5.13.2013

RHUBARB CHUTNEY // liz


Spring is finally on our doorstep here in Brunswick. Our forsythia and quince bushes are at their peak, the garden is full of ground phlox and forget-me-not, and the phoebes are making a racket as they set up shop in the girls’ old playhouse. And that sea of green and red you see here? That’s our rhubarb patch! It’s a killer. A friend gave us four transplants from her patch back in 1980, and life has never been the same. Spring at our house means rhubarb.


“What do you do with all of it?” someone asked a few days ago. Plenty, I told her. I make rhubarb compote and rhubarb crisp, and two kinds of pies: the traditional kind, and a custard pie that has a meringue topping. I make rhubarb streusel muffins, rhubarb cake, rhubarb fool, rhubarb jam, and of course strawberry-rhubarb jam. Like her mama when she was little, Sally even likes to eat it raw. We aren’t lacking for ideas about how to eat rhubarb around here.


I found the newest idea just a few years ago: rhubarb chutney. It’s in Brooke Dojny’s excellent book Dishing Up Maine. It’s a great accompaniment to a roast chicken or ham, but what I especially like it with is Indian food. My husband is the Indian cook at our house, and he’s set himself the life task of working his way through this: 660 Indian Curries. He only has about 600 left to go—which means we need a steady supply of chutney.

The recipe below makes about 2 cups. It will keep in the fridge for 1–2 weeks, and it freezes beautifully. I like to freeze it in 4-ounce Mason jars, which for two people makes the perfect accompaniment for one Indian dinner.




RHUBARB CHUTNEY

Because rhubarb is so acidic, be sure to cook this in a nonreactive pan (which means no aluminum or copper). I use a large stainless steel or well-seasoned cast-iron skillet.


4 cups diced, fresh rhubarb
1 small onion, diced
1 ½ cups sugar
½ cup water
1/3 cup white or cider vinegar
1 tablespoon peeled and minced fresh ginger
2 whole cloves
1 small dried red hot chile, crumbled into tiny bits, or ½ teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
½ teaspoon salt

Combine all ingredients in a wide, deep, nonreactive skillet and turn the heat to high. Bring the ingredients to a boil, stirring frequently to avoid scorching.

Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until you have a syrupy sauce that is close to the consistency you want. This will probably take about 30 minutes. Remember that the chutney will be a little firmer once it cools. Keep an eye on your skillet, and stir regularly.

Remove the cloves, and let the chutney cool to room temperature.

7 comments :

Anonymous said...

Liz, I would LOVE to get that custard rhubard pie recipe - sounds intriguing and I'm in need of new ways to use our growing crop. Feel free to drop it with Paul at the Little Dog next time you're in! -Julie

Liz said...

Julie, I'll be happy to share the recipe with you. It's from an old Joy of Cooking. Shoot me an email at liz dot c dot pierson at gmail dot com, and I'll send it to you! ~Liz

Teresa Parker said...

Well of course Sally would just eat the stuff raw.

Now, as to your bragging: I have been growing rhubarb for a few years now and am tired of Googling "why is my rhubarb so stunted?" Could it be that I planted it with spite rather than the Joy of Cooking in my heart?

I was giddy at the thought that its leaves would be nauseating to the deer who come to browse our vegetable patch? Please advise, or better yet, get over here to Cape Cod with some of that Maine stuff of yours to plant.

Meanwhile, hoping to add to the recipe pile, I thought these scones sounded awfully good:
http://food52.com/recipes/4318-naughty-rhubarb-scones




Liz said...

Teresa, I honestly have no idea what I did to deserve this rhubarb patch. All I did was plunk the transplants in the ground, water them, and give them plenty of manure in the fall, especially in the first few years.

It was dumb luck that I also happened to plunk them in what I now realize is a perfect spot: full sun, in a low and very protected corner just below a stone outcropping. Not everything has been so successful; my asparagus patch is PATHETIC!

The scones look dee-lish -- thanks for the link!

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