Broccoli rabe

Any advice on how to cook it? We tried it once - it was sweet
and tasty raw, but when we sauteed it tender in olive oil and
a slug of balsamic vinegar, it turned horribly bitter - what
happened? How do we avoid that another time? Thanks -

Charity

On 7/31/03 2:51 PM, in article bgbogb$ni2$[Only registered users can see links. ].com, "Charity
Stafford" <[Only registered users can see links. ]> wrote:


Steam it first!
Cheryl

"Cheryl Isaak" <[Only registered users can see links. ]> wrote in message
news:[Only registered users can see links. ]...

And don't forget the Garlic.

John Polcari
--
"Goaltender is a normal job. Sure. How would you like it if at your job,
every time you made the slightest mistake a little red light went on over
your head and 18,000 people stood up and screamed at you?" - Jaques Plante,
goalie

Charity Stafford <[Only registered users can see links. ]> writes:


I never liked broccoli rabe until I saw Lidia Bastianich prepare it as
a guest on one of the episodes of Julia Child's final TV series. Lidia
was making bow tie pasta with broccoli rabe and sausage. I was amazed
to see her take a paring knife to the end of each brocc0li rabe stalk
and peal upwards taking off most of the leaves along with the skin
with each stroke. The result was a pealed stalk with only the buds and
the tenderest leaves at the top remaining. She then cut the stalks
into short lengths and parboiled them, chilling them in ice water
aftwards to stop the cooking. The end result is tender with a touch of
bitterness that I find pleasing.

To make the pasta sauce, Lidia broke up and sauteed a pound of mild
Italian sausage until it was crisp, added a cup of white wine to the
sausage and stirred to deglaze the pan, then added two sticks of
butter to the pan (without the slightest apology, bless her soul) and
reduced the sauce until it thickened slightly. She then tossed a pound
of cooked bow tie pasta with the sauce. This recipe (minus one stick
of butter) has become a favorite of my family; I make it several times
a year.

I now also frequently serve broccoli rabe as a side dish. I prepare it as I
learned from Lidia. I thoroughly drain the parboiled rabe and then
sautee it in olive oil with garlic, salt, pepper, and one or two small
dried chiles, either whole or seeded and chopped. Another secret
I've learned about sauteeing rabe and other greens is to reduce the
hell out of any liquid in the pan so that what remains is very
syrupy and concentrated. To avoid overcooking the greens while reducing
the liquid, after initially tossing the greens in the heated oil, I push
them to the edge of the pan leaving only the liquid in the center.

- Paul

"John Polcari" <[Only registered users can see links. ]> writes:




Trust me - we didn't forget the garlic! But it was still
horribly bitter. What does steaming do to change this?
I'm curious. Thanks -

Charity

On 8/5/03 8:42 AM, in article bgo8nr$ovp$[Only registered users can see links. ].com, "Charity Stafford"
<[Only registered users can see links. ]> wrote:


I also always steam cruciform veggies, then add them to what ever - just the
way I learned from my grandmother. Must be some good chemistry behind this!
Cheryl