When can babies eat broccolini?

From around 6 months, once your baby is ready for solids, served in a safe shape and texture for their age.

Broccolini

Long, slim stalks with little florets on top. Cook it soft and let them grab hold.

Checked against official guidance on October 18, 2026 · How we review

Quick answer

Babies can eat broccolini from around 6 months, once they show signs of being ready for solids. Prepare it as shown below.

From 6 monthsMedium choking risk as servedNot a common allergen

How to serve broccolini by age

6 months+

Soft-cooked spears with stalk handle

Trim off the woody bottom of each stalk, then steam the spears until very soft, stalk included. Cut them to about finger length, keeping the floret on top and the stalk as a handle.

Size: A spear with its floret and a length of stalk, about the length of an adult finger or longer (7–10 cm, 3–4 in) in total, so your baby can grip the stalk.
Check before serving: Squash the floret and the stalk between your thumb and finger. Both should flatten easily. If the stalk feels firm or stringy, cook it longer or trim more off the bottom.

US and UK advice differ here. The AAP suggests mashed food or soft pieces no larger than ½ inch; the NHS suggests soft finger-sized pieces your baby can hold in their fist. Both agree the food must squash easily.

Always have your child sit upright in a high chair or at the table, and stay with them the whole time they eat. Keep to the size and texture for their stage. Every baby develops on their own timeline.

How to prepare broccolini

1
Rinse the broccolini under running water.
2
Trim the woody bottom of each stalk. Leave spears whole with a long stalk (6 months), or cut into small pieces (9 months+).
3
Steam for about 5 to 8 minutes, until a knife slides through the stalk with no resistance.
4
Do the squash test on the stalk and the floret, then let it cool before serving. Don't add salt to the cooking water.

How much to offer

Start with one or two spears. Your baby decides how much to eat: stop when they turn away or close their mouth. Lots of licking, squashing and dropping is normal at first.

Common mistakes

Cooking it crisp-tender

The texture adults like is too firm for babies. The stalk and the floret should both squash between your fingers.

Leaving the woody ends on

The bottom of the stalk can stay tough and stringy even after cooking. Trim it off, and check the rest with the squash test.

Salting the cooking water

Babies shouldn't have added salt, including in cooking water.

Stopping after a few refusals

Bitter vegetables often take 10 or more tries. Offering them from the start may help prevent fussy eating later.

Where US and UK guidance differ on broccolini

United States(AAP and CDC)Your setting

Keep serving broccolini cooked soft. The CDC lists hard raw vegetables as a choking hazard for young children, and the AAP advises holding back raw vegetables until about 4 years, depending on the child.

United Kingdom(NHS)Your setting

Cook broccolini until soft in the first year. From 12 months, the NHS snack list includes cooked or raw vegetables such as broccoli florets. It doesn't name broccolini, so if you offer it raw, use the florets, chop them finely, and stay with your child.

We cover US and UK guidance in detail. Elsewhere, check your national health service's advice too.

Questions parents ask

Can broccolini be a choking hazard for babies?

Raw broccolini is firm and a choking hazard for babies: the CDC lists pieces of hard raw vegetables as a choking hazard for young children. In the first year, cook it until the stalk and the floret squash easily between your fingers, and trim off woody ends. For toddlers, US and UK advice differs on raw vegetables: see the guidance note below. Stay with your child during meals.

Can babies be allergic to broccolini?

Broccolini is not a common allergen.

Is broccolini healthy for babies?

FoodData Central has no separate entry for broccolini in its standard records. Its nearest is cooked broccoli raab, which FoodData Central groups with broccolini, and that survey entry is cooked with a little oil and salt, so we don't give exact figures from it. It lists vitamin C, calcium and vitamin K. Babies 7–12 months need 50 mg of vitamin C a day, and vitamin C helps the body absorb the iron in plant foods, such as beans, lentils and iron-fortified cereal.

Can babies eat broccolini stalks?

Yes, once they're cooked until soft. Trim off the woody bottom first, and check the stalk with the squash test as well as the floret. At 6 months the stalk makes a good handle.

How is broccolini different from broccoli?

It has longer, thinner stalks and smaller florets, and the stalks usually don't need peeling. Cook and check it the same way as broccoli: soft enough to squash between your fingers.

Can babies eat roasted broccolini?

Yes, if it's soft all the way through. Thin stalks and floret tips can roast crisp and hard, so trim off any crisp or charred bits for babies and young toddlers.

Can broccolini give my baby gas?

It might. The NIH lists cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, among foods that can lead to gas in some people. Start with a small amount.

If your baby refuses broccolini

Bitter vegetables often take 10 or more tries. Keep offering a little, alongside foods your baby already likes.
Try it chopped into pasta, egg or rice instead of as a whole spear.
Eat some yourself at the same meal. Babies copy what they see.
Funny faces don't mean they dislike it. They're getting used to a new taste and texture.

Never force or pressure your baby to eat. Some days they'll eat more, some days less, and that's normal.

Buying and storing broccolini

Keep raw broccolini in the fridge.
Cooked broccolini keeps for 3 to 4 days in a covered container in the fridge. Rice dishes are the exception: cool them within 1 hour, keep them in the fridge for no more than 1 day, and reheat them only once.
Cooked broccolini can be frozen and used within 3 months. Thaw it in the fridge, use it within 24 hours of thawing, and reheat it only once, to 165°F (74°C), until steaming hot, then let it cool before serving.
Throw away any food left out at room temperature for more than 2 hours (1 hour if it's hotter than 90°F / 32°C).

When to talk to your doctor

Contact your pediatrician, GP or health visitor if:

You notice mild signs of an allergic reaction after eating, such as a few hives or a little vomiting. See signs of a reaction.
You're worried about how much your baby eats, their growth, or they refuse most solid food for weeks.

Call 911999your local emergency number (such as 112 in Europe or 000 in Australia) now if your baby has trouble breathing, wheezing, can't cough or cry, has lips, mouth, tongue or throat that suddenly swell, or becomes pale, bluish, floppy or unresponsive. Also call if hives come with repeated vomiting.

Offered broccolini?

Add it to your first 100 foods.

Helpful guides

Sources

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