{{Short description|Species of edible plant}} {{Redirect|Grelo |the Brazilian singer-songwriter|Grelo (singer)}} {{Infobox cultivar | name = Rapini | image = Rapini.jpg | species = ''Brassica rapa'' | group = Ruvo group }}
'''Rapini''' ('''broccoli rabe''' or '''raab'''; {{IPAc-en|r|ɑː|b}} {{Respell|RAHB}}) is a green cruciferous vegetable, with the leaves, buds, and stems all being edible; the buds somewhat resemble broccoli. Rapini is known for its bitter taste, and is particularly associated with Mediterranean cuisine. It is a particularly rich dietary source of vitamin K.
== Classification == Native to Europe, the plant is a member of the tribe Brassiceae of the Brassicaceae (mustard family).<ref name="ncsu">{{cite web|url=https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/brassica-rapa-ruvo-group/|title=''Brassica rapa'' (Ruvo Group)|publisher=North Carolina State University, Cooperative Extension|date=2021|accessdate=30 January 2021}}</ref> Rapini is classified scientifically as ''Brassica rapa'' var. ''ruvo'',<ref name=ncsu/> or ''Brassica rapa'' subsp. ''sylvestris'' var. ''esculenta''.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Barbieri|first1=G. |date= 2008|title=Glucosinolates profile of Brassica rapa L. subsp. Sylvestris L. Janch. var. esculenta Hort |journal=Food Chemistry |volume=107 |issue=4 |pages=1687–1691 |doi=10.1016/j.foodchem.2007.09.054 |access-date=2023-02-20|url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0308814607009715|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Conversa |first1=G.|date=2016 |title=Bio-physical, physiological, and nutritional aspects of ready-to-use cima di rapa (Brassica rapa L. subsp. sylvestris L. Janch. var. esculenta Hort.) as affected by conventional and organic growing systems and storage time |journal=Scientia Horticulturae |volume=213 |issue=14 |pages=76–86 |doi=10.1016/j.scienta.2016.10.021 |bibcode=2016ScHor.213...76C |access-date=2023-02-20|url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0304423816305234|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=2019 |title=Erbaio fotografico |url=http://dipsa.unibo.it/Erbario%20fotografico/list.php?op=B |accessdate= |publisher=Università di Bologna - Dipartimento di scienze e tecnologie agro-alimentari}}</ref> It is also known as broccoletti, broccoli raab, broccoli rabe, spring raab, and ruvo kale.<ref name=ncsu/> Turnip and bok choy are different varieties (or subspecies) of this species.
== Description ==
Rapini has many spiked leaves that surround clusters of green buds that resemble small heads of broccoli. Small, edible yellow flowers may be blooming among the buds.<ref name="UCANR">{{Cite web|url=http://sonomamg.ucanr.edu/Food_Gardening/Feature_Vegetables/Rapini_Broccoli_Raab/|title=Rapini (broccoli raab)|publisher=UC Master Gardener Program of Sonoma County, University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources|website=sonomamg.ucanr.edu|language=en-US|access-date=2018-06-17}}</ref>
==Nutrition== {{nutritionalvalue | name=Broccoli raab, raw | water = 92.55 g | kJ = 92 | protein = 3.17 g | fat = 0.49 g | carbs = 2.85 g | fiber = 2.7 g | sugars = 0.38 g | calcium_mg = 108 | iron_mg = 2.14 | magnesium_mg = 22 | phosphorus_mg = 73 | potassium_mg = 196 | sodium_mg = 33 | zinc_mg = 0.77 | manganese_mg = 0.395 | vitC_mg = 20.2 | thiamin_mg = 0.162 | riboflavin_mg = 0.129 | niacin_mg = 1.221 | pantothenic_mg = 0.322 | vitB6_mg = 0.171 | folate_ug = 83 | vitA_ug = 131 | betacarotene_ug = 1573 | lutein_ug = 1121 | vitE_mg = 1.62 | vitK_ug = 224 | note = [https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/1103084/nutrients Link to USDA Database entry] }} Raw rapini (broccoli raab) is 93% water, 3% each of protein and carbohydrates, and contains negligible fat (table). In a reference amount of {{cvt|100|g|oz|frac=2}}, raw rapini supplies {{convert|92|kJ|kcal|abbr=off}} of food energy, and is a rich source (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of vitamin K (187% DV), vitamin C (22% DV), and folate (21% DV) (table). Vitamin A, vitamin E, and several B vitamins, along with the dietary minerals, iron and manganese, are in moderate amounts (10–19% DV) (table).
== Culinary use == thumb|''Lacón con grelos'', a typical Galician dish: pork shoulder ham with rapini, along with steamed potatoes and a sausage The flavor of rapini has been described as nutty, bitter, and pungent,<ref name="UCANR"/> as well as almond-flavored.<ref name="Bastianich">Lidia Matticchio Bastianich & Tanya Bastianich Manuali, ''Lidia's Italy in America'' (Knopf, 2011), p. 127.</ref> Rapini needs little more than a trim at the base. The entire stalk is edible when young, but the base becomes more fibrous as the season advances.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Vegetables from amaranth to zucchini: the essential reference: 500 recipes and 275 photographs|last=Elizabeth.|first=Schneider|date=2001|publisher=Morrow|isbn=978-0688152604|edition= 1st|location=New York|oclc=46394048}}</ref>
Rapini is widely used in the cuisine of Rome as well as Southern Italy,<ref name="Bastianich"/> particularly in the regions of Sicily,<ref name="Schiavelli">Vincent Schiavelli, ''Papa Andrea's Sicilian Table: Recipes and Remembrances of My Grandfather'' (Citadel Press, rev. ed., 2001), p. 40.</ref> Calabria,<ref name="Costantino">Rosetta Costantino with Janet Fletcher, ''My Calabria: Rustic Family Cooking from Italy's Undiscovered South'' (W.W. Norton, 2010), p. 217.</ref> Campania,<ref name="Hazan"/> Apulia,<ref name="Hazan">Marcella Hazan & Victor Hazan, ''Ingredienti: Marcella's Guide to the Market'' (Scribner, 2016), p. 89.</ref><ref name="Rago">Rossella Rago, [https://explorepartsunknown.com/southern-italy/recipe-orecchiette-con-cime-di-rapa/ Recipe: Orecchiette con Cime di Rapa], ''Explore Parts Unknown'' (November 22, 2017).</ref> In Apulia, their names are either ''cime di rapa'' or ''broccoletti'';<ref name="Hazan"/> in Naples, the green's name is ''friarielli''.<ref>Marlena Spieler, ''A Taste of Naples: Neapolitan Culture, Cuisine, and Cooking'' (Rowman & Littlefield, 2018), p. 67.</ref> In Campania, it is closely associated with ''braciole'' and sausages, such that food writer Arthur Schwartz reports, "it is almost unthinkable to eat [those meats] without a side of [rapini]."<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Schwartz |first=Arthur |title=Naples at Table: Cooking in Campania |publisher=HarperCollins |year=1998 |isbn=0-06-018261-X |location=New York |pages=[https://archive.org/details/naplesattablecoo0000schw/page/316/ 316]}}</ref> In Portuguese cuisine, ''grelos de nabo'' are similar in taste and texture to broccoli rabe.<ref>David Leite, ''The New Portuguese Table: Exciting Flavors from Europe's Western Coast'' (Clarkson Potter, 2009).</ref> Rapini is also popular in the Galicia region of northwestern Spain; a rapini festival (''Feira do grelo'') is held in the Galician town of As Pontes every February.<ref>Ashifa Kassam, [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/03/google-translate-error-as-pontes-spain-clitoris-food-festival-grelo-galicia Google Translate error sees Spanish town advertise clitoris festival], ''The Guardian'' (November 3, 2015).</ref>
Rapini may be sautéed<ref name="Hazan"/><ref>Domenica Marchetti, ''The Glorious Vegetables of Italy'' (Chronicle Books, 2013), p. 17.</ref> or braised with olive oil and garlic,<ref name="Bastianich"/> and sometimes chili pepper and anchovy.<ref name="Hazan"/><ref name="Rago"/> It may be used as an ingredient in soup,<ref name="Bastianich"/> served with orecchiette,<ref name="Bastianich"/><ref name="Rago"/> other pasta,<ref name="Schiavelli"/> or pan-fried sausage.<ref name="Costantino"/> Rapini is sometimes (but not always) blanched before being cooked further.<ref name="Hazan"/>
In the United States, rapini is popular in Italian American cuisine; the D'Arrigo Brothers popularized the ingredient in the United States and gave it the name ''broccoli rabe''.<ref name="Bastianich"/> Broccoli rabe is a component of some hoagies and submarine sandwiches; in Philadelphia, a popular sandwich is Italian-style roast pork with locally made sharp provolone cheese, broccoli rabe, and peppers.<ref>''Vegetables Illustrated: An Inspiring Guide with 700+ Kitchen-Tested Recipes'' (America's Test Kitchen, 2019), p. 56.</ref> Rapini can also be a component of pasta dishes, especially when accompanied by Italian sausage.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://familystylefood.com/rigatoni-pasta-sausage-fennel-broccoli-rabe-recipe/|title=Broccoli Rabe Pasta with Italian Sausage and Fennel|date=2017-10-29|work=Familystyle Food|access-date=2018-09-10|language=en-US}}</ref>
== See also == * Brassica juncea - Mustard greens * Broccolini * Chinese cabbage * Collard (plant) - Collard greens * Gai lan * Rutabaga
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== * {{cite journal |vauthors=Cefola M, Amodio ML, Cornacchia R, Rinaldi R, Vanadia S, Colelli G |title=Effect of atmosphere composition on the quality of ready-to-use broccoli raab (Brassica rapa L.) |journal=Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture |volume=90 |issue=5 |pages=789–97 | date=April 2010 |pmid=20355114 |doi=10.1002/jsfa.3885|bibcode=2010JSFA...90..789C }} * {{cite journal |vauthors=Mun JH, Yu HJ, Shin JY, Oh M, Hwang HJ, Chung H |title=Auxin response factor gene family in Brassica rapa: genomic organization, divergence, expression, and evolution |journal=Molecular Genetics and Genomics |volume=287 |issue=10 |pages=765–84 | date=October 2012 |pmid=22915303 |pmc=3459075 |doi=10.1007/s00438-012-0718-4}} * {{cite journal |vauthors=Osborn TC, Kole C, Parkin IA, etal |title=Comparison of flowering time genes in Brassica rapa, B. napus and Arabidopsis thaliana |journal=Genetics |volume=146 |issue=3 |pages=1123–9 | date=July 1997 |doi=10.1093/genetics/146.3.1123 |pmid=9215913 |pmc=1208040 |url=http://www.genetics.org/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=9215913}} * {{cite journal |vauthors=Suwabe K, Iketani H, Nunome T, Kage T, Hirai M |title=Isolation and characterization of microsatellites in Brassica rapa L |journal=Theoretical and Applied Genetics |volume=104 |issue=6–7 |pages=1092–1098 | date=May 2002 |pmid=12582617 |doi=10.1007/s00122-002-0875-7|s2cid=33184043 }} * {{cite journal |vauthors=Wang X, Wang H, Wang J, etal |title=The genome of the mesopolyploid crop species Brassica rapa |journal=Nature Genetics |volume=43 |issue=10 |pages=1035–9 | date=October 2011 |pmid=21873998 |doi=10.1038/ng.919|s2cid=205358099 |url=https://nrc-publications.canada.ca/eng/view/accepted/?id=8fdc0510-af47-4bba-bdf8-7c81bd2b18ec }}
== External links == * {{Commons category-inline|Brassica rapa}}
{{Brassica}} {{Taxonbar|from=Q702282}}
Category:Brassica Category:Leaf vegetables Category:Italian cuisine