Introduction
Does broccoli go bad? Broccoli is an edible plant that has a beautiful green color. It is sometimes used as a garnish to your dish due to the cute and especial look, but still be consumed as an important and healthy veggie.
Broccoli is full of vitamins, minerals, fiber and antioxidants that are very high in nutrition values. It can be eaten cooked or raw and each way will provide different nutrient profiles, but both are good for your health so the way you savor this veggie will just depend on your preference.
Some studies even showed that broccoli contains constituents that can help prevent certain types of cancer and offer many other benefits to protect our heath. Therefore, don’t hesitate to add broccoli to your shopping list frequently.
However, there must be many questions around broccoli like how to store it, how long its shelf life is or how can we realize if it’s spoiled. In this article, you will find answers for all these questions.
How long does broccoli last?
Firstly, you better know that the fresher the broccoli is, the longer it can last, so be picky right at the selecting process.
Normally, raw broccoli can last 4 to 7 days in the fridge and up to 6 to 8 months in the freezer. With cooked broccoli, the fridge can store it for 3 to 5 days and 3 months or more in the freezer.
How to tell if broccoli goes bad?
It’s important to identify if your broccoli turns bad to decide to keep using it for cooking or discard it.
Even you refrigerate your fresh raw broccoli in an acceptable period, the veggie can still turn from firm texture and dark green in the color into limp and yellow in some florets, the worse situation is black or brown spots start to appear on the head.
At that point, it still doesn’t cause any sickness but we bet the flavor won’t be expected. Once the smell is really bad and rotten, it’s time to throw the broccoli to the trash.
Ruined cooked broccoli will be easily realized when you see the mold on the surface or smells bad.
How to store broccoli?
So the question is how to store broccoli correctly to last the life span of this veggie.
It’s not recommended to leave broccoli out of the fridge since the shelf life will be really short, only about 1 to 2 days and the quality is not maintained well.
Therefore, you should keep the store-bought broccoli in the fridge and remember to not wash it before refrigerating, this veggie is not a fan of moisture.
If you already cut the broccoli then better keep it more careful in an airtight container before placing in the fridge.
Cooked broccoli should be treated in the same way as with cut broccoli. Just let it cool 15 to 20 minutes before refrigerating. But the optimal decision will be freezing broccoli in a freezer for long-term storage.
Can you freeze broccoli?
Yes, you can freeze broccoli to make it last up to 8 months. However, the quality will be the best within 3 months freezing.
How to freeze broccoli?
Now you are going to learn how to freeze broccoli properly in just some simple steps.
Tips to freeze broccoli
You should freeze raw broccoli when you want to have it for a soup or another cooked dish. Choosing to cook broccoli before freezing in case you want to serve it as a side dish, so after freezing and thawing, you just need to reheat the broccoli dish then consume immediately
Things you’ll need to freeze broccoli
- A freezer-safe container or bag
- A baking sheet
- A knife
- A pot and a bowl
- Ice cold water
How to freeze raw broccoli
- Wash the broccoli head and cut into florets (you can keep or discard the stalks)
- Blanch the broccoli (boil for 2-3 minutes then quickly transfer broccoli to ice cold water for 5 minutes)
- Drain the broccoli to remove any moisture
- Place the broccoli pieces on a baking sheet then put in the freezer for a few hours
- Once they are frozen, transfer to a freezer bag
- Label the bag then stick to the freezer
How to freeze cooked broccoli
- Divide cooked broccoli into meal-sized portions and cool them at room temperature (for 15-20 minutes)
- Transfer the veggies into freezer bags/ containers
- Label the bags/ containers then put in the freezer
How to defrost/ thaw broccoli?
When you successfully freeze the broccoli, let’s learn how to thaw it properly.
Actually, there is no need to defrost broccoli if you want to use them in a soup, just add it directly to the hot soup and cook a bit longer than usual. In other cases, just follow the instruction below
Tips to defrost broccoli
If you thaw the broccoli in a pan over the heat, just add some water if needed when the water starts to evaporate but your broccoli still isn’t warm
Things you’ll need to defrost broccoli
- A refrigerator/ microwave/ a bowl of cold water/ a pan
- A microwave-safe dish
How to defrost broccoli
- In a fridge: Transfer the frozen broccoli to the fridge overnight if you want to cook it the next day
- In a microwave: Place the broccoli on a microwave-safe dish then put in the microwave. Set on low to defrost it
- In cold water: Throw the bag of frozen broccoli into a bowl of cold water until it completely thaws
- In a pan: Place the broccoli in a pan and heat over low flame to defrost it
How to reheat broccoli?
Actually, the way you reheat your broccoli is like how you defrost it, but with a higher power of the heat and a longer period of time to warm it up.
Once again, you should only reheat the cooked broccoli and no need for the raw since this type can be added directly to your dish after thawing or even not.