Cauliflower and broccoli are cruciferous vegetables and both have numerous health benefits. According to the World's Healthiest Foods, a website maintained by the George Mateljan Foundation, cauliflower is best when sauteed, because this provides the greatest flavor and allows for nutrient retention. Broccoli should be steamed to maintain the nutrients and health benefits.
Nutritional values are based on a 1-cup serving of both cauliflower and broccoli.
Calories
Broccoli contains more calories, with 43.68 per serving while cauliflower contains only 28.52 calories. The majority of the calories in both broccoli and cauliflower come from fat, with 4.91 calories from fat in broccoli and 5.02 in cauliflower. Based on a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet, these measurements represent less than 2.50 percent of the recommended daily value, or DV, for calories.
Carbohydrates
Broccoli is higher in carbohydrates than cauliflower, with 8.19 g, or 2.73 percent DV. Cauliflower contains 5.10 g, or 1.70 percent DV. Both vegetables are a good source of dietary fiber with broccoli containing 4.68 g, or 18.72 percent DV and cauliflower containing 3.35 g, or 13.4 percent DV. Broccoli has a little higher amount of sugar, with 3.12 g, whereas cauliflower contains only 1.64 g.
Fats and Proteins
Total fat is low for both vegetables, with only 0.56 g in cauliflower and 0.55 g in broccoli. The majority of the fat is from healthy polyunsaturated fats and only a trace is from saturated fat. You'll also gain heart-healthy fatty acids of 0.21 g in cauliflower and 0.20 g in broccoli of omega-3 fatty acids. Broccoli contains more protein than cauliflower, with 4.66 g, or 9.32 percent DV, while cauliflower contains only 2.28 g of protein, or 4.56 percent DV.
Vitamins
Broccoli has more vitamin content than cauliflower. Broccoli is an excellent source of vitamin C, with 123.40 mg, or 205.67 percent DV; vitamin K, with 155.20 mcg, or 194 percent DV; and vitamin A, with 2.280.72 IU, or 45.61 percent DV. Other vitamins in broccoli include folate, with 93.91 mcg, or 23.48 percent DV; vitamin B6, with 0.22 mg, or 11 percent DV; and riboflavin, with 0.18 mg, or 10.59 percent DV. Cauliflower is a good source of vitamin C, with 54.93 mg, or 91.55 percent DV; and folate, with 54.56 mcg, or 13.64 percent DV; vitamin K, with 11.17 mcg, or 13.96 percent DV; and vitamin B6 with 0.21 mg, or 10.50 percent DV.
Minerals
Broccoli is also a richer source of minerals, with 0.34 mg of manganese, or 17 percent DV; 505.44 mg of potassium, or 14.44 percent DV; and 102.80 mg of phosphorus, or 10.28 percent DV. Other minerals include magnesium, iron and calcium with between 7 and 10 percent DV each. Cauliflower contains 0.17 mg of manganese, or 8.5 percent DV. The remaining minerals found in cauliflower have less than a 6 percent recommended daily value.
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