How to Prevent Cauliflower from Turning Brown

If you’ve ever prepared a crudité platter, you’ll understand how important it is to prevent cauliflower from turning brown! 

You want fresh, crisp vegetables on your platter and here are four ways you can prevent the discoloration of cauliflower.

Have you ever cooked a beautiful head of cauliflower, only to have it turn a yucky shade of yellow or brown?

Here you’ll learn why it turns brown and how to prevent it!

Why does cauliflower discolor?

All plants, fruits and vegetables have pigments that give them their vibrant colors and these pigments change for various reasons.

Cauliflower is a flavanoid of the anthoxanthin group, which is a group of “white” pigmented foods–potatoes, onions, cauliflower and pears.

In acidic environments, these foods are white;  at a neutral pH they’re creamy white; in alkaline environments they are yellow.

Cauliflower turns brown due to exposure to oxygen and lack of acidity during the cooking process.

How do you know when cauliflower is bad?

The number one indicator of bad cauliflower is mold. You’ll notice some of the white florets have little brown spots on them. Now, this doesn’t mean the entire head of cauliflower is bad, this just means that you need to trim off the brown spots. The second indicator of bad cauliflower is smell: if it smells “funny” or rancid, chances are, it’s been exposed to humidity and light, which will both cause cauliflower to go bad quickly. 

If you follow these simple steps, you can minimize the risk of your cauliflower turning brown.

4 Tips to prevent cauliflower from turning brown:

Cauliflower, bananas, apples, avocados, potatoes-we’ve all seen these foods turn brown when they’ve been left out too long.

The pigments respond to the environment, and cauliflower turns grayish brown due to several factors:

• pH level of the cooking water
• type of knife used
• type of cookware used
• degree of exposure to oxygen

How to test and change the pH level of water

Test the pH of tap water:

• The easiest way to test the pH level of your tap water is to use litmus paper strips. These can be found at any pool store or ordered online.
• Just dip the strip into the water; wait a few minutes, then compare the color on the paper to the chart on the bottle.
• How to change the pH of tap water:
• The pH (potential of Hydrogen) is a scale from 0 – 14 where 0 is highly acidic and 14 is highly alkaline.
• Most tap and bottled drinking waters are around 6.5 – 8.0 on the pH scale. As you can see, neither of these is highly acidic, nor are they high in alkalinity.
• Cauliflower has a natural pH balance around 6.5 – 6.8.
• But in order to keep cauliflower white, the acidity of the water needs to be around 5.5-7.5 on the pH scale.
• To increase acidity, add lemon juice or vinegar to the water-neither will impact the flavor of the cauliflower.
• To increase alkalinity, add a little baking soda to the cooking water.

Type of knife used to cut cauliflower

Another measure to ensure white cauliflower is to use a stainless steel knife.

Most knives on the market are stainless steel, but it’s worth mentioning here because aluminum, tin, copper, iron and steel (not stainless steel) are reactive metals that interact with the pH of cauliflower and contribute to its yellowing or browning.

Type of cookware 

Cook cauliflower in any non-aluminum pan made of stainless steel, copper or cast-iron-these are ideal for steaming, sautéeing or searing cauliflower.

Avoid pans that have a “non-stick” coating as the “coating” often affects the flavor and color of the vegetable.

Reduce exposure to oxygen

• Fruits and vegetables often discolor when exposed to oxygen.
• The oxidation process naturally turns bananas and avocados brown, as well as cauliflower!
• The best way to reduce exposure to oxygen is to keep it covered and sealed until ready to cook.

How to store cauliflower so it won’t turn brown

If you buy a head of cauliflower in advance, store it in the vegetable bin loosely wrapped.

Place a dry paper towel in the wrapper to absorb any moisture and loosen the wrapper to allow the sulphurous gases to escape.

How to store cauliflower florets

• If you cut the florets off the cauliflower head, first pat them with a paper towel to dry.
• Then, place a dry paper towel in the plastic bag and place them in a loosely tied plastic bag.
• This will keep the light and air away from them, helping to prevent the cauliflower from turning brown.
• The dry paper towel absorbs any moisture and help prevents molding.
• You can safely store whole or cut cauliflower up to 3 days in a refrigerator that is 42ºF.

How to cook cauliflower

Cruciferous vegetables such as cauliflower, broccoli and Brussels sprouts can be cooked in a variety of ways.

Our Grandmothers used to “boil-the-dickens” out of vegetables till they were almost too tender.

Unfortunately, over-boiling removes a majority of the vitamins and nutrients these vegetables offer and the vegetable gets mushy. 

Nowdays, nutritionist recommend steaming, quick-sauteeing or roasting vegetables in order to retain their nutritional value, crisp texture and prevent it from turning brown during the cooking process.

Steaming Method

• Sprinkle lemon or vinegar over cauliflower head
• Bring a large pot of water to boil; add lemon or vinegar
• Place steamer basket in water
• Cook uncovered for 3-minutes then place a lid ajar over the cooking pot (this allows gases to escape and minimizes exposure to oxygen); cook 15-20 minutes, or until it’s fork tender
• Remove cauliflower head and allow to drain
• Slice florets off using a stainless steel knife and serve

Quick-Sauté Method

• Cut florets away from cauliflower head; cover with dish towel to keep it from turning brown
• On medium-high heat, add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large sautee pan
• Put florets in pan flat-side down; cook for 2-minutes uncovered then place lid on pan
• Cook covered for 5 minutes
• Remove lid and continue to cook for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally
• Remove cauliflower florets from pan and drain on paper towel
• Season and serve

Roasting Method

• Preheat oven to 400ºF
• Lightly oil baking sheet
• Place baking sheet in oven on middle rack for 8-minutes
• Cut florets off cauliflower and place in large bowl; drizzle olive oil over cauliflower; toss until coated; lightly season with salt and pepper
• Remove hot baking sheet from oven
• Place florets in a single layer onto sheet, flat-side down
• Return baking sheet to oven
• Roast cauliflower 20-25 minutes or until fork-tender

Tips for serving cooked and raw cauliflower

If you plan to serve raw cauliflower immediately,  you’ll want to “blanch” it first.

How to blanch cauliflower

• Boil it for 3-minutes in acidic water (2-3 tablespoons of lemon juice or vinegar) then immediately submerge it in ice cold water for 2-minutes. 
• If you plan to serve raw cauliflower at a later date, loosely wrap blanched cauliflower head in plastic wrap with a paper towel, and store in the vegetable bin of the refrigerator.
• Do not slice it until ready to serve-this will help to prevent discoloration.
• If you steam a whole head of cauliflower, add a little lemon or vinegar (2-3 tablespoons) to the water and keep the entire head intact. This allows the internal parts of the cauliflower to cook till tender and remain a vibrant white color.

How to cook previously blanched cauliflower

If you’ve prepped (blanched) and stored cauliflower, but want to serve it hot, use either the saute method or roasting method. 

You can steam previously blanched cauliflower, but I’ve found it turns out mushy.

FAQ’s

 

Serving Suggestions

There are many ways to serve this delicious vegetable. Serve  “raw” or lightly blanched florets on vegetable platter, add a little to your favorite salad or pulse in a food processor and add to your favorite pizza topping! 

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