Dive into salads
Spring is officially here. And, while I do enjoy winter and I love hearty winter soups and casseroles, I’m really looking forward to some lighter meals now that salad season is right around the corner.
If you also want to enjoy a tasty salad or two during spring and summer, it’s now time to plant some leafy vegetables.
I like to stagger my planting of different varieties from now right through summer to ensure I always have some fresh greens to graze on.
Endive is always in my first lineup of salad plantings because it’s so tasty and versatile. But also because it’s super quick and easy to grow.
Endive is a curly leafed lettuce with slightly bitter leaves. Not to be confused with Belgian endive, which has white broader thicker leaves (also called whitloof). And also frisee, a similar milder variety with fine lacy leaves.
Unlike other lettuces, endive doesn’t grow with a heart, which means you can pick as it grows. The leaves in the centre of endive are sweeter and more delicate than the outer leaves, which have a slightly bitter taste.
And now how to plant. First grab some endive seedlings from your local Mitre 10, Bunnings, The Warehouse or shop online at www.awapuni.co.nz and have them delivered direct to your door. We guarantee delivery. If you’re not completely satisfied with your order it will be replaced.
Plant your seedlings in a welldrained spot 5cm apart from each other. I’ve just planted some in pots to have close to the kitchen as my soil was still a bit wet from winter.
Now all there is to do is watch out for snails and slugs, and keep it watered. If you let your endive dry out it will taste bitter and also go to seed faster.
On a side note, when endive goes to seed it grows a fabulous purple flower. If you don’t need the space straight away in your garden let it go to seed and enjoy this.
In four to six weeks you’ll be cutting leaves for your salads. Harvest the leaves from
several plants at once. That way you encourage new growth from your plants.
Got children? This is a great job for them to be in charge of. Let them go out at dinner time and select which leaves they want for the salad.
And now for some serious salad talk.
I use an old salad hack with endive. First I roughly chop the inner leaves and then finely slice the outer leaves. This gives the illusion your salad has two types of leaves in it. At the same time it adds great texture to your salad.
Endive is heartier than other lettuce greens, which makes it delicious to use as a bed of greens to place your grilled chicken or fish on top of.
I find it works well with creamy dressings, eggs and toasted nuts. I sometimes like to use it as an alternative for cos in my homemade caesar salads. It’s also very popular as a base for a classic French bistro salad that has bacon and egg on it. If you’re already feeling ‘saladed out’ before you begin, you might be pleased to know it also tastes great in a cheese toasted sandwich. Add ham, cheese and endive
then toast. Voila!