Mayo-Grilled Broccoli

By Sarah DiGregorio

Published Sept. 4, 2024

Mayo-Grilled Broccoli
Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Cyd Raftus McDowell.
Total Time
15 minutes
Prep Time
5 minutes
Cook Time
10 minutes
Rating
5(164)
Comments
Read comments

Broccoli is delicious with a little char from the grill, but often that high, direct heat can render the vegetable tough and dry. Enter mayonnaise: The silky emulsion of eggs and oil sticks to the nubby florets and insulates them, ensuring that the broccoli gets tender, rich and sweet while also developing deep charred flavor and crispy bits. Plus the mayonnaise acts as a nonstick coating and seasoning, all in one. (It also works beautifully on grilled proteins.) Be sure to cut the head of broccoli into large, long florets, including the stem, and lay them perpendicularly across the grill grates so they don’t fall into the fire.

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: give recipes to anyone
    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.
    Subscribe

  • Print Options

Advertisement

Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 1medium-large head of broccoli (1¼ to 1½ pounds), cut into 3- to 4-inch long, large florets
  • 1cup mayonnaise
  • ½ to 1teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • Kosher salt
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

457 calories; 45 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 11 grams monounsaturated fat; 27 grams polyunsaturated fat; 12 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 5 grams protein; 522 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by
Cooking Newsletter illustration

Opt out or contact us anytime. See our Privacy Policy.

Opt out or contact us anytime. See our Privacy Policy.

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Place the broccoli florets in a very large mixing bowl that fits the florets with plenty of room. Add the mayonnaise and red pepper flakes, if using, and mix well with your hands, ensuring that the broccoli is coated in mayonnaise, in all the nooks and crannies.

  2. Step 2

    Preheat a charcoal or gas grill with two heat zones: one side hot and one side cooler. For a gas grill, turn the burners on one side to high and leave the burners on the other side off. For a charcoal grill, pile all the coals to one side.

  3. Step 3

    Using tongs, lay all the florets on the hot, direct-heat side of the grill, laying the florets perpendicular to the grates so that they don’t fall in. Close the lid and let the broccoli cook undisturbed, until well browned on the bottoms, 2 to 3 minutes. Open the lid and flip each floret, moving any florets that are not getting well-browned to a hotter spot. Close the lid and cook for 1 to 2 minutes more. The broccoli should be charred in spots and deeply browned.

  4. Step 4

    Move all the broccoli to the cool side of the grill, close the lid and grill until the broccoli looks a bit limp, on the tender side of crisp-tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the broccoli back to the mixing bowl. Season with the lemon juice and salt to taste and serve.

Ratings

5 out of 5
164 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Comments

Terry Morris

Can you cook this in the oven or air fryer?

Marti

Did this under the broiler. Used less mayo and added some mustard and a little olive oil. It was a hit!

Julia

We had fresh broccoli florets and mayo, so I just ran a test! The answer is yes--you can totally do this in an air fryer. Our air fryer is a very simple pod-type (Ninja) that has just 1 temperature (450F) so the only thing I can control is time. I used WAY less mayo (Duke's) than is called for here, only as much as I needed to get a good smear on the florets. 12 minutes at 450F cooked the broccoli and crisped the edges. Delicious! If you have a large oven-type fryer you could do entire spears.

Chloe

Nice texture but I could taste cooked egg, so thumbs down for me

Sheila

We grilled these up last night exactly according to the recipe. All of us, even my 6- and 10-year old boys, loved this! My oldest kid said “I’ll eat broccoli like this any time!” Definite win. I don’t think you need as much mayo as the recipe indicates.

Kia

Adapted for my apt dweller lifestyle - preheated oven to 500 with a pan inside, baked for around 15 minutes with occasional floret flips until the bottoms were crisp and browned. So good!!

Private comments are only visible to you.

Recipe Tags

Advertisement

or to save this recipe.