Boiled vs Steamed Broccoli: Which is healthier and tastier?

Steaming: The best way to prepare super foods

Health conscious people usually are aware of broccoli’s stellar health reputation, among which strong antioxidant effects, “particularly due to its sulforaphane content, …cell cycle regulation [effects], … tuning enzyme activity” (1). Among the cruciferous vegetables, it probably is most famous for its effect on heart disease and cancer (2). It is high in antioxydants, flavonoids, organic acids, and minerals like potassium and calcium. All good reasons to eat more of it!

Here is the conundrum. It’s a fact: food processing has a major impact on yield, chemical structure and bioavailability of antioxidants in Brassica family (3) to which broccoli belongs. Therefore, it is only fair to ask the question: If I want to make some for my family and ensure we enjoy as many of its health benefits,  what is the best method for cooking broccoli? In my cooking experience, and after reading the science, all points to steam cooking as a winner.

The science of STeaming vs. Boiling

Ideally, I would eat my broccoli raw, dipped in hummus, for example ! 

However, I like them cooked more. For one thing, I can taste its flavors better when they are cooked. Also, some studies point to the fact that some anti nutrients in broccoli like oxalate decrease with cooking (4). Moreover as the weather cools down, I like a warm dish! 

Now, am I going to boil or steam them?

BOILING 

Many people believe boiling for 3 minutes is a great cooking method for broccoli. Perhaps it remains bright green, tasty and crunchy, but the science seems to suggest water processing is not the best.

Pronounced Loss of antioxidants

There is “pronounced losses in antioxydant activity during boiling” (5) compared to sous-vide, which best preserves organoleptic qualities ( color scent pigments texture and antioxydants) of foods. Antioxydants are important since they are compounds that protect our cells against damage.

This study points to the fact that cooking at lower temperature led to the least nutritional losses, color and phenolic compounds (which protect against cancer). However, if sous-vide cooking sounds great, it remains time consuming and expensive (6). Besides, this study didn’t include steaming in the cooking methods contrasted with boiling. Since steaming is cooking at a lower temperature than boiling, I can only conclude steaming would be healthier than boiling.

Some increased antioxidant activity

– Interestingly, some vegetables antioxydant activities may increase after boiling, like artichoke ( 8 fold- according to a study by Ferracane (7). But even on that account, steam cooking shows superior results in this antioxydant increase (15 Folds according to the same study) compared to boiling. This study didn’t single out antioxidant rise in broccoli.

– Also, some studies pointed to increase in carotenoids levels in boiled broccoli (8) of after heavier heat processing generally.

Conclusion:

According to a 2014, vegetables most negatively affected by boiling nutritionally were broccoli and lettuce (9)

MY OPINION

• You can boil and keep nutritional qualities of Broccoli high. However it requires boiling them under 3 minutes. Boiling still will destroys nutrients, and the flavor by damaging some of the nutritional qualities. Some of the compounds, such as the mineral salts that give broccoli their taste, will leach into the water. If you want the taste and vibrant colors that makes any vegetables more attractive, stick around and keep the cooking short! 
• Don’t keep the water: the nutrients may be in the water, but boiling has destroyed them and made them less bioavailable to your body. The water also contains harmful compounds your foods may have been exposed to like pesticides. 

STEAMING

Great for disease prevention

Study concluded steamed (green) vegetables – including broccoli –  rather than boiled would “lower the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer” (10 ) by improving in vitro bile acid.

Activates nutrition compounds

Steaming and drying result in an apparent increment of sulforaphane content as well as antioxidant activity (11)  These compounds are preserved best in by steaming in cooking both fresh and frozen broccoli (12)

Preserves more nutrients

• Steam cooking result in a lower loss of “total glucosinolates chlorophyll, soluble protein, soluble sugar, vitamin C”  (13) 

• Steaming will ensure better preservation/extraction yield of phenols and glucosinolates ( plants defenses against external attacks and also  responsible for taste intensity of plants) than do other cooking methods:  “steamed tissues are not in direct contact with the cooking material (water or oil) so leaching of soluble compounds into water is minimised and, at the same time, thermal degradation is limited. ” (14) It is generally best for antioxydants capacity and bioactive compounds preservation (15).

• Good news for people sensitive to some antinutrients: Steaming, while keeping antioxydant high, keeps oxalate levels low (16).

Conclusion

• Based on this science, I would have to conclude that 1) steaming is healthier if only on nutrient preservation grounds. These studies unfortunately do not extend to cleansing foods of toxins through food “sweating”.
• Also based on science, I conclude that if boiling is conducive to nutrient loss, then other cooking methods that heat food above boiling point, such as pressure cooking or slow cooking – i.e. simmering for hours- is also not as healthy as steaming your foods for a short time.

My opinion

I will add, as a passionate avocate of steam cooking: 

• Judge the quality of your cooked food by color, flavor, scent, and texture ( organoleptic qualities)
• Steaming does not alter the taste unless you cook much too long: taste remains strong and delectable. The best sign of nutrient density is color and scent. A change in both is sign of nutrition loss.
• In my personal experience, steamed foods are easier to digest – steaming softens the fiber but does not break completely so they still do their job of balancing digestive system and colon health .
• You want your kids to like veggies but you want them to like the good, nutritious ones. Believe me, you want to steam. The color, texture, nutrient density are incomparable.
• I do believe that most people that dislike vegetables have not tasted many vegetables that were gently steamed. They require very little dressing to taste great! Besides, to boil vegetables is to cook them at high temperature destroys many nutrients but also organoleptic qualities of the food – color, scent , which is why these vegetables no longer taste good.

Blind tested  

• I did a boiling ( 3 min) vs. steaming (4 min) blind test with friends and family. Steaming had retained around the same color and better texture, but what was notable was the better taste of steamed broccoli, probably due to a better mineral salts preservation. Color wise, both broccoli were very similar. Note that my broccoli had cooked longer in the steamer, while retaining the same color intensity.
• We need more studies on gentle steam cooking and its capacity to sweat out toxines out of the food you eat!

Cooking process differences

BOILING

• Prepare the boiling water
• Once it is boiling, lower water to simmering
• Add broccoli florets to the water
• Cook broccoli 3 min ( the older the broccoli, the longer you may need to cook it),
• Take it out and trow into cold water to stop the cooking process,
• Drain boiling water,
• Season with olive oil and salt, shaved almonds. and grate parmesan over it.

Problem: now that you cooked your side dish, you need to boil new water to cook other vegetables in it. With a good steam cooker you would not need to boil new water.

Easiest ways to eat broccoli: steaming it in the Vitaliseur 

Disclaimer: My food steamer of choice is the Vitaliseur. I chose it on the ground of its size, efficiency, and the flavor of what it cooks: its incomparable. Therefore I don’t own any electric steamer, bamboo steamer, or steamer basket. Thanks to the Vitaliseur, I could make steam cooking into my main cooking method, i.e. i use it for 95% of my cooking needs.

How to steam your broccoli: 

• Turn on the stove on high heat with 1- 2 inch water in the tank depending on amounts you need to cook. Here one inch is enough;
• Once steaming abundantly, add the florets into the sieve and cover;
• Cook for 4 minutes, next to sliced yellow onions then transfer into a dish;
• Season with olive oil and salt, shaved almonds. and grate parmesan over it, or even just olive oil and a bit of grey salt.

Pro: you can keep the steam cooker on and steam other foods without having to boil new water and using to boil other foods. You can steam fish, sea food, chicken next to your brocoli without any taste transfer.

Did you decide to steam? 

Want to optimize your nutrition? Buy it organic at the farmer’s market! Plant grown without pesticides grow better defenses, pull out more nutrient out of a richer soil, are harvested more recently closer geographically to your purchase! Factor that into the price to pay.

If you do buy local and organic, PRESERVE and BOOST your nutrition by GENTLY STEAMING ! In my opinion, the VItaliseur is the BEST at this! Look up my equipment page to learn more, and use my discount “steamedcuisine” (low cap) for 10% off and no VAT from non European Union countries! (VAT is taken out at checkout)

Try my pesto salad with broccoli ( after you try making pesto).