Omelet wrote:
> In article . com>,
> " > wrote:
>
>> OK, my palate is perhaps a bit unsophisticated, but I can't eat bitter
>> greens. Just. Can't. (For scale - I ate a single leaf of raw arugula
>> last night. Had to wash it down with water.)
>>
>> Anyway, I think I'll be getting a lot of them in my new-to-me-this-
>> year CSA subscription. So... what can I do to make them tasty? Any way
>> to tone down the bitterness? Also, what leafy greens are not bitter?
>> I'm familiar with a large variety of Asian greens (eg, bok choi, napa
>> cabbage, pea tips, etc), but what "American" greens are not bitter?
>> (Chard?)
>>
>> Thanks for your knowledge,
>> June
>
> Chard is not bitter at all. :-)
> It's similar (to my palate) to spinach but a bit richer.
>
> I'm not a fan of bitter greens either. Romaine is pushing it for me on
> that scale.

Exactly! Swiss chard is like bok choi, really.

One way to treat bitter greens is to blanch them in a lot of boiling
water and then press the water out very well. You can wrap them in a
clean dish towel, close it and wring it over the sink. You can then
proceed with any recipe and they will have lost some of their
bitterness. In the case of dendelions, my mother cooked them in three
waters, disposing of the water after each blanching.

Last night I had not bitter chard slightly steamed, drained and then
tossed with olive oil I heated with slim slices of garlic and a pinch of
chili flakes. Very nice.

Sautéing the greens for a pasta dish doesn't decrease the bitterness per
se, but does decrease your perception of it as it is diminished by the
pasta. Orecchiette with broccoli rabe is an example of that.

I don't find arugula bitter at all! I find it a bit spicy though.

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