Comments on: Double-cooked Brussels Sprouts and Green Beans

By: Marija

Marija — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 21:42:44 +0000

Thank you Andrea. This is really helpful.

By: Andrea

Andrea — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 17:17:11 +0000

This is a valid concern indeed, but a couple of things. First, the salt creates a protective layer. This is why it’s so important to salt the blanching water generously. The density of the water changes and helps the nutrients stay longer inside the vegetable. Of course, after a while they will start leaching anyway. I say in the blog post I let blanch sometimes beyond the “al dente” point, which is after the water has started changing color, indicating nutrient leaching. This is not necessary, but sometimes its desirable. You see… when your digestive system is under performing, you’re always striving for a balance between eating the most nutrient dense food you can and eating food that you can actually digest and assimilate, makes sense?
I don’t use blanching water for other uses, simply because its not that nutrient dense — this is A LOT of water for the nutrients it might contain, you know? It doesn’t compare to bone broth.
You could cook the veggies some other way — with less water, sort of boil/saute kind of thing, but the flavor is going to change, as will the color. Simple dishes with very few ingredients, like this one, are more about the technique than anything else, in order to get great results…

By: Marija

Marija — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 20:42:40 +0000

Andrea, do you use the cooking water for other things later, such as adding to a soup? I have always avoided blanching or boiling veggies because I was told long ago that many vitamins leave the vegetables and go into the water. Now, I’m questioning everything I’ve ever been told about cooking, but this does seem to make sense. Can you comment on this?

By: Marija

Marija — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 20:36:45 +0000

Thanks for posting this Andrea! This was truly delicious. I think I’m going to make this for Christmas dinner.