Simple healthy dinner broccoli recipe

This healthy dinner broccoli recipe is quick and easy to make and can be served with any grain or on its own.

Lovely, if you are anything like me, you must have some broccoli and tomatoes in your kitchen most of the time. Let's put them together and create this tasty broccoli recipe.

I love broccoli, and right now is the best season to appreciate them, like in this sauteed broccoli. We are approaching the end of fresh tomato season, and I can tell you this vegetable stew is worth making before next summer!

This fresh tomato vegetable stew calls for sweet ripe tomatoes, garlic, ginger, turmeric, broccoli, and cooked chickpeas. Add some Morrocan spices, and you are in for a good treat.

The secret is to let the tomatoes cook first to release their juice. Cooking tomatoes for about 20 minutes also help release lycopene.

Why do I use tomatoes?

The other day my son asked me why I eat tomatoes, which are inflammatory foods, according to Mr. Google.

Even though some people have inflammation when they eat tomatoes, and even though tomatoes are in the nightshade family, they are rich in vitamin C and lycopene. Both of which are antioxidants. 

Antioxidants help the body fight free radicals that cause damage to the cells and even DNA.

Something important to note is that it's the immune system that acts against food, causing inflammation. That's why some people will have reactions after eating certain foods.

Why you'll love this recipe

• It's delicious and filling on its own. 
• Combining tomatoes, broccoli, and chickpeas makes an excellent meal for the whole family.
• This broccoli recipe is simple yet rich in nutrients and anti-inflammatory properties.
• You can make this recipe as meal prep.

Benefits of broccoli

Broccoli is known to have several health benefits, such as;

• Dietary fiber
• Vitamin C
• Antioxidants like lutein and zeaxanthin both of which improve eye health and prevent age-related eye disease.
• Eating broccoli will give you sulforaphane which is an anti-inflammatory and anticancer compound.
• Broccoli has chemopreventive properties due to the presence of glucosinolates.

How to choose the best broccoli

• To select the best broccoli, ensure the head is bluish-green without brown stains.
• The florets should be compact.
• The stems should be firm.

How to cook this broccoli recipe

• Start by grating ginger, turmeric, and garlic with a vegetable grater. Grating will help if you have small kids.
• Cook these in stainless steel with little amount of olive/coconut oil
• Add spices. I like Indian curry or Morrocan spice mix.
• Bring in broccoli stems. The stems of broccoli are hard and require more time to cook than broccoli florets. Chop the stems into small chunks and add them to the cooking garlic and spices.
• Add tomatoes. Preferably, use well-ripened tomatoes so that you can have lots of juice. I use a pound/kilo of tomatoes.
• Now it's time for broccoli florets. Ensure they are cut into small sizes so that they can cook in the vapor. 
• See the full recipe in the recipe card.

We appreciate this vegetable stew much better when we add some unpasteurized apple cider vinegar for its probiotics and also because it accentuates taste.

We love this broccoli recipe as a simple dinner. Otherwise, you can serve it with either rice, quinoa, bread, millet, or baked potatoes.

I hope you'll love this broccoli recipe. Please share it by using the sharing button. 

Best of cooking, and let's talk soon.

Sending you my love. Githu.

You may like these healthy recipes

• Fried corn on the cob
• Super simple chickpea stew
• Vegetable stir

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Tomato broccoli recipe

This delicious tomato broccoli recipe is quick and easy to make and can be served with any grain or on its own.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Total Time30 mins

Course: dinner, lunch

Cuisine: American, anti-inflammatory, French, Mediterranean

Diet: Gluten Free, Low Calorie, Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword: broccoli recipe, chickpea recipe, how to cook broccoli, tomato recipe, vegetable stew

Servings: 3 people

Calories:

Author: Githu

Cost: 15$

Equipment

• Chopping board
• kitchen knife
• stainless steel pan
• cooking stick
• vegetable grater

Ingredients

• 2 medium onions
• a piece of fresh ginger
• 2 fresh turmeric roots
• cold-pressed coconut oil
• 1 tablespoon Moroccan spice blend
• some cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1 kilo/pound ripe tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1-2 Broccoli heads (depending on the size)
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 cups cooked chickpeas (drained)
• parsley or herb of your choice (chopped)
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Instructions

• Clean all the vegetables and roots
• Using a vegetable grater, grate the roots and garlic. Set aside
• Peel and dice onions. Put these in a skillet.
• Dice the tomatoes. Cut and chop the broccoli stems. Keep the florets aside.
• Set the skillet to heat at moderate-high temperature and add oil to the onions.
• Let the onions cook for about 3 minutes.
• Add the root and cook for about 3 minutes
• Add spices and stir well. Let the spices cook without burning
• Add diced tomatoes and chopped stems. Stir everything together and cover to cook for about 10 minutes
• meanwhile, chop the florets into small chunks or separate each floret
• Add broccoli florets and gently stir then cover to cook for about 3-5 minutes depending on whether you want crunchy or soft cooked broccoli.
• Add grated garlic and chickpeas. Stir to combine everything
• Cut off the heat and leave the stew to cool
• Once cooled, add chopped fresh herbs of your choice.
• Add the vinegar and stir gently to distribute the flavors
• Serve and enjoy

Notes

• You'll notice that broccoli loses its bright green color once cooked. This often happens, especially when green veggies are cooked covered. 
• You can make this vegetable stew in advance and store it in your fridge for up to 4 days.