Whether as a side dish with meat, soup, casserole or finely chopped as a raw vegetable salad: cauliflower is incredibly versatile and tastes very tasty in each of these variations. But before you can enjoy the vegetables, you need to clean and prepare them properly.
What is the best way to wash cauliflower?
To wash cauliflower properly, remove the stem and leaves, loosen the florets and wash them under cold water. For outdoor vegetables, it is recommended to soak florets in s alt water for 5-10 minutes to remove pests.
Method 1: Wash cauliflower whole
If you want to cook the cauliflower as a whole head, for example in the oven, proceed as follows:
- Cut off the bottom of the vegetable with a sharp knife.
- Remove all outer leaves and cut the stalk crosswise.
- Put the cauliflower upside down in a bowl of cold water for about ten minutes.
- For outdoor vegetables, where pests often hide, you should dissolve a teaspoon of s alt in the washing water. Unwanted inhabitants of the cabbage are effectively flushed out.
Method 2: Wash cauliflower in pieces
If you only need the florets, for example as a vegetable side dish or for cooking, we recommend this procedure:
- Cut off the stalk and remove all leaves.
- Teat off the remaining stalk at the base.
- Break out the florets, starting at the thick stems.
- If these are very large, share again.
- Rinse the cauliflower florets thoroughly under cold water.
- For outdoor cauliflower, the vegetable pieces should be soaked in s alted water for five to ten minutes before cooking. This means you can reliably flush pests out of the fine branches.
Tricks on how to keep cauliflower beautiful when cooking
- So that the cauliflower appears appetizingly white on the table, you can add a splash of lemon juice or milk to the cooking water.
- Cauliflower absorbs flavors from the cooking water better than many other vegetables. Add great flavor to vegetables by seasoning the cooking liquid with broth, curry or white wine.
- Unfortunately, the smell of cabbage is quite persistent. If you cook a bay leaf, this can be prevented.
Tip
If cauliflower is not cooked, the heat-sensitive ingredients such as the abundant vitamin C are preserved particularly well. If you would like to enjoy the vegetables raw, you should finely slice them in advance. This makes it easier to digest.
