Broccoli Rubble (with Other Things)
I’ve been staring at these photos for a good twenty minutes, wondering if I should bother sharing them – they don’t do the dish justice, partly because I left the broccoli on the stove a bit long while doing other things, and partly because mulched broccoli isn’t particularly photogenic. But it was delicious, and a totally different thing to do with broccoli.
I’ve been mildly obsessed with the concept of broccoli rubble since reading about it over at Deb’s – the rough chop of it, the quick sauté in garlicky oil, the shower of Parmesan. (And maybe because it sounds a lot like Barney Rubble?) I’ve always been drawn to just about any kind of grainy salad – I figured broccoli would hold up to chewy wheat berries quite well, and some salty crumbled feta, and lots of pepper, and a fried egg. I wish I had some walnuts to toast and toss on top. I devoured this thing, and I don’t regret it.
I’m noticing now that Deb suggested broccoli rabe, which has a slightly better ratio of thin stalk to shrubby top, but a classic old-school broccoli crown worked just fine. I didn’t measure anything, and used wheat berries because I have (and love) them. I pondered drizzling over a lemony vinaigrette while it was still warm, but didn’t this time – I may the next. I do recommend the egg, which did its job of oozing itself all over everything underneath. I kind of wish I had leftovers to resurrect (with another egg, of course) tomorrow for lunch.
I wrote up a recipe because I know approximately a third of you feel better with one, but please don’t take the measurements too seriously.
Broccoli Rubble (with Other Things)

Separate the broccoli into large florets and cut the stem in quarters lengthwise (or into big chunks); boil in salted water for 2-3 minutes, until it's bright green and just tender. Remove (with a slotted spoon, if you want to use your water to cook the grains) and set aside to cool, then roughly chop.
Heat a generous drizzle of oil in a large skillet set over medium-high heat, add the garlic and cook for a minute, then add the broccoli and cook, stirring and squeezing over some lemon and sprinkling with salt and pepper, for a few more minutes. Remove from the heat and toss with the grains and feta (cool the broccoli first, if you like), while you fry an egg or two in the pan. Serves 2-6.
Ingredients
Directions
Separate the broccoli into large florets and cut the stem in quarters lengthwise (or into big chunks); boil in salted water for 2-3 minutes, until it's bright green and just tender. Remove (with a slotted spoon, if you want to use your water to cook the grains) and set aside to cool, then roughly chop.
Heat a generous drizzle of oil in a large skillet set over medium-high heat, add the garlic and cook for a minute, then add the broccoli and cook, stirring and squeezing over some lemon and sprinkling with salt and pepper, for a few more minutes. Remove from the heat and toss with the grains and feta (cool the broccoli first, if you like), while you fry an egg or two in the pan. Serves 2-6.
Ummm…is it just me or is there no recipe? I must admit I’m one of those who do prefer one because I tend to race past the conversational stuff and the umpteen almost identical photos in food blogs and head straight for the picture of the finished version and the recipe. If I like the recipe, I work backwards 🙂
There IS no recipe!
Nope–no recipe/ingredients
https://smittenkitchen.com/2017/05/broccoli-rubble-farro-salad/
There is no recipe attached. Darn, wanted to try this.
Sorry guys.. this new site is so glitchy, it seems to randomly delete posts as I work on them. Will go rewrite the recipe.
I’m STILL trying to figure out why this was so good. My family and I LOVED it!! We used wheat berries, and extra feta, and ate it while it was still quite warm. I was going to skip the egg (because coincidentally we already had fried eggs for breakfast) but thought “if Julie says ‘put an egg’ then gosh darn it we are adding the egg”. Definitely a keeper. Thanks for the recipe 🙂
I know right?? So much better than the sum of its parts!
Made this for dinner last night WITH the egg (and barley). Leftovers today for lunch and hard boiled eggs. Delicious!!! This will be in regular rotation .
Yahoo!