Sauteed Rapini (Broccoli Rabe)

sauteed rapini with garlic in a serving dish with a spoon

This Italian style broccoli rabe is loaded with extra virgin olive oil and fresh garlic. It's a simple side dish with 4 ingredients that's wonderfully easy and delicious.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 15

Total Time 25

Servings 1-cup servings

Calories 243kcal

Author Lizzie Streit, MS, RDN

Ingredients

1 pound broccoli rabe/rapini usually 1 bunch
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic thinly sliced or minced
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes more or less to taste

Instructions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. In the meantime, wash the broccoli rabe well under running water to remove any dirt. Pat dry.
Cut the broccoli rabe into 2- to 3-inch pieces. When the water is boiling, drop the pieces into the pot. Blanch for 60 seconds (max 90 seconds) and drain immediately into a colander. The blanching helps remove some of the bitterness but overdoing it can cause the dish to be mushy.
Warm the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced or minced garlic and cook for about a minute, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Stir in the red pepper flakes followed by the blanched broccoli rabe.
Cook for to 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the broccoli rabe is cooked to your liking. I prefer it to be crisp-tender. You can season with salt and pepper if desired, but I think it has a lot of good flavor without too much of these ingredients.
Remove from heat, serve, and enjoy!
Leave a rating or review by tapping the stars on this recipe card (above) or in the comments section (at the end of the post)!

Notes

Serve this dish warm or cold. Keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 5 days. To reheat, warm in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes.
This recipe is a great side dish to pasta or other Italian dishes. You can also serve it on a vegetarian hoagie with roasted red pepper and provolone cheese.

Nutrition