Easy Roasted Broccoli

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This easy recipe for Roasted Broccoli is all you need for making crispy, tender broccoli every time. And, it uses broccoli stems for less waste and more flavor!

A plate of roasted broccoli florets sits on a rustic fabric placemat, with a gold serving spoon beside the plate.

I make this Roasted Broccoli so often that I’ve long since put any kind of actual recipe aside. That said, when I first came across a roasted broccoli recipe early in my cooking life as a mom (possibly this one from Bon Appetit magazine?), I thought it was a miracle. Suddenly my broccoli was crispy, salty, and spicy, and I couldn’t get enough of it. Over time, I’ve made a similar recipe with all sorts of vegetables. Turns out, almost anything is better roasted! 

This Oven Roasted Broccoli Makes the Perfect Side Dish

  • Easy Technique: once you’ve got this down, you can use it to roast all sorts of vegetables in the future
  • Reduce Waste: use the entire broccoli head rather than just the florets
  • Delicious: the perfect gateway recipe for broccoli haters! 

🥗 Oven Roasted Broccoli Recipe Ingredients

Broccoli, a bottle of olive oil, a jar of crushed red pepper, a bowl of salt, and a bowl of ground black pepper are arranged on a light surface.
  • Broccoli: Look for firm, dark green broccoli heads. 
  • Olive Oil: A basic extra-virgin olive oil is fine for this recipe. You can substitute another high-temperature oil as well, like avocado oil or grapeseed oil. 
  • Crushed Red Pepper: Optional but gives a great kick to this recipe!

🥣 How to Make Roasted Broccoli in Oven

  1. Preheat oven to 425°F. 

2. Line a large baking sheet with foil. 

3. Slice florets off 2 small broccoli heads, then cut into large bite-sized chunks. Use a vegetable peeler to peel the tough broccoli stalks, after trimming the end off the bottom. Then slice the thin broccoli stems and peeled stalks into ¼-inch thick coins. 

Chopped broccoli florets and stems on a wooden cutting board, with some leaves and vegetable scraps to the side.

4. Add the broccoli florets, stems, stalks, and leaves to a large mixing bowl. Drizzle 3 tablespoons olive oil over the broccoli in the bowl. Add ¾ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper (if using), and a few grinds of black pepper. Toss with your hands until the oil and spices are evenly distributed. 

A bowl filled with fresh, washed broccoli florets and leaves tossed with olive oil and spices on a light gray surface.

5. Pour the contents of the bowl onto the foil-lined sheet pan and spread out until you have a single layer of vegetables. 

Chopped broccoli florets and stems arranged on a foil-lined baking sheet, ready for roasting.

6. Put baking sheet into the oven. After 10 minutes, stir broccoli. Roast for another 5 minutes and stir again—your broccoli should just be starting to brown. Roast for an additional 3-5 minutes, until the broccoli edges are crispy and the broccoli is fork tender.

Roasted broccoli florets spread out on a foil-lined baking sheet.

Storing Roasted Broccoli

Store leftover broccoli in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat in an air fryer or 400°F oven so that the broccoli edges will crisp up. If you reheat in the microwave, the broccoli will still taste good, but it will not be crispy.

A plate of roasted broccoli florets on a burlap cloth, with a brass serving spoon, a small bowl of salt, and a bowl of pepper on a white wooden surface.

 🧐 Recipe FAQs

Can you eat broccoli stems?

Yes! One of the things I love about this recipe is that it includes the humble broccoli stem. For years, I would cut off the broccoli florets and discard the stem. But actually, broccoli stems are delicious! And they are just as nutritious as the florets.

They have a little less Vitamin A but a little more iron and Vitamin C. If you’re not roasting them, shredded broccoli stalks make excellent slaw, and you can also peel and slice them into sticks to serve with hummus or another kind of dip.

👩‍🍳 Expert Tips

Note that ovens can run hot or less hot, and sheet pans can be more or less heat-conductive. All that is to say, try this recipe with your oven and your pan, and then adjust. You may need more or less time than specified. Also, you may find you want your vegetables more charred and less tender—in that case, crank the oven to 450 and roast for less time.

I like nonstick foil for this recipe so that the broccoli doesn’t stick at all, but regular foil works too. You can also try parchment paper, but I find the broccoli does not brown as nicely on the parchment. For the best char, using a well-seasoned sheet pan and no liner at all works is perfect.

Once you have this roasting technique down, you can spice up your vegetables however you like. I love to add Trader Joe’s Chili Lime Seasoning to mine. A little garlic or onion powder is also delicious—or really, any spice that complements your main course. I love sprinkling nutritional yeast on the broccoli as well for a little cheesiness and some extra protein.

If you want to experiment with this technique with other vegetables, keep in mind that vegetables often have different cooking times. This can make roasting them at the same time difficult. The best solution for this problem is to cut longer-cooking vegetables into smaller pieces, and shorter-cooking vegetables into larger pieces if you want to cook them together.

A bowl of roasted broccoli florets sits on a burlap cloth with a silver fork and a brass spoon beside it.

What To Serve With Oven Roasted Broccoli

This broccoli side dish is so good with so many different main courses! And, broccoli is available year round so you can serve it with everything from grilled meats and seafood to crockpot dinners. I love to serve roasted broccoli with my Easy Chicken Parmesan Meatballs, my Black Garlic Chicken, and my Pasta Alfredo. It’s great on the side of Panko Crusted Salmon or Shrimp Scampi as well. Add some Garlic Baguette on the side!

Other Roasted Vegetable Recipes

Roasting is one of my favorite techniques for getting the most flavor out of vegetables. Check out some of these favorites:

If you try this Roasted Broccoli recipe, I would love to hear from you! Leave a comment below—I read them all, and your feedback is invaluable to me. And please follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook or subscribe to my newsletter. I'd love to inspire you with more delicious, healthy, and seasonal recipes!

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A plate of roasted broccoli florets with lightly charred edges, served on a neutral-colored dish atop a textured fabric.

Best Roasted Broccoli Recipe

Chef Molly Pisula
This easy recipe for Roasted Broccoli is all you need for making crispy, tender broccoli every time.
4.50 from 8 votes
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Course Side
Cuisine American
Servings 4
Calories 152 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1 ½ pounds Broccoli (about 1-2 large broccoli heads)
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  • ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper optional

Instructions
 

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (210 Celsius).
  2. Line a large baking sheet with foil.
  3. Slice florets off broccoli heads, then cut into large bite-sized chunks.
  4. Use a vegetable peeler to peel the tough broccoli stalks, after trimming the end off the bottom.
  5. Slice the thin broccoli stems and peeled stalks into ¼-inch thick coins.
  6. Add the broccoli florets, stems, stalks, and leaves to a large mixing bowl.
  7. Drizzle olive oil over the broccoli in the bowl. Add salt, crushed red pepper (if using), and a few grinds of black pepper. Toss with your hands until the oil and spices are evenly distributed.
  8. Pour the contents of the bowl onto the foil-lined sheet pan and spread out until you have a single layer of vegetables.
  9. Put baking sheet into the oven.
  10. After 10 minutes, stir broccoli.
  11. Roast for another 5 minutes and stir again—your broccoli should just be starting to brown.
  12. Roast for an additional 3-5 minutes, until the broccoli edges are crispy and the broccoli is fork tender.

Notes

Keep in mind that your mileage may vary when roasting. Ovens can run hot or less hot, and sheet pans can be more or less heat-conductive. All that is to say, try this recipe with your oven and your pan, and then adjust. You may need more or less time than specified. Also, you may find you want your vegetables more charred and less tender—in that case, crank the oven to 450 and roast for less time. 

Nutrition

Calories: 152kcalCarbohydrates: 12gProtein: 5gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gSodium: 496mgPotassium: 544mgFiber: 5gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 1135IUVitamin C: 152mgCalcium: 82mgIron: 1mg
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4.50 from 8 votes (8 ratings without comment)

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4 Comments

  1. I love my veg and I love roasting it! I love the stems of the broccoli 🙂 My Mum makes a delicious slaw from them!
    Great recipe!

  2. I love roasted broccoli and just about any roasted vegetable, so this is a very handy recipe. I also like your comments about broccoli stems. I used to throw them away, too. But then I noticed that my grocer was selling brocolli slaw, and it was delicious, and I realized right away that it was made from stems, so I started making it myself. From there, it occurred to me to peel and cook them, as you suggest, whenever I'm preparing broccoli. They take a bit longer to cook, but they're just as delicious - and what a waste to have been throwing them away all that time.