In a couple of months, chefs, foodies and veg gardeners will be getting very excited about asparagus. As it thrusts its first tender, sweet green spears skywards, we'll reach for the butter, poach eggs and whip up delicate sauces to anoint this most revered of vegetables in ever more delicious ways.
What we must not do, however, aswe wait for that wonderful May crop, is overlook another vegetable that shares not just the basic shape of asparagus, but its appeal, too – and that, with enormous vegetal generosity, makes itself available at precisely the time when tender, sweet green stuff is very thin on the ground. This plant offers us a little bit of verdant, leafy evidence that there is some divine plan governing the universe – or, at least, the veg plot. Ask – for some fresh green veg when you're a bit tired of carrots, parsnips, onions and potatoes – and it shall be given. Eventhe name is rather marvellous: pur-ple-sprou-ting-broc-co-li. Seven sumptuous syllables: you've got yourself the second line of a haiku right there.
Actually, I'd be hard-pushed to choose between asparagus and PSB in a head-to-head deliciousness contest. Asparagus "wins" in conventional gourmet circles only because it's a bit harder to grow, literally a bit thinner on the ground and so pricier and posher.
Not that they're the same. Asparagus has a very slight pungency, a unique tang, yet paradoxically is quite delicate. PSB, meanwhile, is all sweet earthiness, its flavour a little more robust. While it works well with subtle accompaniments such as hollandaise, or indeed anything eggy, PSB's beauty is that it can take some really punchy flavours, too. Iabsolutely love it with anchovies, as two of today's recipes demonstrate, and chilli, garlic, strong cheeses, bacon and chorizo are all similarly worthy partners. It'shard to overwhelm this vegetable; it's bursting with personality.
PSB bought in the shops can disappoint. If it's been cut more than a few days previously, those lovely sugars will be reverting to starch, leaving a cabbagey, bitter note. So buy it during the peak of its season, which is essentially now until early April. You can buy PSB from December to May at least, but the varieties used to extend the season are not always the best. And buy as fresh as possible. There are farm shops near me that either grow their own or have deliveries of fresh-cut PSB every other day (some even keep the stems in a tray of water, like cut flowers, for extra freshness). It goes without saying that you should eat it the day you buy it.
Supermarket PSB can be OK, but look for a pack with the latest possible use-by date. Once you've got it home, you may need to discard quite a lot of the stalky, woody ends. This feels wasteful, but you need to home in on the most tender, slender stems to maximise pleasure. (You could always add the trimmings to a veg soup or stock.)
Cook your chosen stems – ideally three- or four-inch "florets" with afew tender leaves attached – only lightly. Steaming is my favoured method: the spears cook to tenderness without trapping water in their leafy, buddy nooks and crannies. Having said that, chucking PSB into a big pan of boiling salted water for three or four minutes (two is enough if it's literally just picked) is fine, so long as you drain it well afterwards and give it a chance to "steam off" before serving.
The very best PSB is, of course, some you've grown yourself. Eaten within an hour of picking, when still bursting with sappy natural sugars, it's exquisite. If you want to give this a go – and it's not a hard vegetable to raise – plant some in the next few weeks. Sow direct into the ground, then thin, or transplant, and it will give you a crop next spring. Alternatively, look for baby plants atgarden centres in midsummer.
PSB gratin
Rich, delicately anchovy-infused cream is a lovely foil to the fresh greenness of the broccoli. This is aluscious starter, but you could make a supper of it if you serve withsome good bread and butter. Serves two.
200g purple sprouting broccoli
1 tbsp olive oil, plus extra to finish
1 clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped
2 anchovy fillets
200ml double cream
Salt and freshly ground blackpepper
20g breadcrumbs
Steam the broccoli over boiling water for around five minutes, until tender to the point of a sharp knife. Alternatively, cook it in boiling water until tender – three to four minutes – and drain well.
Heat the oil in a frying pan over amedium heat. Add the garlic and anchovy, and cook gently for a few minutes, crushing the anchovies down into the oil. Add the cream, let it bubble for two to three minutes until thickened and reduced by about a third, then add black pepper to taste, and salt if needed.
Put the broccoli into a shallow gratin dish or ovenproof pan, pour over the cream mix, add a trickle of oil and scatter breadcrumbs on top. Grill for a few minutes until golden and bubbling, and serve at once.
Grilled PSB with tahini dressing
Char-grilling produces lovely caramelised patches on the broccoli and a delicate bitterness from the leaves, though you could also serve this delicious dressing over steamed or boiled broccoli that you've first dressed with olive oil, salt and pepper. This recipe gives you more dressing than you'll need – keep it in the fridge for a couple of days and use it on salads or on more PSB! Serves two to three as a first course.
200g purple sprouting broccoli
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plusextra to serve
For the dressing
½ clove garlic, crushed with alittlesalt
2 tbsp light tahini (stir well first)
½ lemon, zest finely grated, juiced
½ orange, juiced
½ tsp clear honey
Sea salt and freshly ground blackpepper
1 tbsp olive oil
For the dressing, put the garlic in asmall bowl with the tahini, lemon zest and juice, orange juice, honey and a grind of black pepper. Stir well – it may thicken and go grainy or pasty, but don't worry. Thin down by whisking in water, a tablespoon at atime, till the dressing has acreamy, trickling consistency. Gently stir in the oil andseason to taste.
Trim the broccoli, removing any tough ends; slice any thicker stems (ie, those of 1cm or more in diameter) lengthwise. Steam over boiling water for three minutes, until just starting to soften but not fully tender. (Alternatively, cook in boiling water for four minutes, until not quite tender, then drain well.) The broccoli will be cooked further in the grill pan, so you want it under-done at this stage.
Put two tablespoons of olive oil and some salt and pepper into abowl. Add the broccoli, toss it in the seasoning and oil. Heat a ridged cast-iron grill pan over a high heat. When hot, add the broccoli and sear for five to seven minutes, turning from time to time, until tender and patched with dark brown char marks. Transfer to a warm dish, trickle over some of the dressing, add alittle more salt and pepper, and an extra dash of olive oil, and serve.
My PSB pasta
Any broccoli combined with pasta and some punchy aromatics makes for a fantastic, simple supper. But if you use fresh PSB and some top-notch anchovies, you're looking at something sublime. If anchovies aren't your thing, leave them out and add some capers instead, or just finish the pasta with lots of freshly grated parmesan to get that savoury "umami" hit. Serves four.
350g pasta of your choice (oriechette is good)
600g purple sprouting broccoli
4 tbsp olive oil
1 medium-hot red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finelychopped
6-8 anchovy fillets
Sea salt and freshly ground blackpepper
Bring a large pan of well-salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook until al dente. Trim any woody parts from the broccoli, then cut the rest into forkable pieces and add to the pasta pot about five minutes before the end of its cooking time.
Meanwhile, heat the oil in asmall pan. Add the chilli, garlic and anchovies, and cook gently, crushing the anchovies so they break down, for about five minutes. Drain the pasta and broccoli, then toss immediately with the hot, garlicky, anchovy-y oil. Taste and add black pepper, and salt, if necessary. Serve straight away.
