POLL: Do you buy/use escarole?

[Jenise]

Yes, escarole. This form of it:



Personally, I love it. Both for it's bitter-sweetness in salads, lightly sauteed for a cooked salad, or cut up in soups. But I didn't grow up with it, and I but for one exception in Northern Italy I have never been served it at a restaurant nor at a friend's home.

The first time I tasted it, I bought it out of curiosity and prepared it myself.

So I have this impression that this is a very unpopular green, and I wonder what the foodies here think of it and how you prepare it. Let's discuss!

Its one of those misc. greens that we throw into soup sometimes. Probably a 50/50 split with Kale for that purpose.

Richard

Yes, escarole. This form of it:



Personally, I love it. Both for it's bitter-sweetness in salads, lightly sauteed for a cooked salad, or cut up in soups. But I didn't grow up with it, and I but for one exception in Northern Italy I have never been served it at a restaurant nor at a friend's home.

The first time I tasted it, I bought it out of curiosity and prepared it myself.

So I have this impression that this is a very unpopular green, and I wonder what the foodies here think of it and how you prepare it. Let's discuss!

I've heard of it but never eaten it. Rachael Ray used it in a side dish with her chicken riggies. These dishes are apparently popular in Utica, NY.

Here is her take on it - http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes ... 77,00.html

Here is a another recipe for Utica Greens - http://www.recipezaar.com/207667

[Robin Garr]

I love it in soup and in Tuscan white beans. I've probably eaten it in salads but don't recall ever buying or using it for that purpose.

I like it, though, but voted "infrequently" because I don't often think about it.

We're big escarole fans. Betsy makes a spicy escarole/pepper dish I like a lot- saute garlic, dried chile, red and yellow bell peppers, salt and pepper. Then add escarole and some water. Cook, add a little more garlic, yum. She's done other sauteed/braised side dishes, plus a braised chicken with escarole.

It's pretty common in restuarants here. And we have a little branch of an Arthur Ave deli that often has prepared escarole, a good side when we're in a hurry.

Escarole and beans is something I grew up on and we still make from time to time. It's pretty yummy with some cast iron skillet polenta.

Thor made us some grilled escarole, as part of a grilled veg platter, that was phenomenal.

So I have this impression that this is a very unpopular green, and I wonder what the foodies here think of it and how you prepare it. Let's discuss!

I grew up with escarole as, I guess, most east coast Italians did. In our household we ate more escarole than spinach. My daughter who moved out with me to the west coast goes nuts looking for it in stores here.

It's great in soup or with beans or in soup with beans. Anywhere you use spinach, use escarole ... although escarole can be more fibrous.

So ... when's dinner?

Yes, use it, buy it when I find it, love it. Nothing better in a beautiful, clear, tasty freshly made chicken broth with lots of grated Parm. Or in what
we call stracchitella -same as above but the cheese and black pepper are mixed with a beated egg and swirled into the soup - sort of an Italian egg drop soup. A great fresh green in salad. Terrific in pasta e fagiole or other minestra.
I am going to try planting some this next growing season.

The first time I bought it, the thing was so huge I had to ask for a special bag to put it into. Out here, they have overhead watering over the produce and it was dripping wet. I have since learned to buy it smaller and younger when I can find young ones. I love it in salads, soups and bean dishes. It is so pretty!

The first time I tasted it, I bought it out of curiosity and prepared it myself

That is exactly what I did. Made Escarole and Beans after somebody on this forum mentioned it. I loved it. The bitter-sweetness is pretty unique I think. Unfortunately, I'm the only one around here who likes it. I'll have to try Dale's preparation sometime.

Shkadol and beans is a regular player in the friday night, meatless rotation.
I buy it all the time.

I like it in the spring with Romaine lettuce and a mixture of dandelion greens, escarole and endive. A bit of sweet from reduced balsamic -- a pretty and interesting variety of salad greens.

Back home in Wisconsin we called it Batavian endive.

It's a very pretty plant to grow -- deep green on the outside and a very pretty creamy yellow in the center. Hardy to 20F or below.

Good steamed, in soups and with beans and in chicken stew.

You can reduce the bitterness by blanching the leaves -- when the outer leaves are ten inches or so long, tie them together for two or three weeks -- be sure the center is dry or it will rot -- and center leaves become a cream color.

Howard,

Betsy said it was from NYTimes, a search yielded this (Bittman):

RCP: ESCAROLE AND BELL PEPPERS WITH OLIVE OIL
Time: 30 minutes

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 or 2 dried chilies, or 1 teaspoon dried red chili flakes, or to taste
1 red or yellow bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and cut in strips
Salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 pounds escarole, radicchio, endive or other bitter green or vegetable.


1. Put all but 1 tablespoon oil in a large, deep skillet or casserole that can be covered, and place over medium heat. Set aside 1 teaspoon garlic, and put the rest in the oil, along with chilies, bell pepper, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until pepper softens, about 5 minutes.

2. Add escarole, along with 1/2 cup water, and adjust heat so mixture simmers steadily. Cover.

3. Cook about 20 minutes, checking and stirring occasionally and adding water if mixture starts to dry out. When escarole is tender, remove lid, and raise heat if necessary to cook off excess liquid; stir in reserved garlic, and cook a minute more.

4. Taste, and adjust seasoning. Serve hot or at room temperature, drizzling with reserved olive oil just before serving.

Yield: 4 servings.

The classic braised escarole dish, which uses a series of techniques that can be applied to almost any green vegetable, relies on a hefty amount of garlic and olive oil, which are added both at the beginning and at the end of cooking, the final additions to freshen and intensify flavors. This dish can be enhanced with toasted pine nuts, raisins or currants, pitted black or green olives, or chopped tomatoes. Wine can replace the water, for a slightly more complex dish.

[Jenise]

Glad I posted this poll, because I've learned a few things. 1) he Italian-American connection, for instance, and as a result the popularity of this green on the east coast vs. the west. 2) The dish Dale describes is pretty much the recipe that Linda R. posts a link to, the one called Utica Greens (Howard, take note! I've got to try that dish soon, too) that seems to have inspired Rachel Ray's recipe (also posted by Linda). 3) "Riggies". That's a new one! 4) The method described in several recipes of wilting the escarole in water or broth. I have always sauteed it or served it fresh and would have been against just dumping this or any green leaf in a pot of water.

Karen, I know what you mean about the smaller size--when I stayed in Holland years ago, I used a lot of escarole because they grew smaller, sweeter heads (possibly a different variety, but very likely just picked earlier since they don't share our country's fascination with size). Since then, I tend to only buy escarole when I see smaller heads 8" or less), and I have found it usually tastes sweeter when they come in a bundled shape. As Bob describes, sometimes the escarole I find is flat, wasn't gathered into a head while growing.

I'm surprised how few of you mention using it raw for salad. For our dinner last night, I made a salad of exclusively escarole. I built a dressing in the bottom of a bowl from the juice of one lime, some canola oil and salt. In went the chopped escarole, then half a large green onion, finely sliced into rings, and a goodly handful of sliced almonds lightly toasted and warm straight from a dry iron skillet. The almonds imparted so much nuttiness that Bob was convinced I'd used a nut oil, and the citrus provided a fruity note that plays up the green's natural sweetness in a way that vinegar would not. A good balsamic would, but I would not enjoy the discoloration, and I haven't tried it but my gut says that olive oil would play up the lettuce's bitter quality so I have avoided EVOO for salad purposes (cooked is another matter). It was a great salad, and a perfect starter for the cabbage rolls in spicy chipotle broth (inspired by Robin's recent post). A lucky wine choice for both the salad and the cabbage rolls was a 2005 MSR Riesling from Wegeler.

Thanks Dale (and Betsy). This looks like a great side dish or even a main event for a light supper.

Thanks again.

Its one of those misc. greens that we throw into soup sometimes. Probably a 50/50 split with Kale for that purpose.

Richard

I like a mixture of escarole, endive, Swiss chard, kale and/or spinach in beans & greens soup.

Right now the farmer's market is overflowing with escarole and radicchio, so both are finding their way onto my plate, several times a week.

Can't say that I put them in soups often, usually just sauteed with garlic and lemon. But, tonight will do a pasta dish with escarole and carrots.

Sometimes I add it to brothy soups. I also braise it slowly on the stove top with garlic and EVOO to which I add some concentrated chicken stock and cook it down to a glaze.

I'm the kind of freak that will eat it straight out of the bag. But I like it in salads, soups, and pasta dishes, too.

rwj

[Jenise]

I'm the kind of freak that will eat it straight out of the bag.

BAG?

[Robin Garr]

BAG?

I'm the kind of freak that will eat it straight out of the bag.

BAG?

Texas.

I'm surprised at myself for never buying it, we cook Italian a lot but I didn't grow up Italian so we don't have the tradition. And the Italian vegetable soup I love to cook calls for Swiss Chard, spinach, and cabbage. I buy a canned version of Italian Wedding Soup that contains escarole, so I eat it. Just never cooked with it.

I think I learned from "The Sopranos" that "Shcarole" can refer to money, because of the color I suppose...

F

[Jenise]

Escarole and beans is something I grew up on and we still make from time to time. It's pretty yummy with some cast iron skillet polenta.

Thor made us some grilled escarole, as part of a grilled veg platter, that was phenomenal.

Thanks for the idea--I grilled some last night to serve as a first course under tarragon marinated shrimp. It was terrific.