I can't say I've ever eaten this stuff. I personally don't like greens (like turnip greens, mustard greens, kale, etc) so I've never had the guts to try swiss chard. Heck, I can't recall even seeing it in the store for a very long time.
Is this just another green? Is it bitter like most of the others?
Swiss chard is yummy, but I normally use it in recipes, not as a side veggie by it's self. I make an African style stew with chard, onions, garlic, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, garbanzos, raisins, rice, and a whole lotta hot sauce. Yum!
LLV, once again amazingly so - we're on the same page. I've never had the stuff, wouldn't know what it looked like if it smacked me in the face and wouldn't have a clue what to do with it if I did have it.
I usually cook mine in a big pan with a couple cloves of chopped garlic and some chicken broth, then finish with a splash of balsalmic vinegar, a good amount of pepper, and salt to taste.
If they're bitter, you didn't cook them long enough.
LLV, once again amazingly so - we're on the same page. I've never had the stuff, wouldn't know what it looked like if it smacked me in the face and wouldn't have a clue what to do with it if I did have it.
Oh my gosh, I think if you love spinach, you'll also like swiss chard. If you ever steam spinach and put vinegar on it, you can do the same thing with swiss chard. I also love swiss chard in a frittata with low fat french feta.
Preparing spinach can be time consuming, because of the need to destem all those little leaves, whereas swiss chard has large leaves, so all you have to do is cut the ends off.
According to the Cornell home gardening website:
"Grown for its tasty and nutritious leaves and leafstalks (petioles), chard is a good substitute for spinach in most recipes. Prefers cool weather, but lasts through summer without going to seed (bolting)."
So if the spinach disappears from the farmer's market in mid-summer, you can buy the chard instead!
I've never tried swiss chard but then again, I don't see it very often in the grocery store. I love Kale and other greens so I imagine I'd like it as well.
I read somewhere that swiss chard gets more bitter with time. You want to eat it fresh as in within 3 days of it being picked.
I also found this somewhere...
Quote:
Chard pairs well with eggs, in a frittata or tart or quiche. I like Deborah Madison's saffron chard tart recipe from the Greens cookbook. Not much cheese, so the vegetable really stands out.
If it's too acrid for your taste, consider giving the stems a fresh trim of at least an inch, then soaking the whole leaves in cold water for 20 minutes to perk and sweeten them up, as you would salad greens. Remove the stems for most uses. I also like the suggestions of adding raisins to the saute, a nice complement. The flavor is more mineral and a little more acrid than spinach, though they shouldn't be outright bitter unless the weather is hot and they're not being watered.
so maybe it's a matter of getting it some water to sweeten it up.
I've cooked it. It's not as tough as kale and I see that as a negative for my purposes which is to put it in a soup. I think chard is best steamed for a little while and then served with butter salt and pepper. I've tried it in soups and stews but it's a little too wilted for me.
I love swiss chard. My SO won't eat spinach so I use it in any recipe that calls for spinach, including casseroles, egg dishes, soups, and stews. I also like it sauted with a little olive oil, onions, garlic, sea salt, pepper, and vinegar. I think it is more flavorful than both spinach and kale, and doesn't need to be cooked as long as kale and other greens. I've kept chard in the fridge for at least two weeks and not had any problem with bitterness.
This Week's Healthiest Food - Swiss Chard
