Welcome back to our semi-weekly column, Market Fresh, in which we take a look at one ingredient that's showing up in the city's Greenmarkets right now and tell you what to do with it. Last week, we experimented with sunchokes, and this week, we have a very special double-ingredient feature, using both Swiss chard and rhubarb.
Swiss chard is a lovely leafy green with vibrant stalks ranging from deep red to neon yellow. It's a cousin to beets, and easy to have fun with—the bigger leaves take only a moment to soften up in a pan with a bit of olive oil and garlic (kind of like spinach), while the younger, sweeter leaves can be chopped up and eaten raw. Chard is available for most of the spring and summer, so you have some time to play around with it. Pucker-inducing rhubarb stalks are typically cooked with sweeteners and used in desserts, but when finely chopped and seasoned properly, they can be eaten raw. Rhubarb will be in season until mid-summer, when strawberries take over the market.
We talked to Chef Patrick Connolly, of seasonally-inclined West Village charmer Bobo, about the salad he likes to make using both ingredients. "Using rhubarb raw here is what makes this salad unique," he says. "It's not always the greatest on its own raw, but when used as an acidic, tart, crispy compliment in a dish it works quite well. Chard is traditionally a braising or saute green, but it works nicely as a salad green especially in the spring when it's still young and tender. Pretty much every one of these ingredients can be sourced at a Greenmarket, especially as we get closer to summer and chiles and even fresh coriander berries come into season," he says. Connolly recommends topping this salad with crispy sliced duck to make it a full meal, or enjoy it without as a side or light lunch.
Bobo's Patrick Connolly's Spicy Swiss Chard & Rhubarb Salad with Coriander Vinaigrette
For the salad:
1 lb young Swiss chard, roughly chopped
1 stalk rhubarb (about 8 inches), thinly sliced into rounds
1 red chile (such as birdseye or Thai) with seeds, sliced thin
1/2 bunch cilantro roughly chopped (stems and all)
For the coriander vinaigrette:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp toasted, ground coriander seeds
In a mixing bowl, combine all of the vegetables and herbs
Season with salt and toss in the vinaigrette
Divide the salad amongst 4 bowls and distribute the (optional) duck over the top
