste chili pepper
- to taste salt
- 1/2 cup water
Tools for Preparing Sautéed Broccoli Rabe
- 1 Pan
- 1 Colander
- 1 Wooden spoon
Steps to Prepare Sautéed Broccoli Rabe
We start by cleaning the broccoli rabe. With our hands, we detach the tender part of the top, discarding the harder base. We also take the leaves, keeping the tender ones whole and breaking them in half; the tougher ones we strip from the stem, discarding the stem. We also discard old and yellowed leaves.
Wash thoroughly under running water and place in a colander as you go.
Cook in a pan, where we put cold extra virgin olive oil, garlic in its skin, and a couple of whole chili peppers, a couple if not too spicy, otherwise just one. Add the washed and drained broccoli rabe, salt, and water, cover, and cook on low heat.
Stir at least once during cooking. If they are tender, they are ready in 20 minutes; otherwise, continue.
At the end, it is very important to let the cooking water dry well and let them sizzle a bit in the pan, so they become even better. Now our sautéed broccoli rabe is ready to be enjoyed or used in any other recipe, pasta, focaccia, or calzones, or even as a side dish with two nice roasted sausages.
