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To Boil Vegetables Green

A simple method for boiling green vegetables quickly to preserve color.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 3 ingredients
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To Boil Vegetables Green

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Clean the vegetables thoroughly to remove insects.

  2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Boil the vegetables

  1. Add the vegetables to the boiling water and boil them quickly without covering.

  2. Watch the vegetables; they are done when they begin to sink.

  3. Remove them immediately to preserve their color.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

Vegetables
The main ingredient; quick boiling softens them to a tender bite while keeping them crisp-textured.

The step that matters

Removing the vegetables as soon as they sink. Green color comes from chlorophyll, which breaks down with prolonged heat and acid. Overcooking turns vegetables dull olive and mushy, so timing them by when they sink matters.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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