10 Delicious Ways to Eat Broccoli Stems (So Nothing Goes to Waste)

Broccoli is one of the most popular vegetables, but the stems are often forgotten or overlooked, ending up in the compost or the garbage bin. Using the whole head of broccoli has several benefits. First, it is an easy way to reduce food waste: It only takes a minute or two to prep the stems, and it’s easier than peeling and chopping an onion. Second, it saves money: By using the broccoli stems, you can get more broccoli for your dollar, and more bang for your buck. Third, the stem is packed with as much nutrition as the florets. And finally, broccoli stems taste great: In fact, some fans assert they are the best part of the broccoli. It's time to learn how to prep broccoli stems and start using them in your day-to-day cooking.

How to Prep Broccoli Stems

It can be convenient to buy pre-cut broccoli florets, but we're saying don't. When you buy a whole head of broccoli, you can use each part of the vegetable, both the tree-like head and the thick, fibrous stalk, and get more out of your produce and more for your money. 

Once you’ve separated the florets from the stem, it only takes two simple steps to prepare the stem for cooking and eating. 

1. Peel: The first step is to peel off the other layer of the broccoli stems. If the stems aren’t tough or fibrous, a vegetable peeler will do the trick. If not, grab a sharp chef’s knife and slice off a small, lengthwise piece from one side. Place the stalk flat on the cutting board and continue slicing away the outer layer, rotating the stalk as you cut, until the fibrous bits are removed. 
2. Slice or chop: Decide how you want to slice the stalks, then get to work. Broccoli stalks can be diced, thinly sliced, julienned, or grated.

How to Use Broccoli Stems

Broccoli stems can be used in just about any dish you’d use the florets. You can use them together or separately. Either way, your creations will be delicious. 

Salads

Broccoli stems are a great way to add some extra fiber to your salads. Dice them up and add them to chopped salads or slice them thin alongside other add-ons like shaved radishes and carrot coins. You can quickly blanch them or leave them raw and lean into the crunch. 

Soups

Stems can serve as a flavorful addition to the base of many soups. Consider adding broccoli stems along with chopped onion, carrots, celery, and garlic. They are also ideal for soups that will be blended—don’t limit yourself to florets the next time you make a pot of cream of broccoli soup. 

Coleslaw

Coleslaw is all about crunch, and broccoli stems are a surefire addition to the main cruciferous vegetable in slaw—cabbage. Slicing the stems into thin matchsticks gives the slaw a fun texture element, but they can also be grated on the large holes of a box grater. Start with our Broccoli Slaw and experiment from there.

Stir-Fry

Broccoli stems are a bit more fibrous than the florets, so they usually take a few more minutes to cook. When chopped, however, they cook up in no time, making them perfect for stovetop stir-fries. 

Related Stories

A Guide to Every Type of Broccoli, From Broccoli Rabe to Broccolini—Plus, How to Use Each One

Thomas Joseph Shares 9 Types of Food Scraps You Should Never Throw Away—and the Best Ways to Use Them to Reduce Waste in the Kitchen

Casseroles and Egg-Based Dishes

Grated broccoli stems are great to keep on hand, since they can easily be folded into egg-based dishes like a frittata and casseroles such as a strata. The small bits are barely even detectable, so it’s an easy way to sneak in some extra vegetables. 

Pickled

One of the best things about broccoli stems is that they maintain a lot of their crunch, even when pickled. They do best when pickled in thin slices or matchsticks. Try adding some slices of fresh ginger and a halved jalapeño or Fresno chile to the pickling liquid. 

Roasted

When roasting a head of broccoli, don’t forget about the stems. Peel and thinly slice them, and they can be roasted on the same trays as the florets—all they need is a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper to become a delectable side dish. 

Riced

Cauliflower rice might have the name recognition, but broccoli rice is better. Give the stems a rough chop, then pulse them in the food processor until they are finely chopped and have a grain-like consistency. Use where you’d use cauliflower rice (or regular rice, for that matter). 

Raw

Forget the florets when making your next crudité platter. Cut the stems into snacking sticks just like carrots, celery, jicama, and more. They are wonderfully crunchy and great for swirling into all kinds of dips and spreads. 

Vegetable Stock

Still not quite sure what to do with those broccoli stems? Pop them in a freezer-safe bag with other vegetable scraps and tuck them away in the freezer. Then make a batch of homemade vegetable stock another day. The broccoli stems add an earthy, unique element.