BROCCOLI AND GREEN BEANS
- Salt
- 8 cups of broccoli florets (about 2 pounds including the stems)
- ½ pound green beans, trimmed
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1½ teaspoons dried crushed red pepper flakes, plus more to taste
- ½ teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
Instructions:
In this recipe, I blanch the broccoli before sautéing it. I love vegetables sautéed in olive oil that’s fragrant with garlic, but too often, these sautés can turn fresh, crisp produce into something greasy and soggy.
- Bring a Large Pot of salted water to a boil. Add the broccoli and cook just until the color brightens, about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the broccoli to a large bowl of ice water to cool completely. Drain the broccoli and set aside.
- Cook the green beans in the same pot of boiling salted water just until the color brightens, about 4 minutes.
- Drain, then add the green beans to another large bowl of ice water to cool completely. (The vegetables can be prepared up to this point 8 hours ahead. Dry thoroughly and refrigerate in a resealable plastic bag.)
- In a large sauté pan, heat the oil over a medium-high flame. When almost smoking, add the garlic and 1½ teaspoons of red pepper flakes, and sauté just until fragrant and the garlic is pale golden, about 45 seconds.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove the garlic from the oil and discard (do not overcook the garlic as it will impart a very bitter taste to the dish). Add the broccoli, green beans, and ½ teaspoon each of sea salt and black pepper to the oil, and sauté until the vegetables are heated through and crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Season with more red pepper flakes, sea salt, and black pepper to taste. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and serve immediately.