As a pediatric dietitian who has obsessed over every detail of feeding my own two babies, I’m overjoyed to help you introduce broccoli to your little one.

Broccoli is one of the best vegetables to introduce to babies early on. With vitamin C, vitamin A, and and other important nutrients, like potassium and calcium, it is great to get into your baby’s diet.

Sure you could just puree it, but there is so much more we can do! Especially if you are eager to introduce your baby to new flavors and lots of nutrients.

So I wanted to give you my best baby led weaning (BLW) broccoli recipes and ideas for how to serve broccoli to babies. You never know what they are going to love most. And remember that even if they seem unenthusiastic about it, or make faces, that doesn’t mean they don’t like it or won’t eat it again.

My best advice when feeding your baby is to try, try, and try again!

Baby Led Weaning Broccoli Recipes

The best broccoli recipes for your baby will be low in added salt and have no added sugar. I always recommend adding a fat source, like olive oil, since fat is so crucial for baby’s central nervous system development. And you want to make sure the broccoli is soft enough that baby can mash it easily with their gums. You should be able to squish it between your fingers.

Below, I have some fun flavor variations for you to try that will be easy to make and your baby will love.

Is Broccoli Good For Babies On Baby Led Weaning?

Broccoli is a nutrition powerhouse for several reasons (loaded with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, etc.), but it also is a really great way for babies to get accustomed to new textures, too.

When you start solids on baby led weaning, you generally want to offer larger pieces of finger foods that babies can grip easily as opposed to small pieces of food. A broccoli floret is actually great for babies to hold in their palmar grasp. Babies 6 months and older can start immediately with (safely prepared) broccoli. 

So yes, broccoli is great for babies on baby led weaning. Adding it to your rotation is great not only for your baby’s nutrition, but also for their progression in developing the skills they need to feed themselves! Just make sure that it is cooked soft enough that you can squish it between your fingers, or with your tongue and the roof of your mouth.

How To Cook Broccoli For Baby Led Weaning

This is an easy basic baby led weaning broccoli recipe to start with! Then, I’ll give you some different nutritious ideas of how to offer it.

Ingredients 

• 9 oz bag of fresh broccoli florets or 1 large head of broccoli, cut into florets

You can either remove the thick, stalky stems or leave them intact for baby to use as a handle.

Fresh or frozen broccoli can work for this recipe, so if you want to get a frozen bag that you can steam, that’s great too! Just follow the cooking instructions on the bag and you can offer them in the same ways that I’ll explain later in this post.

Instructions

Step 1: Fill a large sauce pan/stock pot with 2 inches of water and heat over high heat until bubbles begin to form a low boil.

Step 2: add broccoli to a steaming basket, place over top of the boiling water (ensure that no broccoli is touching the water- there should be space to create steam), and place the lid on top.

Step 3: Steam broccoli with the lid on for 5-6 minutes until it is bright green in color and fork tender. For baby led weaning, you’ll want to steam these a minute or two past what you might for an adult, to ensure that the crunch is gone and they are squishable between two fingers.

What To Serve With Broccoli For Baby Led Weaning

So once you have your steamed broccoli, I recommend serving large stalks for younger eaters. If your child has started developing the pincer grasp, then you can also move to bite sized pieces (as long as they’re still soft and mashable).

Here are some of my favorite ways to serve the broccoli once cooked:

• toss 1 stalk with 1/2 tsp of olive oil and squeeze of fresh lemon juice
• toss 1 stalk with 1/2 tsp of olive oil and a sprinkle of garlic powder

(Or, combine the two for a lemon garlic flavor!)

• toss with 1 tsp unsalted butter
• sprinkle with some shredded mozzarella (a good low sodium cheese for BLW)
• mash cooked broccoli with 1/4 avocado to make a chunky puree

• mash 1 tbsp cooked broccoli with 2 tbsp ricotta cheese (another good low sodium cheese options for BLW)

• finely chop cooked broccoli and use “sprinkles” as add-ins for an omelette, served in strips
• finely chop cooked broccoli and use “sprinkles” with pasta and olive oil

• serve steamed broccoli florets with low a sodium tomato sauce

• made into these delicious broccoli tots (use a low sodium cheese like mozzarella)

• for older babies, toddlers, and adults, I also love this instant pot cheesy broccoli rice recipe. It may not be ideal for a brand new eater, but it’s a staple in my house now! 

Broccoli or bust

Broccoli is one of my favorite vegetables to introduce to kids early on. It doesn’t have to be plain and boring, either! Yes, we like to keep an eye on sodium intake for babies (especially under 1 year old), but that doesn’t mean we can’t use other flavors and ingredients to make it delicious. I hope this post gives you some ideas for ways you can introduce broccoli to your little one in a way that’s simple, nutritious, and delicious!