It's more expensive than lettuce since it is considered a specialty item. This vegetable requires little preparation before using, often only needing a quick rinse. The wider, darker outer leaves tend to be a bit chewy and bitter, making them ideal for cooking.
For a salad, the inner, lighter-colored leaves are a good choice. Tear them into pieces and toss with other ingredients and vinaigrette. Raw escarole pairs well with fruit in salads as well as cheese, including strongly flavored varieties such as blue cheese and goat cheese. Whether cooked or raw, escarole pairs well with strong salty and sweet flavors which balance its bitterness nicely. Escarole has a fresh, vegetal taste with light bitterness. It's less bitter than other chicories , with the level of bitterness varying throughout the head.
The inner, lighter-colored leaves are sweeter than the outer, darker green leaves. The flavor is brighter and more pronounced when raw, and more mellow when cooked. Escarole can be used in a variety of ways, both raw and cooked. One popular use for the leafy green is wilted in Italian wedding soup. It's frequently paired with white beans, whether in soup form or as a side dish with bacon or ham.
The versatile veggie can easily be used in recipes that call for radicchio. The result will be a slightly sweeter and less bitter dish. Escarole can be found at well-stocked grocery stores and specialty markets priced by the pound or by the head. Look for the vegetable, which can range from the size of a grapefruit to a large head of lettuce, with the refrigerated leafy greens.
For the freshest escarole or when buying locally, look for it in the cold weather months. Endives and escarole come from the same family of leafy greens — and are often mistaken for each other. These slightly bitter-flavored veggies are popular winter or spring salads, or a lovely addition to soups.
Endive is marked by finely cut, narrow, curly leaves, whereas escarole features smooth, broad, rounded leaves. The branch-like leaves for endives are quite frizzy, while escarole leaves resemble that of curly-leaf lettuce.
A must-mention here is that escarole is usually less bitter than endive. The leaves for this variety sport a light-green hue in the center which gradually turns into a darker green for the outer leaves. The inner leaves are taste mild, while the outside leaves are more bitter.
Endives usually come with a bit of a prickly texture, which turns slightly more tough as the weather warms. Some curly endive features a blanched creamy yellow tone, marked by flattened leaves due to blanching with a shingle or board.
Escarole is more commonly called as batavia, Batavian endive, or broad-leafed endive — and it forms a flattened head. The leaves are more creamy yellow towards the center, but turn to light to dark green on the slightly ruffled ends. As compared to curly endives, escarole is somewhat tender and milder when it comes to the taste. The latter comes with a fresh, vegetal taste that makes it different from curly endives and many other chicories.
The degrees of bitterness may vary throughout the head of the leaves for both, but escarole experiences a milder increase. The bitter tastes for both the greens can be nicely paired with strong salty and sweet flavors. Endive as well as escarole can be savored raw or cooked, but most people prefer going for escarole more when it comes to grilling, saute, or braising.
Endive is a versatile leafy green that works best when integrated into salads, appetizers or even the main dishes.
Or optional, in the case of some recipes. The meatball makeup is flexible. The beans are flexible. The broth is flexible. But the greens? No, not flexible. It has to be escarole. Because, wedding soup or otherwise, escarole is the best green for soups. Hands down. Full stop. End of story. Wait, what is escarole though?
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