Beef and broccoli: 955 mg of sodium a cup, more sulforaphane from briefly cooked broccoli

One trial fed people almost exactly this plate. In 12 volunteers, adding beef to a meal with 5.3 oz (150 g) of broccoli did not significantly change how much sulforaphane their bodies formed from the broccoli, a small single-meal study read through a urine biomarker. Cooking time did make a difference. In the same trial, broccoli microwaved for 2 minutes gave about 3 times the sulforaphane of broccoli microwaved for 5.5 minutes. In 18 volunteers, soup from lightly cooked fresh florets gave about ten times more than soup from commercial frozen ones, because blanching before freezing destroyed the enzyme myrosinase. None of these trials stir-fried. In US survey data a 217 g cup of the dish carries about 347 calories, 23 g of protein and 955 mg of sodium, figures from one generic recipe, with the sodium mostly from a soy-based sauce.

As people eat it, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

How much is actually in it

• A cup of beef and broccoli carries about 955 mg of sodium and 87 mg of vitamin C in US survey data. — US household measures, FNDDS Evidence E source
  Sodium 440 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g) (955 mg per 217 g cup); vitamin C 40 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g) (87 mg per cup)

What a real portion looks like

• A cup of beef and broccoli (217 g) in US survey data carries about 347 calories and 23 g of protein. — US household measures, FNDDS Evidence E source
  1 cup 217 g: 347 calories, 22.6 g protein; unspecified serving 5.7 oz (163 g): 261 calories, 17.0 g protein

What your body absorbs

• In the same 12-person meal trial, adding beef to the meal did not change how much sulforaphane people formed from broccoli, though it raised absorption of ready-made mustard isothiocyanate about 1.3-fold. — 12 volunteers, meals with or without beef plus 150 g broccoli and 3 g mustard (n = 12) Evidence B source
  No significant meal-matrix effect on sulforaphane excretion; allyl isothiocyanate absorption about 1.3-fold higher with the meat meal

What cooking and storage change

• In a meal trial in 12 volunteers, broccoli microwaved for 2 minutes yielded about 3 times more sulforaphane in the body than broccoli microwaved for 5.5 minutes. — 12 volunteers, 150 g broccoli per meal, urine collected for 24 h (n = 12) Evidence B source
  Estimated in vivo sulforaphane yield about 3-fold higher for lightly cooked (2.0 min) vs fully cooked (5.5 min) broccoli
• In a crossover trial in 18 healthy volunteers, soup from lightly cooked fresh broccoli gave about tenfold more sulforaphane than soup from commercial frozen broccoli. — 18 healthy volunteers, soups from lightly cooked fresh or frozen broccoli florets (n = 18) Evidence B source
  Sulforaphane bioavailability about 10-fold higher with fresh vs frozen broccoli
• In a crossover trial in 12 men eating 7.1 oz (200 g) of broccoli, 32% of isothiocyanates from fresh broccoli reached the urine versus 10% from steamed broccoli. — 12 male subjects, 200 g fresh or steamed broccoli, 24 h collection (n = 12) Evidence B source
  Urinary isothiocyanate excretion 32.3 ± 12.7% vs 10.2 ± 5.9% of intake (fresh vs steamed), about 3-fold
• By the USDA retention table for vegetables stir-fried, about 85% of vitamin C and 80% of folate remain, while minerals keep 100%. — USDA retention factors for Vegetables and Vegetable Products, stir fry Evidence E source
  Vitamin C 85%, folate 80%, thiamin 90%, B6 95%, potassium, iron, calcium 100% retained

What it does to your health

• In a crossover trial in 27 young smokers, 8.8 oz (250 g) of steamed broccoli a day for 10 days cut oxidized DNA lesions by 41%, with more protection in GSTM1-null carriers. — 27 young healthy smokers, 250 g steamed broccoli daily for 10 days vs control diet (n = 27) Evidence B source
  Oxidized DNA lesions -41% (95% CI 10% to 72%); resistance to H2O2 strand breaks +23% (95% CI 13% to 34%)

Safety, limits and interactions

• Observational outbreak data link a catered buffet with fried rice and chicken stir-fry to staphylococcal food poisoning in 22 people, most likely from a food handler and temperature abuse. — participants of an elite sporting event, Australia, June 2012 (n = 22 ill) Evidence C source
  22 ill; 20 of 22 ate chicken stir-fry, all ate fried rice
• USDA FSIS advises keeping cooked hot food at 140 F or warmer and refrigerating leftovers within 2 hours of cooking. — General population (home food handling) (n = -) Evidence E source
  Hold hot at 140 F or above, refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours

Who this works differently for

• NIH names broccoli among the most common US sources of vitamin K and advises people on warfarin to keep their vitamin K intake consistent, since sudden changes can raise or lower the drug's effect. — people taking warfarin and similar vitamin K antagonist anticoagulants Evidence E source
  Sudden changes in vitamin K intake can raise or lower the anticoagulant effect

The bottom line

Steaming cut the yield too. In 12 men eating 7.1 oz (200 g) of broccoli once, 32 percent of the isothiocyanates from fresh broccoli reached the urine against 10 percent from steamed. Takeout kitchens often use frozen florets, which nobody measured in these trials. For vitamins, the USDA group factor for stir-fried vegetables keeps about 85 percent of vitamin C, 80 percent of folate and all of the minerals, a 1975 estimate for vegetables in general rather than broccoli. A cup of the dish lists 87 mg of vitamin C. The health data concern broccoli alone. In a crossover trial of 27 young smokers, 8.8 oz (250 g) of steamed broccoli a day for 10 days cut oxidized DNA lesions by 41 percent (95% CI 10 to 72), with more protection in people lacking the GSTM1 gene. That is a lab marker in smokers, and nobody tested the dish. Sodium is the plain caution. One cup gives 955 mg, and restaurant versions vary with no second source to check them against. If you are limiting salt, the sauce is where it sits. Food left standing is the other. After a catered buffet in Australia, 22 people fell ill with likely staphylococcal poisoning. All had eaten fried rice meant for lunch service earlier that day and 20 had eaten chicken stir-fry, and the investigators suspected a food handler and food kept at the wrong temperature, though no food was tested and the dish was chicken. We have no card that gives a safe time or temperature for keeping or reheating takeout, so this page cannot set one, and reheating should not be read as a fix. We found no card on this dish in pregnancy, in children or with medicines, including blood thinners.

Sources

1. bbrc-r8-09 · reference dataset
   FNDDS 2706738 Beef and broccoli (code 27415110): Sodium, Na 440 mg per 100 g · Vitamin C, total ascorbic acid 40 mg per 100 g · 1 cup 217 g
   USDA FNDDS 2021-2023, food code 27415110 · checked 2026-09-30
2. bbrc-r8-08 · reference dataset
   FNDDS 2706738 Beef and broccoli (code 27415110): 1 cup 217 g · Quantity not specified 163 g · Energy 160 kcal per 100 g · Protein 10.43 g per 100 g
   USDA FNDDS 2021-2023, food code 27415110 · checked 2026-09-30
3. bbrc-r8-02 · randomized controlled trial
   Absorption of AITC from mustard was about 1.3-fold higher following consumption of the meat-containing meal compared with the non meat-containing alternative. The meal matrix did not significantly influence the hydrolysis of glucoraphanin and its excretion as SFMA from broccoli.
   Br J Nutr, 2007 · checked 2026-09-30
4. bbrc-r8-01 · randomized controlled trial
   Volunteers (n 12) were each offered a meal, with or without beef, together with 150 g lightly cooked broccoli (microwaved 2.0 min) or fully cooked broccoli (microwaved 5.5 min), or a broccoli seed extract. ... The estimated yield of sulforaphane in vivo was about 3-fold higher after consumption of lightly cooked broccoli than fully cooked broccoli.
   Br J Nutr, 2007 · checked 2026-09-30
5. bbrc-r8-03 · randomized controlled trial
   Eighteen healthy volunteers consumed broccoli soups produced from fresh or frozen broccoli florets that had been lightly cooked and sulforaphane thio-conjugates quantified in plasma and urine. Sulforaphane bioavailability was about tenfold higher for the soups made from fresh compared to frozen broccoli, and the reduction was shown to be due to destruction of myrosinase activity by the commercial blanching-freezing process.
   Mol Nutr Food Res, 2012 · checked 2026-09-30
6. bbrc-r8-04 · randomized controlled trial
   the metabolic fate of glucosinolates after ingestion of steamed and fresh broccoli was compared in 12 male subjects in a crossover design. ... The subjects then consumed 200 g of fresh or steamed broccoli; all other dietary sources of ITCs were excluded. ... The average 24-hour urinary excretion of ITC equivalents amounted to 32.3 +/- 12.7% and 10.2 +/- 5.9% of the amounts ingested for fresh and steamed broccoli, respectively.
   Nutr Cancer, 2000 · checked 2026-09-30
7. bbrc-r8-07 · USDA Table of Nutrient Retention Factors, dataset
   USDA-RETN-R6:3785 VEG,OTHER,STIR FRY, group Vegetables and Vegetable Products: folate_total_ug 80% retained, vitamin_c_mg 85%, thiamin_mg 90%, vitamin_b6_mg 95%, potassium_mg 100%, iron_mg 100%, calcium_mg 100%
   USDA Table of Nutrient Retention Factors, Release 6, 2007, Retn_Code 3785 · checked 2026-09-30
8. bbrc-r8-05 · randomized controlled trial
   Twenty-seven young healthy smokers consumed a portion of steamed broccoli (250 g/day) or a control diet for 10 days each within a crossover design with a washout period. ... After broccoli consumption, the level of oxidised DNA lesions decreased by 41% (95% confidence interval: 10%, 72%) and the resistance to H(2)O(2)-induced DNA strand breaks increased by 23% (95% CI: 13%, 34%). Following broccoli intake, a higher protection was observed in subjects with glutathione S-transferase (GST) M1-null genotype.
   Mutagenesis, 2010 · checked 2026-09-30
9. bbrc-r8-06 · outbreak investigation
   22 individuals became ill after eating a commercially catered buffet dinner in June 2012. All recalled eating fried rice which had been intended for lunch service earlier that day and 20 of the 22 reported eating chicken stir-fry. ... The known epidemiology of staphylococcal food poisoning suggests a food contaminated by an infected food handler which was subject to temperature abuse may have caused the outbreak.
   Commun Dis Intell Q Rep, 2013 · checked 2026-09-30
10. sf-left-r2-1 · agency advice
    After food is safely cooked, hot food must be kept hot at 140° F or warmer to prevent bacterial growth. ... Within 2 hours of cooking food or after it is removed from an appliance keeping it warm, leftovers must be refrigerated.
    USDA FSIS, Leftovers and Food Safety · checked 2026-10-08
11. sf-vkw-1 · agency advice
    The most common sources of vitamin K in the U.S. diet are spinach; broccoli; iceberg lettuce; and fats and oils, particularly soybean and canola oil [5,7]. ...These drugs antagonize the activity of vitamin K, leading to the depletion of vitamin K-dependent clotting factors. People taking warfarin and similar anticoagulants need to maintain a consistent intake of vitamin K from food and supplements because sudden changes in vitamin K intakes can increase or decrease the anticoagulant effect [45].
    NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, Vitamin K Fact Sheet for Health Professionals · checked 2026-10-08