You are growing cauliflower and suspect it to be white. But when the cauliflower is ready to be picked, you see with a shock that it turned purple. A deep purple. Something you have never seen before.
Now, you might be wondering why is your cauliflower purple. Is this something that you can fix or can you still eat your cauliflower, even if it is purple instead of white? This is some interesting information about your purple cauliflower. Information that you never know existed.
Why Does Cauliflower Turn Purple?
No, it has nothing to do with the type of cauliflower that you have planted. All cauliflower seeds are for white cauliflowers. It has to do with the growing process.
Cauliflower is a cool vegetable. Meaning that it wants to grow in a cool area with cool temperatures. The hotter your weather is, the more purple your cauliflower might turn out. There are even reports that some cauliflower is grown with blue and red pigments. It has all to do with the weather and the amount of sun that the cauliflower is getting. If you have purple cauliflower, it doesn’t mean that you have done something wrong.
Is It Safe to Eat Purple Cauliflower?
Now that you have purple cauliflower, is it safe to eat it? Or, should you rather throw the cauliflower away?
One thing that you need to know is that just because the cauliflower is purple, it doesn’t mean that it isn’t edible. It is just as edible as the white cauliflower. It is just purple in color. You can cook it as normal, but the purple might turn greyish when you are cooking the purple cauliflower. But, the taste of cauliflower will remain the same.
Different Ways to Prevent Cauliflower From Going Purple
The good news is that there are ways to prevent your cauliflower from going purple. This is especially important to know if you don’t like purple cauliflower.
It might be a good idea to plant your cauliflower in the cooler months. And not to wait until the summer before planting this vegetable. Or, you can make sure that you are planting it in an area where the plants are only going to get shade. And, keeping the soil cool and moist all the time also helps with preventing purple cauliflower.
The other thing that you can do, to ensure that your cauliflower stays white is to blanching your cauliflower as it’s growing. You can do this by covering the cauliflower head by covering the leaves of the plant over the actual cauliflower. This will prevent it from getting too hot and turning purple.
Purple Cauliflower is Something That Many People Prefer
This might come as a surprise, but many people prefer the purple cauliflower over the white ones. There are claims that children will eat colorful vegetables a lot easier as well. There are claims that purple cauliflower is healthier with more nutrients than white cauliflower. It is because of the ingredient that is coloring the cauliflower purple. But, this is something that is still under investigation and has not been proven yet.
So, there are people that are growing purple cauliflower on purpose. Making sure that they are enjoying their purple vegetables. Some vegetable stores are selling purple and white cauliflowers, but in general, it is a lot harder to find purple ones. And, it is more expensive as well.
How to Keep Your Purple Cauliflower Purple When Cooking
If you ever have cooked purple cauliflower before, you might have seen that your purple cauliflower has turned grey after it has been cooked. Looking not delicious at all. This is one of the reasons why people don’t like cooking with purple cauliflower.
However, there is one secret that you can use to ensure that your purple cauliflower stays purple, even after cooking. You just need to add something acidy with the cauliflower. Something like vinegar, baking soda, etc. You don’t need a large amount of acid to ensure the purple stays vibrant. A small amount will also do.
When you are following a recipe for purple cauliflower, you will always see that there is an ingredient that is known for its acid qualities. Besides the acid that you need to add, you can cook the cauliflower as normal.
Conclusion
You have grown your own cauliflower for the first time. And to your horror, your cauliflower turned out purple. This isn’t something that you should be worried about.
The cauliflower is still edible. It can make a colorful plate with purple cauliflower, instead of the white ones. But, if you don’t like purple cauliflower, there are some ways that you can prevent it from happening.
With this guide, you will get to know everything about purple cauliflower, and why it might have happened to you.
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