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How often does it happen that you’ve eaten broccoli but are left with that thick stalk? Yes, you can place it alongside the broccoli florets in the oven if you want or cook it separately but the stem is much harder than the florets and actually needs a different cooking time. Not convenient at all. But now there is the perfect solution for your broccoli stalks. Make delicious broccoli fries with it! This air fryer broccoli recipe will show you how.
Table of contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Less waste – sure you can also roast the broccoli stalks in the oven or cook it with the normal broccoli florets but I’m just not a fan of that. These broccoli fries are the perfect solution
- Tasty! – with just a few spices and a bit of Parmesan cheese these broccoli fries are so delicious. Another great way to add more veggies to your meals!
Recipe Ingredients
- broccoli stalks – for this recipe I used 2 broccoli stalks, but it all depends on the size of your broccoli. You will need roughly 400 grams for 2 people
- Parmesan cheese – adding the Parmesan to the mix really gives them a lot of flavor. You can use other cheeses as well. Think pecorino, grana padano or another hard cheese. Metling cheeses like cheddar are less suited as they burn faster
- spices – use any spices you like. Want spicier broccoli fries use chili powder. Smoked paprika would also be a great addition.
Broccoli Fries From Air Fryer
The idea for the broccoli fries came from Evergreen kitchen. I saw their reel passing by on instagram some time ago and I was immediately impressed. I had kept the reel and at the time I had used a lot of broccoli for another recipe, this seemed like the perfect solution to use the broccoli stalks. It’s a super easy side dish and a healthy snack too.
At first I thought it would be nice to give it a crispy coating of cornflakes, like with these halloumi fries with cornflakes. In fact, after making a chicken cordon bleu, I had quite a bit of cornflakes left over. Hahaha. But that didn’t work well. The cornflakes – even though I had crushed them into tiny pieces – are still a little too coarse for this recipe. Maybe that is something to try for another time. If you love vegetable fries, check out the kohlrabi fries as well or the sweet potato tempura fries and the zucchini fries with aioli.
How To Make Broccoli Fries
Step 1: Peel the Broccoli
For best results, it is important that you peel the broccoli properly. The outside of the stem is hard and not tasty when you prepare it in the air fryer. I first cut off the big lumps and then peeled it again with a peeler. That worked fine. Next, cut the broccoli into fries that are not too thick. Remember they will only be in the air fryer for a few minutes. If they are too thick they won’t cook properly.
Step 2: Season the broccoli fries
Once you’ve cut the broccoli mix it with a bit of olive oil. Make a spice mix of garlic, onion powder, pepper, salt and the grated Parmesan cheese. Mix it all together. That works best when added to a bowl and shake it gently. Use your hands if needed to mix it all.
Step 3: Bake the broccoli fries
Another important one is to put the broccoli fries in a single layer in the air fryer basket. Don’t put them on top of each other, or it won’t cook properly. I set my air fryer to 200˚C and baked the fries for 8 minutes. They were all cooked. If that is not the case with you, bake them 1 or 2 minutes longer if necessary. Make sure they are golden brown when you take them out.
I don’t usually use a preheated air fryer but that has everything to do with the type of air fryer. If yours does need time to preheat, make sure you do that in advance.
Pro Tip
I normally do not use pre-grated Parmesan, but for this recipe you want to grate it as finely as possible. The little bags you can buy have more of a powder consistency and that is perfect for this recipe. If the grating is too coarse it will not stick to the broccoli fries. So as fine as possible is the way to go.
FAQ Air Fryer Broccoli Fries
No they are really best if you eat them right out of the air fryer. Then they are still nice and crispy. If you leave them standing they will quickly become limp and cold. You can – of course – keep them before frying.
Of course making these broccoli fries is delicious but definitely not the only way to use up leftover broccoli stems. You can roast them, you can make a broccoli pesto out of it , you can add it to a vegetable soup and so much more. Definitely do not throw it away. There are many ways to prevent food waste!
Yes you can definitely make this easy recipe, but I think they get crunchier in the air fryer. If you don’t have one then you can try it in a regular oven at 200˚C/400 ˚F. Spread the broccoli out on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Allow about 20 minutes to half an hour and check in between to see if you can insert a fork. I didn’t make them in the oven, so I cannot guarantee the result but it should be possible for sure. Of course, making them in an air fryer is really a fraction of the time. Air frying is an excellent way to quickly prepare a veggie side dish. You can make air fryer carrots or air fryer Brussels sprouts and so much more. I’ll be trying out more.
If these broccoli fries are served as a side dish it would be really good with a good steak
If you want to make the broccoli fries vegan, it’s very easy by using vegan parmesan cheese instead of the regular one. That seems to exist. I haven’t tried it yet but then again, I’m not an instant fan of vegan cheese. Alternatively, you can omit the Parmesan cheese altogether and sprinkle some panko (Japanese breadcrumbs) or breadcrumbs on top, for example. Of course, for a vegan version, you also substitute the mayonnaise for Veganaise.
More broccoli recipes
Broccoli Fries (Air Fryer)
Ingredients
- 2-3 pieces broccoli stalks about 400 grams
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp arrowroot
- pepper and salt
- 3 tbsp parmesan cheese grated
Spicy mayonnaise
- 3 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp sriracha sauce
Equipment
- Air fryer
How to make the broccoli fries
- First, peel the broccoli stems so that the tough outer skin is removed. Then cut them into thin – fry-like – strips.2-3 pieces broccoli stalks
- Place the broccoli fries in a bowl and drizzle with the olive oil. Shake briefly so it is well distributed over the broccoli.1 tbsp olive oil
- Mix the arrowroot with the garlic powder, onion powder, pepper and salt. Sprinkle this over the fries along with the parmesan cheese. Shake well again.1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1 tsp arrowroot, pepper and salt, 3 tbsp parmesan cheese grated
- Place them in a single row in the bowl of the airfryer and bake at 200˚C for 8 minutes. Depending on the thickness of your fries, they may need an additional 1-2 minutes. Check in between if necessary. With me, actually all sizes were cooked.
- Make a sauce by mixing the mayonnaise with the sriracha and serve as a dip with them.3 tbsp mayonnaise, 1 tbsp sriracha sauce
Notes
Nutrition Information per portion:
Disclaimer:
The nutritional values above are calculated per portion. The details are based on standard nutritional tables and do not constitute a professional nutritional advice.
