Grow Your Own Magazine

Yesterday I bought some tiny swiss chard plants - the garden centre didn't have any spinach and I wanted something to grow in the winter.

Here's the thing - I've heard of swiss chard, never cooked it, never eaten it, never seen it selling at the supermarket - never seen it at all, except for these little tiny plants.

Any help for growing and cooking would be great, also help with knowing when and how to pick - like, do you pick off leaves or is it a whole head (like cabbage)?

Spread the knowledge please, folks - I'm waiting for the words of the wise.

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My hopes are not always realized but I always hope (Ovid)

Cook and eat just like you would spinach. I like it steamed or stir fried, covered in chilli soy sauce.

Pick off the leaves as you need them. The outside ones are tougher than the baby ones in the middle.

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~ What do I think of Western civilisation? I think it would be a very good idea ~ Gandhi

I cut the leafy part from the stem, chop the stem into 1" or so pieces and cook for about 5 minutes, then add the chopped leaves for the last minute. Very delicate flavour but really nice. I tried it for the first time this year and now just got a couple of rows of it in at the lottie, red and white

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Always look on the bright side of life
View my blog - http://chooksandveggies.blogspot.com/ updated November 1st 2008

The stems look a bit like celery (unless you have a coloured version!) but taste like a very mild beetroot. The leaves have a similar flavour and can be cooked like spinach - the stems need to be cooked for slightly longer in my opinion. Nice!

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Warning: I have a dangerous tendency to act like I know what I'm talking about.

I grow loads of Chard and it is a regular feature in my veg boxes. You can use it at any stage from baby leaf ( in salads) right through to mature. When mature you can use the leaves as a spinach substitute ( though they don't cook away to nothing like the spinach leaves do) and the stems can be braised.
Basically, any reciipe that calls for spinach can use chard.
For more hints and tips and recipes for chard visit www.vegbox-recipes.co.uk.

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Rat

British by birth
Scottish by the Grace of God

Blog updated Wednesday November 13th

Thanks a million for all the info, I'm looking forward to seeing it grow - as I said at the beginning, I knew nothing about it and believe it or not, the assistant in the garden centre knew nothing either!

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My hopes are not always realized but I always hope (Ovid)

Oh I do believe it!!! The majority of assistants at garden centres don't have a clue about what they're selling, when to sow, how to care for, when harvest is likely, what to do with the final result etc. So sad but very true, they're mostly on minimum wage so why bother! One of my grandaughters was a garden centre assistant for a short while and she said they just had to pass on serious enquiries to the manager (2 years older than her!) otherwise to tell the customer that the information could be found on a website

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Always look on the bright side of life
View my blog - http://chooksandveggies.blogspot.com/ updated November 1st 2008

Maureen, that sounds remarkably like the garden centres around here!

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My hopes are not always realized but I always hope (Ovid)

I used some of my chard in mixed veg soups last last year! yummy

I grow mine in raised beds at the lottie and space them about 10-15cm apart. I sewed my seeds about a month ago and are currently only about 4cms tall, but they will have produced pickable leaves in a month or so, and if I don't over pick, they will keep going until late spring when they will finally start to bolt.

They are an excellect 'hungry gap' veg

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'Resist compromise and hold on to the integrity of the original concept' Kevin McCloud

I love it made into pesto - I posted a recipe on here somewhere last year for it, do a search for swiss chard pesto and you should find it.

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Some of us live in the past, always talking about back then. Some of us live in the future, always planning what we are going to do. And, then there are those, who neither look behind or ahead, but just enjoy the moment of right now.

Which one are you and is it how you want to be?

Yey, I support Alison with the thumbs-up on the pesto recipe. Add twice as much garlic for a really punchy flavour!

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Cheers

T-lady

Thanks for all the help and info, everyone.

The Swiss chard is doing OK and I'm looking forward to the day when I can pick it and try out the ideas you've given me.

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My hopes are not always realized but I always hope (Ovid)

best way I've found is to snip the stalks off, chop, steam in a little water until it is just wilted and add lemon and salt - really really nice!!* I've tried it with just salt before but it has a bit of a beetrooty taste - the lemon just finishes it off perfectly.* Oh, and lots of black pepper to serve of course!

I was told that you had to blanch the leaves first before cooking???