Vegetables – Leeks -

Vegetables – Leeks -

bunch

Consider the leek. - It’s majestic, a titan in the onion family.

Mostly just the white and light green parts are eaten, though the darker green parts have plenty of flavor and can either be cooked longer to tenderize them, or used when making homemade soup stock.

Leeks are dirty

The challenge when cooking with leeks is that they are almost always dirty. When leeks are grown, soil is piled up around them, so that more of the leek is hidden from the sun, and therefore lighter in color and more tender.

What produces a beautiful leek, a long pale body, also results in sand and dirt being lodged deep inside the leek.

The earthy, mild onion flavor of leeks combined with the spicy kick of mustard greens braised in buttered chicken broth makes for a simple, quick, and tasty side dish.

Leeks are a good source of vitamin C, a source of iron and contain dietary fibre.  They contain phytonutrients, including carotenoids and phenolic compounds.