Diving into endives

I can't believe I haven't written about these critters. They are really one of my favorite vegetables.

You have probably seen them, either in their whole form, where they look like little white rockets with green tips, or s liced up, in fancy salads. Endives are, in may ways, the result of the application of science to plants, and the process that is used to grow them, has actually given endive it's name, in Belgium, which is "witloof." It is "the Witloof method" that results in these guys.

Endives grow out of a root. If you leave the root to grow outside, in the wild, you get a bitter green that we call chicory. That confuses things, because endives, radicchio, and a few other vegetables, are known as "chicories." They come into their own in the winter, and there is no question that they are bitter. Endive is, in my opinion, less bitter than radicchio, but it has traces of that bitterness about it. Cooking eliminates it. Some people simply cannot handle the raw bitter taste of the radicchio family members, but endive is often eaten raw, in salads with richer flavors, like bleu cheese, toasted nuts, and so forth. I like it just plain, in a mild vinaigrette.

If you are going to use endive in a salad, and you should, prepare it as close to your meal as possible. The leaves, once cut, will immediately start browning. I get over the problem by covering the cut leaves with another green, and that seems to slow the process. An acid coating doesn't seem to do it for me.

But today, I'm going to write about COOKING endive. It's something we don't think about a lot: if a vegetable is associated with salads, you're not supposed to cook it, are you?
Well, who wrote that rule? Lettuce soup is terrific, as is watercress soup. Grilled radicchio? Yes, please. Endive, braised in butter, is superb. But last night, I tried it another way.

I had a large piece of fresh codfish. Both Guy and I love cod, but this tastes like a white fish: it's firm, it's mild, and it needs help. I was about to make an endive salad and thought "Hmmmm. Why not? Here's what followed.

I had made up my mind to cook the cod "papillote style," that is, wrapped in foil and baked at a high temperature, with other goodies in the foil packet. Those goodies, last night, were butter, salt, pepper, a bit of left over sauvignon blanc, and two finely sliced endives. I wrapped the whole thing in a big p iece of foil, and baked it, at 400, for twenty minutes.

I always love the smell of the vapors when I open a papillote package, and it was no exception last night. The 20 minutes of cooking had softened the endive, and the cut up slices had cooked down almost to a sauerkraut like texture. Baking brings out endive's sweetness. With the butter, it was a wonderful, vegetably sauce that served the fish wonderfully. I cannot tell you what a success this was.

Very easy, very tasty, and ultimately, rather healthy for you. Papillote style fish is a great way for busy people to prepare a fish dinner that takes little time and leaves little mess. The big issue is: what else goes into the packet? SO, now you have another idea. Try it. I think you'll be very happy.