Broccoli Salad with Ginger Vinaigrette

This is one of my favorite preparations of this super healthy vegetable. The ginger-infused dressing lends a slight Asian touch to the dish, but I don’t allow a full immersion into the world of Asian cooking.

I think one of the ultimate keys in making this dish taste good is boiling the broccoli just long enough to soften it, without turning the florets into mush. Check the cooking progress often by removing a floret and cutting into the stem – there should be a broad white structure still visible.

I don’t mix the broccoli with the dressing right away because the acid will compromise the beautiful green color of the broccoli and turn it slightly grey. Instead, I like to wait just until I’m ready to serve the dish and apply the dressing either with a spoon or toss everything lightly in a bowl.

I use broccolini (when I can find it) instead of regular broccoli for this recipe. I do this because the entire vegetable is edible from the slender, asparagus-like stalks to the tiny florets. It’s both crunchy and tender, with a characteristic slight bitterness which matches nicely with the vinaigrette. Using regular broccoli is perfectly fine though, as is young broccoli rabe.

Yield:  about 4-6 servings