Latest news with #broccoli
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Melbourne grocer's threatening note to customers sparks heated debate over common act
A controversial sign erected in a Melbourne store has sparked a heated debate over an act many have considered doing. In an attempt to stop customers from breaking off broccoli stalks prior to purchase, an unnamed greengrocer has erected a stern warning sign in their store's produce section. The cautionary notice next to the broccoli display reads: 'DO NOT BREAK Brocooli [sic]'. 'You will pay $1 extra for each you break if we find out.' The broccoli in the picture was being sold for $6.99 per kilo, which is a standard current price for the green vegetable. A Melbourne shopper spotted the sign at their local fruit and veg store and shared a picture of it to Reddit 's 'Melbourne' thread alongside the caption: 'Don't break the broccoli or else'. As Aussie households grapple with cost-of-living pressures, it would appear shoppers are trying to pay less for the weight of broccoli by removing the stalk prior taking it to the checkout. The recent post quickly ignited debate on the forum - but perhaps surprisingly, several commenters defended the store owner's sign. One person felt the store owner was justified in their insistence of charging customers for the whole broccoli. 'The reason for this is because they buy broccoli from wholesalers/farmers by weight - so when people break the stalk off broccoli, they end up losing money because no one is going to pick a discarded stalk off the shelf to buy it,' they said. The commenter, who 'used to work at a small fruit and veggie shop' added that removing stalks was their former bosses' pet peeve. 'If we were serving a customer and noticed the stalks had been removed, we had to call the boss and he would find the stalk and make the customer pay for it/put it in their bag of broccoli,' they said. Another said that removing the stalk was akin to 'stealing' from the small business because 'the stem is priced into the broccoli'. To this point, one person added they believed that the new 'epidemic of broccoli breaking bandits' was definitely a result of the 'cost of living crisis'. Another added that it would also be easy for store staff to enforce the rule because it would be blatantly obvious when someone came to the checkout with a 'stemless broccoli'. But in an interesting twist - some commenters took the thread as an opportunity to defend the overlooked broccoli stalk. 'The stems are very edible and delicious!' noted one. '[C]ut it up into thin rectangles then stir fry (add in same time you'd add something like a carrot). Waste not want not!' another added. Another person suggested: 'slice it up to put in soupy Thai curries, it's so tender'. A New Zealand expat suggested the problem could be easily resolved by simply selling the broccoli per head, rather than by weight. They wrote: 'This is so bizarre to me because back in NZ, we buy broccoli per unit, fixed price! I'd never heard of buying broccoli by weight before.' But to this point, another commenter rightly pointed out that there can be huge variance in the size of broccoli heads sold in Australia. 'Weight seems to be a better way to go because the broc in the supermarkets near me can vary in size and weight quite a bit,' the person replied. However some conspiracy theorists suggested that stores were nowadays intentionally selling broccoli with longer stems because they're 'charging by the kilo'. '[S]ome of the stem:floret ratios have gotten so out of whack,' one wrote. 'I mean, I make an effort to use the stems as well as the heads but some of the broccoli they sell now is just taking the p***. When you're selling half a foot of stem with a tiny head on top of course people are going to break it off.' Broccoli has reported to have increased in price in recent months, going from around $5 per kilo late last year to the current price of up to $11 per kilo.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Broccoli vs. Broccoli Rabe vs. Broccolini—Which Is the Healthiest Choice?
Take a trip down the produce aisle and you'll likely see plenty of broccoli. The vegetable is commonly sold at supermarkets, as it's nutritious and versatile to boot. However, if you happen to see broccoli rabe or broccolini nearby, you might wonder how they compare. To find out, we asked experts to share the nutritional and culinary differences of the vegetables—and whether you can use them Routhenstein, MS, RD, CDCES, CDN, preventive cardiology dietitian and certified diabetes educator Richard LaMarita, chef-instructor of plant-based culinary arts at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York CityWhat Is Broccoli? Broccoli is a cruciferous vegetable that's native to the Mediterranean. It's part of the Brassicaceae family, which also includes vegetables like kale, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts. It consists of a flowering head, which can be broken down into smaller florets, along with leaves and a stalk; all of these components are edible. In terms of appearance, broccoli is most often compared to a tree. Nutrition Broccoli is known for its high vitamin C content, according to registered dietitian Michelle Routhenstein, MS, RD. This is important for supporting immune function and reducing oxidative stress, as vitamin C is a potent antioxidant. The vegetable also provides essential nutrients like vitamin K (for proper wound healing), vitamin A (for eye health), and fiber (for digestion), Routhenstein says. Additionally, broccoli provides glucosinolates, a group of powerful antioxidants mainly found in cruciferous vegetables. Flavor and Texture 'Broccoli is sweet with a hint of bitterness, particularly when raw,' explains plant-based chef Richard LaMarita. When cooked, this sweetness becomes more prominent while the bitterness recedes, he says. It also has a crunchy texture that softens slightly during cooking. What Is Broccoli Rabe? Broccoli rabe, also known as rapini, is a popular ingredient in Italian cuisine. It's a cruciferous vegetable, making it a relative of broccoli. 'The flower buds (florets), leaves, and stems, are all edible, and it's always eaten cooked,' LaMarita says. The florets are tiny and similar to those of broccoli, but the stems are long and thin, like asparagus. Broccoli rabe is also more leafy overall. Nutrition Compared to broccoli, broccoli rabe contains more vitamin A, calcium, and iron, Routhenstein says. It also stands out for its high levels of vitamin K, which is needed for proper blood clotting and bone health. Additionally, broccoli rabe 'contains magnesium and glucosinolates, which contribute to bone health and potential anti-cancer effects,' she says. Flavor and Texture Broccoli rabe is distinctly bitter, according to LaMarita. As a result, it's often paired with sweet ingredients (such as raisins or sun-dried tomatoes) to help balance its bitterness. 'Its texture is like broccoli, but it's generally cooked longer than broccoli or broccolini, so it becomes more tender and [less] crunchy,' he says. What Is Broccolini? Broccolini is commonly known as baby broccoli, but this is a misnomer. It's actually a hybrid of broccoli and Chinese broccoli (gai lan), LaMarita says. 'It's smaller than traditional broccoli with smaller florets and longer, slender, more delicate stems,' he adds. Nutrition 'Broccolini offers a balanced nutrient profile with vitamins C, A, and K, plus B vitamins, calcium, potassium, and sulforaphane,' Routhenstein says. 'These nutrients support immune function, bone health, blood clotting, and energy metabolism.' Furthermore, compared to broccoli and broccoli rabe, broccolini contains slightly more protein. Flavor and Texture The flavor of broccolini can be described as earthy and vegetal. It's also milder than broccoli, LaMarita says. When raw, broccolini is slightly softer than broccoli, though it still has a pleasant crunch. Cooking will make the vegetable more tender. Which One Is Healthier? When it comes to nutrition, all three vegetables are solid choices. As Routhenstein explains, neither one is definitively healthier, and each one offers unique strengths. Case in point: 'Broccoli is best for vitamin C, broccoli rabe for vitamin K and A, and broccolini for a mix of nutrients,' Routhenstein says. Additionally, all three provide fiber and antioxidants, which are essential for overall health. If you're unsure which one to choose, consider your personal needs and the nutrients you'd like to prioritize. Otherwise, think about your desired flavor and texture for your specific dish. Can You Substitute One for the Other? According to LaMarita, broccoli and broccolini can be used interchangeably. That's because they boast a similar flavor and texture. But take note: broccoli has more prominent florets, so keep this in mind if appearance is important. In contrast, broccoli rabe can't replace broccoli or broccolini, LaMarita says. This is due to its bitter flavor and need for cooking, so it's best used in recipes specifically designed for it. If you need a jumping off point, try it in our skillet gnocchi with sausage and broccoli rabe. Read the original article on Real Simple
Vogue
15-07-2025
- Health
- Vogue
This Veg Helps Regulate Hormonal Health
If the words fiber, florets, and sulforaphane don't already inspire thoughts of a hormonal superfood, well… they're about to. Because broccoli (which possesses all three) is one of the most underrated foods for better hormonal health. In fact, the unassuming (and if you're a child, maligned) green vegetable is so beneficial, I've scarcely gone a day without eating it for the past five years. Below, I've picked the brain of Hannah Alderson—registered nutritionist, hormone specialist, and author of Everything I Know About Hormones: Six Steps to Optimal Health & Happiness—to find out exactly how broccoli can help with everything from detoxing excess estrogen to supporting healthy liver function (the key, you'll discover, for almost everything hormonal), and helping better regulate hormone metabolism. Here are the three reasons why I incorporate it into my diet every single day. Broccoli helps get rid of excess estrogen Broccoli and broccoli sprouts are both part of the cruciferous vegetable family, meaning they contain a compound called indole-3-carbinol (or I3C). 'When digested, I3C converts into diindolylmethane (DIM), which helps support the liver's breakdown of estrogen into safer, more easily excreted metabolites,' Alderson explains. This metabolization of estrogen is incredibly important, as too much of the hormone can lead to heavy and painful periods, tender breasts during the luteal phase, bloating, PMS, mood swings, fatigue, and much more. The compound I3C helps to properly break it down, which makes it easier for the body to then get rid of it. There is a hierarchy of broccoli, though. Normal broccoli—chunky, with one stalk and lots of florets—has lots of benefits, including soluble and insoluble fiber, both highly beneficial for gut health and gut motility (digestion). Broccoli sprouts, on the other hand, contain much higher levels of sulforaphane, which is a powerful detoxifying compound that helps to support the liver. 'Think of sprouts as the concentrated version. They're great in small doses and can be a fantastic daily addition to salads or smoothies, or for anyone looking to give their detoxifying pathways a little extra love,' says Alderson. Available in most grocery stores, broccoli sprouts are also an easy grow-at-home job, too. Broccoli supports liver function The liver is the body's in-built filtration system, and good liver function is the key to better hormonal function, being able to fight infection, and to efficiently remove toxins. The compounds present in broccoli sprouts and broccoli help to maintain the healthy functioning of the liver. 'Raw or lightly steamed broccoli may also up-regulate an important liver enzyme known as CYP1A1,' Alderson tells me.
The Guardian
06-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
James May: ‘When I'm mistaken for Jeremy Clarkson, I have to go home and examine myself very deeply'
James May. But what would James Definitely Not? All sorts of things. Skydiving. Morris dancing. Living as a monk. Agricultural work. Being a high court judge. Anything that involves dressing up. I'm not too fussy about food. I can't think of anything I wouldn't eat, although I have a strange ambivalence about broccoli. I can't make my mind up about it and it infuriates people. People say: you're not doing it properly. I think: how do you know how I'm doing it? I've heard you can roast it with bits of bacon, garlic and olive oil. In which case, it's not only broccoli any more, is it? Why does the water flow anticlockwise down the plug hole in Australia but clockwise in the UK? Because of the rotation of the Earth. If you go to the equator – and I've done this – you can do an experiment with a bucket of water with a hole in the bottom. If you stand exactly on the equator and drop in a matchstick, it will stay stationary. If you walk north of the equator 100 paces, it starts going around one way. If you walk south, it starts going the other way. It's quite a boring experiment and you have to have absolutely nothing else left to do in your life. If you could have a sandwich named after you, what would you call it? I think sandwiches are crap. I'm making a series on YouTube called Sarnies of the 70s, where we dig up these terrible old fillings like Spam and Branston pickle. It's fascinating to remember what we ate when I was a child. But I describe sandwiches – and I'm afraid I also think this about pizza – as crisis food. Nobody ever says: I can't be bothered to cook tonight. Should we go out for a sandwich? No one wants a sandwich. You are reduced to having a sandwich. Both you and Clarkson own pubs. In the event of a zombie apocalypse, which pub would you rather be stuck at? Oh, mine. It's in Wiltshire. We're heavily armed down here. People queue up at Clarkson's. There's queueing protocol going on, which I don't like. We've had this argument many times. The whole point of the bar in a pub is that it's wide and shallow. It's not a hatch. Why would you queue at it? Good bar people know the order in which to serve. Alan Davies told us in this very column that he gets mistaken for you. Who do you get mistaken for, if not Alan Davies? I have been mistaken for Alan Davies. I've been told I look like King Théoden from Lord of the Rings. Robert Plant is very flattering. Billy Connolly is flattering. Unfortunately, quite a few times when I've been out walking or riding my bike around London, I've been mistaken for Jeremy Clarkson. I have to go home, examine myself very deeply and think: what have I done? The small print on your new tour, Explorers, warns of 'occasional scent, fog and other immersive theatrical elements'. What is your favourite occasional scent? Good question. I like all the obvious nature scents like flowers, freshly mown grass and rain falling on a hot pavement. I like the smell of bicycle shops because I like that smell of rubber and rubber solution. It's not a pervy or fetish thing. I like the smell of freshly pumped petrol, which smells exactly like what it isn't – which is delicious. If you get petrol in your mouth because you're siphoning it from the lawnmower, it tastes absolutely foul. But when it's coming out of the pump into your car, it's got almost a mango juice smell to it. What's been your most cringeworthy run-in with a celebrity? I haven't had any, really. I've never run up to Alan Davies and said: 'I love Top Gear. Can I have your autograph?' Would you rather die at the bottom of the ocean or deep out into space? I've wondered about dying in space. The Apollo 11 lunar module was too fragile to test on Earth, so what if it hadn't worked? They'd have been stuck on the moon for eternity. How do you end it? Do you just sit there and gradually suffocate? Or do you take off your space helmet, take a deep breath, open the door and effectively boil? Dying at the bottom of the ocean feels particularly dark and lonely. I'm going to go for space because the view in the last few seconds would be better. If you could change the size of any animal and keep it as a pet, what would you choose? A miniature elephant. I was going to say a tiger. But then you can just have a domestic cat, can't you? A miniature great white shark in a pond in your garden would be pretty cool. If you had miniature blue whales in an aquarium, they'd come up to the surface and blow off in miniature. I'd like that. Who is your biggest nemesis? Honestly, it's probably Jeremy Clarkson. James May's show Explorers – The Age of Discovery tours Australia and New Zealand from 29 July, and the UK from 20 September
The Guardian
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
James May: ‘When I'm mistaken for Jeremy Clarkson, I have to go home and examine myself very deeply'
James May. But what would James Definitely Not? All sorts of things. Skydiving. Morris dancing. Living as a monk. Agricultural work. Being a high court judge. Anything that involves dressing up. I'm not too fussy about food. I can't think of anything I wouldn't eat, although I have a strange ambivalence about broccoli. I can't make my mind up about it and it infuriates people. People say: you're not doing it properly. I think: how do you know how I'm doing it? I've heard you can roast it with bits of bacon, garlic and olive oil. In which case, it's not only broccoli any more, is it? Why does the water flow anticlockwise down the plug hole in Australia but clockwise in the UK? Because of the rotation of the Earth. If you go to the equator – and I've done this – you can do an experiment with a bucket of water with a hole in the bottom. If you stand exactly on the equator and drop in a matchstick, it will stay stationary. If you walk north of the equator 100 paces, it starts going around one way. If you walk south, it starts going the other way. It's quite a boring experiment and you have to have absolutely nothing else left to do in your life. If you could have a sandwich named after you, what would you call it? I think sandwiches are crap. I'm making a series on YouTube called Sarnies of the 70s, where we dig up these terrible old fillings like Spam and Branston pickle. It's fascinating to remember what we ate when I was a child. But I describe sandwiches – and I'm afraid I also think this about pizza – as crisis food. Nobody ever says: I can't be bothered to cook tonight. Should we go out for a sandwich? No one wants a sandwich. You are reduced to having a sandwich. Both you and Clarkson own pubs. In the event of a zombie apocalypse, which pub would you rather be stuck at? Oh, mine. It's in Wiltshire. We're heavily armed down here. People queue up at Clarkson's. There's queueing protocol going on, which I don't like. We've had this argument many times. The whole point of the bar in a pub is that it's wide and shallow. It's not a hatch. Why would you queue at it? Good bar people know the order in which to serve. Alan Davies told us in this very column that he gets mistaken for you. Who do you get mistaken for, if not Alan Davies? I have been mistaken for Alan Davies. I've been told I look like King Théoden from Lord of the Rings. Robert Plant is very flattering. Billy Connolly is flattering. Unfortunately, quite a few times when I've been out walking or riding my bike around London, I've been mistaken for Jeremy Clarkson. I have to go home, examine myself very deeply and think: what have I done? The small print on your new tour, Explorers, warns of 'occasional scent, fog and other immersive theatrical elements'. What is your favourite occasional scent? Good question. I like all the obvious nature scents like flowers, freshly mown grass and rain falling on a hot pavement. I like the smell of bicycle shops because I like that smell of rubber and rubber solution. It's not a pervy or fetish thing. I like the smell of freshly pumped petrol, which smells exactly like what it isn't – which is delicious. If you get petrol in your mouth because you're siphoning it from the lawnmower, it tastes absolutely foul. But when it's coming out of the pump into your car, it's got almost a mango juice smell to it. What's been your most cringeworthy run-in with a celebrity? I haven't had any, really. I've never run up to Alan Davies and said: 'I love Top Gear. Can I have your autograph?' Would you rather die at the bottom of the ocean or deep out into space? I've wondered about dying in space. The Apollo 11 lunar module was too fragile to test on Earth, so what if it hadn't worked? They'd have been stuck on the moon for eternity. How do you end it? Do you just sit there and gradually suffocate? Or do you take off your space helmet, take a deep breath, open the door and effectively boil? Dying at the bottom of the ocean feels particularly dark and lonely. I'm going to go for space because the view in the last few seconds would be better. If you could change the size of any animal and keep it as a pet, what would you choose? A miniature elephant. I was going to say a tiger. But then you can just have a domestic cat, can't you? A miniature great white shark in a pond in your garden would be pretty cool. If you had miniature blue whales in an aquarium, they'd come up to the surface and blow off in miniature. I'd like that. Who is your biggest nemesis? Honestly, it's probably Jeremy Clarkson. James May's show Explorers – The Age of Discovery tours Australia and New Zealand from 29 July, and the UK from 20 September
