The Bold & Beautiful Swiss Chard
Posted by Alayne Gardner-Carimi on
The Bold & Beautiful
With her flouncy leaves, her rainbow-hued stalks and colorful veins looking like they’ve been embroidered, Swiss Chard looks like the most rebellious green in the garden. She’s so pretty…but just what can you do with her? It turns out she’s deliciously charming as well as beautiful! Get to know her and you’ll realize her loveliness is more than skin deep.
Despite being revered in ancient times, chard is a little overlooked these days, which is a shame, as it’s easy to grow, extremely good for you, and beautiful to look at. And, properly prepared, absolutely delicious, especially with vomFASS artisanal oils and vinegars! Our high-quality Extra Virgin Olive Oils and nut and seed oils add richness and depth to chard while complementing its natural flavors. Aged balsamic, sherry, or fruit vinegars bring acidity, sweetness, and complexity that can brighten and balance its earthy notes.
Family Ties
We are all familiar with leafy green spinach and its magical nutritional powers. But Swiss chard (Beta vulgaris), its cousin? Not so much. Despite its name, it is actually native to Sicily, Italy. A relative of both spinach and beets, and a descendent of sea beet, it has no edible tuber. It is cleaner, greener, more complex and slightly sweeter than spinach with the beautiful bonus and choice of white or rainbow hued petioles (the celery-like stems or ribs) which can be roasted or braised and served similarly to asparagus! Young chard leaves are tender enough to eat raw, or they can be briefly steamed or blanched and used in most preparations that call for spinach.
6 Super Things about this Super Food
Chard has had a long and distinguished history. Prized for its medicinal properties as much as its culinary versatility, ancestors of this colorful vegetable supposedly grew in the fabled Hanging Gardens of Babylon and flourished in China during the 7th century BCE.
Two-Part Harmony
Sturdier than spinach, but more tender than kale and less bitter than other greens, the leaves of Swiss chard hit a harmonious spot on the menu. Chard is great paired with legumes (particularly lentils) or grains. It works wonderfully in pilafs, mixed into soups and stews, as part of a frittata, or with pasta, from short penne to lasagna and ravioli. It can be steamed, roasted, stuffed, braised and gratinéed. Want to know more? Check out the section above!
It was once grown exclusively to be eaten at Christmas in the south of France and constituted the highlight of the Christmas Eve meal. Only the petioles, with a flavor reminiscent of artichoke hearts, were eaten. They also make a beautiful quick pickle (see recipe below). You’ll need to remove the stems that travel all the way to the top of the leaf. Using your hands or a paring knife, pull the leaf away from where it meets the stem on both sides, then rinse thoroughly. For balanced tenderness when cooking you’ll want to cook the stalks separately from the leaves, as they take longer to cook.
Chard stems are delicious when braised in broth or other flavored cooking liquid for 20 to 25 minutes; the leaves can be added during the last 10 minutes of cooking time. Roasted chard stalks, drizzled with vomFASS FassZination Pistachio oil and vomFASS Forest Blossom Honey Balsamic, is a real treat. Try some this weekend!
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