Braised Belgian Endive in a Ginger Clementine Sauce

Clementines are not local, but they are certainly a familiar fruit of the season. They make a great sweet and tangy sauce for slightly bitter Belgian endives. Later in the winter you could use other oranges to supply the juice - most of those will be big enough that one will do.

This is a very quick and easy recipe, but it does require several minutes of very concentrated attention right at the end, as you cook the sauce down.

4 servings
30 minutes - 10 minutes prep time

4 medium-large Belgian endives
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 clementines
1 teaspoon finely grated ginger
1 teaspoon honey
1 tablespoon soy sauce

Wash and trim the endives, and cut them in half. Heat the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. When it begins to sizzle, add the endive halves, round side down. Add a tablespoon of water to the pan to help cook them. Cook for 5 or 6 minutes then turn them over.

Meanwhile, juice the clementines. Leave the juice in the lemon juicer, but remove any seeds. Peel and grate the ginger and add it to the juice. Add the honey and soy sauce to the juice.

When the endives are turned over, pour in the clementine juice, etc. Continue to cook the endives over medium heat until quite tender, about 10 minutes more. Transfer them to a serving dish using a slotted spoon, then turn up the heat and cook the remaining sauce in the pan for a few minutes until thickened. Watch it carefully; it can turn just a shade brown but that is the signal to remove it from the stove and pour it over the endives at once. Serve as soon as the sauce is put on.




Ha, ha! Oh look - last year at this time I made Endive, Walnut, Cranberry & Blue Cheese Salad.

Posted in: Ontario Food