Asparagus Chicory (or Puntarelle) Salad – A Healthy, Low-Calorie, Quick And Delicious Recipe Using Just 5 Ingredients
Asparagus chicory is a variant of chicory, and in Italy commonly known
as catalonia or puntarelle. It is a healthy winter vegetable with dark green dandelion-like leaves and a tender heart, the chicory tips (or puntarelle) inside.
In this recipe we'll use the crunchy hollow inner shoots, the tastiest and sweetest part of the vegetable, the so-called puntarelle. These buds have a refreshing, nutty, pleasant bitter taste.
The outer green leaves can be stir-fried with garlic and chili-pepper, added to soups or used like other bitter greens. Here, we'll put them aside for a different use.
PS:
In this post I will use both the English and an Italian term for this green, because the Italian "puntarelle" has become common in several European countries outside of Italy.
Asparagus Chicory (or Puntarelle) Salad: what you need for 2 persons:
Half a head of asparagus chicory
2-3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
Sea salt to taste
1 Small can of Cantabrian* anchovies in olive oil
*Cantabrian anchovies are premium.
How to prepare Asparagus Chicory (or Puntarelle) salad:
-remove the outer green leaves from the head
-cut off the thickest part of the stem at the bottom without cutting into the tender shoots
-gently tear apart the inner shoots
-rinse and let drain the shoots
-cut the buds into thin julienne strips, put them into a bowl
-salt to taste
-when the sea salt has melted, toss the strips gently
-add the olive oil, mix, let the salad marinade for 5-10 minutes
-rinse a few anchovies under running water, cut them into small pieces (you can skip rinsing the anchovies if you like them salty)
-arrange salad on plates and decorate with pieces of anchovies
Prep time 15 minutes
Extra Tip:
Try to get the best olive oil, white wine vinegar, and anchovies you can find. This recipe very much depends on the quality of its ingredients. Also: very fresh puntarelle will be more tender. On occasion, I have made the salad more lavish by adding giant pan-fried scallops or smoked salmon on the side. I have seen restaurants serve raw puntarelle with a creamy sesame dressing, delicious but higher in calories.
Acknowledgements:
This recipe was very generously given to me by the kind people at the Grotto della Salute, a restaurant serving great local and Italian cuisine in Lugano, Ticino, Switzerland. At this beautiful Grotto the salad is served with a bit of lamb's lettuce and lemon juice instead of vinegar, also delicious. Grazie Massimiliano!
Where and when do you find Asparagus Chicory (or Puntarelle) ?
This green is especially common in Puglia, Rome (Puntarelle alla Romana recipes are very popular), in Northern Italy, and in Ticino, the Italian part of Switzerland. More and more it is available in well-stocked supermarkets, grocery stores and farmer's markets outside of Italy. The larger varieties are sold in Italy throughout the year. The smaller more tender variety appreciated for the inner shoots is available from November through March.
Fresh puntarelle for sale at the Mion grocery store in Lugano, Switzerland
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