Chicory sautéed in a pan is a flavorful side dish, made with garlic, oil, and chili pepper. A truly appetizing vegetable dish, perfect for filling sandwiches and focaccias. It can be served as an appetizer, thanks to its spicy taste that stimulates the appetite before the meal.
Start by thoroughly cleaning the chicory and boiling it in salted water for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare a sauté with garlic, oil, and chili pepper, then add the chicory and let it absorb the flavors well. The bitter taste of the chicory perfectly matches the strong flavor of the garlic and chili pepper. This side dish is quick to prepare and can easily be made in advance and reheated when ready to serve.
For vegetable lovers, before moving on to the recipe, I also remind
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Very Cheap
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 8
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Energy 70.27 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 5.88 (g) of which sugars 0.03 (g)
- Proteins 1.30 (g)
- Fat 5.39 (g) of which saturated 0.78 (g)of which unsaturated 0.06 (g)
- Fibers 3.94 (g)
- Sodium 351.61 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 150 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 2 bunches chicory
- 8 1/2 cups water
- as needed coarse salt (for the water)
- 3 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic
- as needed chili pepper
- as needed salt
Tools
- 1 Pot
- 1 Pan
Preparation
Remove the ends of the chicory stems and wash it thoroughly, rinsing at least twice in plenty of water. Meanwhile, bring salted water to a boil in a tall pot.
When the water starts to boil, add the chicory and cook for about 10 minutes, until the stems become soft. To check if they’re done, make sure they are tender. Once ready, drain the chicory using a slotted spoon and let it rest in a colander to drain. I advise not to press it too much, to retain some cooking water, which will help sauté it better without needing too much oil.
In a non-stick pan, pour the oil along with the garlic cloves and chili pepper. Sauté everything until the garlic turns golden, then add the chicory. I recommend using scissors to cut it a bit to ease cooking. Adjust the salt to your taste and let the chicory sauté in the pan for about 5 minutes, stirring a couple of times to let it absorb the flavors well. To prevent the cooking water from evaporating too much and to keep the chicory soft and juicy, it’s better to cover the pan with a lid during cooking.
NOTES
Chicory sautéed should be served hot, accompanied by good crispy bread for an ideal pairing. However, as mentioned earlier, it is also perfect for enriching sandwiches and focaccias, perhaps to take to work or school, and it is very tasty even at room temperature.
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