The Escoffier Series, Ch 13, Vegetables and Farinacious Products, continues
Cabbage and chicory are today’s offerings. I remember how we used escarole on a salmon dish and why that worked so well. Also some ways to cook cabbage that you’ll enjoy and which pair well with meats.
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The Escoffier series moves along in chapter 13.
I think I teased about using escarole, which is in the Chicory family, with a salmon dish.
Escarole is a key to Italian Wedding soup. I find it a touch bitter which is a feature since I like bitter.
The chicory family includes the salad green Frissee, much loved by chefs, as well as Belgian Endive, which isn’t a chicory, and escarole, which is a chicory. Belgian endive is a variety of radicchio and all of them are related to the dandelion.
That salmon dish had a grilled portion of salmon served on top of sauteed escarole and creamed corn. The sweet, creamy rich corn against the bitter, garlicky escarole with the fatty rich salmon was an amazing meal.
Escarole should be washed. Well. It is often pretty sandy. Then cut into somewhat large pieces, 2 inches or so, and blanched. The blanching will remove some of the bitterness but also facilitate faster sauteeing. That’s for restaurant line service. At home, I would do the same thing. The stems are quite thick and need the blanching to help soften them.
Blanched escarole leaves are wet. That’s a Duh moment. That’s important to know when you add it to a hot pan. It’s gonna spit. Butter or animal fat in the hot pan, escarole next, and then the garlic. Garlic will burn if you put it in the pan first. Adjust the seasoning and that alone is a fine side dish. You could render some bacon then add the escarole to that and continue and it might be better. Slowly cook some chicken thighs fat side down to make crispy skin and that’s a fine protein addition to that escarole.
Another reason to blanch greens, spinach, or escarole, or lettuce (we’ll get there) is to remove the water before the final cooking.
Creamed escarole is dandy. Escoffier offers a procedure with brown roux and stock and I just don’t think that’s necessary. Blanch the escarole. Remove that to a pot and add heavy cream and two cloves of garlic. Cook that until the cream becomes thick. Adjust the seasoning and serve in a small bowl. Or a big bowl.
Most of us think of Belgian Endive as a salad ingredient or a vessel for appetizers. They can be cooked. I worked with a chef who spent time in Belgium and made the most amazing casserole of Belgian endive with ham and cream and Gruyere cheese.
Instead of blanching, Escoffier writes the endives should be placed tightly in one layer in a non-reactive pan, stainless steel will do, covered with salted lemon water and a few pats of butter. Cover that with buttered parchment and then foil or the pan’s lid and cook slowly for about half an hour or until the endive are tender at the root end.
Variations to that would be cooking them in stock without the acid and keeping the butter. Covered and cooked till done. Remove the endive, reduce the liquid till thick, and drape over the endive. Add diced ham at the midpoint of cooking, or, serve them with a slice of ham. Maybe even as a side for an Easter ham.
He offers an idea about Belgian Endive Mornay. Place the cooked endives in a pan with Sauce Mornay, cover with more sauce, grated cheese, and brown in a broiler.
So, here’s how those Endive et Jambon was made. Wrap the prepared endive in a slice of ham. Lay those in a pan of Mornay sauce, cover with more sauce, and add the grated Gruyere cheese. Bake till hot, glaze in a broiler, and eat.
Turning that large pan into portions is easy enough if you have the right dishes. Sometimes Crème Brûlée is served in a small-ish dish which would be perfect for individual portions of creamed Belgian endive.
Cabbage is next. More than likely you made a face just now. I suspect most people don’t care for cabbage and most people probably have only ever had it boiled which is bland and boring.
Cabbage is excellent as sauerkraut. Cabbage can also be braised or pickled which opens up a lot of options. Of course, you know the red cabbage and the light green cabbage which looks almost exactly like white cabbage. If you happen to be Polish, you might remember granny with those giant cabbage heads to make Gołabki.
Cabbage, the Brassica family, is the largest vegetable family. It includes cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, various other cabbages such as napa and Bok Choi, kale, turnips, collard greens, kohlrabi, and more.
I eat cabbage in some form nearly every day for breakfast. Caramelized is my preferred way. That’s not an Escoffier method. It is one I borrowed from our Keto friend Jimmy Clegg who I’m pretty sure borrowed it from his wife. It’s easy enough to make. Dice some bacon. Render that. At about the halfway point of it being done, add diced cabbage. Cook low and slow until the cabbage is literally browned, stirring now and again. Adjust the seasoning and eat.
Red cabbage makes excellent braised cabbage which pairs with venison or wild boar very nicely. Escoffier offers a version of red cabbage which would also go well with those two, or any other gamey meat. Ostrich isn’t gamey and would also go well with red cabbage.
The red cabbage a la Limousine is simply julienned red cabbage, seasoned, avoid the core–more about that in a moment–cover with light stock, chicken perhaps, pork drippings, and whole raw chestnuts. He writes 20 per head of red cabbage.
So, the first challenge is raw chestnuts in the spring. Canned chestnuts would work. Just add them halfway through the cooking process.
Here’s a braised red cabbage you can make. The ratios aren’t set in stone. In fact, I’m adjusting them as I read from the 7 1/2 pounds of cabbage the recipe uses.
1/4 of a red onion, half of an apple, variety doesn’t matter, 1 piece of bacon, diced, 1 head of red cabbage, julienned, 1/2 cup of red wine, the drier the better, 1/2 c red wine vinegar, 1/4 cup of sugar or 1 tablespoon of honey, 1 ounce of red currant jelly or the jelly you have on hand, and a sachet of cinnamon stick, juniper berries, and a bay leaf.
Render the bacon, and add the sugar or honey. When that melts add the onion, apple, and cabbage. Season with salt and stir to cook down. When the cabbage has started to wilt, add the sachet of spices, the jelly, and the liquids. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until the juice is mostly reduced and the cabbage is tender. Remove the sachet.
It isn’t included here that raisins are a good addition. Dried currents may be better. I said this is good for game, and it is. It’ll also be great with sauerbraten.
Escoffier has a very short entry for the various leaves of other cabbage family items. Broccoli leaves, kohlrabi leaves and turnip leaves he identified as well as Scotch Kale. He writes, “all of these different leaves may be prepared à l’Anglaise, i.e. boiled in salted water, or cooked with butter as for Brussels sprouts. These are the only suitable methods of cooking.”
I found humor in the suggestion that Kale can only be cooked one way. I think that’s one too many.
Broccoli, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts will have to wait. Some procedures for cauliflower really do merit some time.
Before I end I said I would get back to that cabbage core. Jack Shoop, CMC, was endlessly curious about food. One day we were cutting the cores out of cabbage and he grabbed one hunk. He salted it and started nibbling small bites. Jack was very animated when he got excited and almost yelled how good that was. Salted cabbage cores was a new treat.
I don’t eat them raw and I don’t throw them away. I cut them out and then cut them very thinly so they cook with the rest of the cabbage. The point of the story is two-fold. Be curious. Eat something different. And find joy in the simplest of things.
