Many know how to cook beets, but only a few know that you can also eat the leaves. Beetroot leaves have a more intense and marked flavor than those of other vegetables, but they can easily be transformed into a delicious side dish.
Ingrediants
Stir-fried beetroot leaves
- 1-3 bunches of beetroot leaves
- 2-3 tablespoons (30–45 ml) of extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 lemon, cut into wedges, or 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of vinegar
- 1 shallot or onion, diced (optional)
- 1 small pinch of red pepper (optional)
- 1 orange (optional)
Beetroot Leaf Pesto
- 1 bunch of beetroot leaves (about 120 g)
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 120 g of walnuts, pine nuts or pistachios
- Up to 180 ml of extra virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 20 g of fennel beard, 45 g of fresh parsley and 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of lemon juice (optional)
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Sauté the Beetroot Leaves in the Pan
Step 1. Remove the stems (optional)
Beet stalks are also edible, but not everyone likes their bitter taste. If you don't want to eat them, cut them with a knife from the base of the leaves. If you want, you can also remove the first part of the central vein from the larger leaves (which could be hard) by making a "V" incision.
Like all leaves, beetroot leaves will lose a good part of their volume during cooking. You can cook several at once, as long as they fit comfortably in the pan. Cover them with the lid and let them simmer to make them wilt
Step 2. Roll up the leaves and cut them
Stack them neatly and roll them into a cylinder, then cut them into strips about an inch wide.
If you have decided to cook the stems as well, cut them into pieces of similar size
Step 3. Wash the beet leaves
You can use the salad spinner or, alternatively, dip them in a bowl full of water and rub them gently with your fingers to remove any visible dirt. Leave them to soak for about thirty seconds, so that the earth has time to settle on the bottom of the bowl. Remove the leaves from the water, let them drain and wash them again if necessary. When there are no more traces of soil in the water, transfer the leaves to a clean bowl without drying them.
If you decide to cook the stems as well, wash them in a separate bowl
Step 4. Blanch the beetroot leaves (optional)
They will keep their bright green color unaltered if you cook them for a few seconds in boiling water before tossing them in the pan and then plunge them into frozen water. If you decide to blanch them, follow these directions:
- Prepare a bowl full of cold water and ice cubes;
- Dip the beetroot leaves in the boiling water for one minute;
- Remove the leaves from the water with kitchen tongs (or drain them with a colander) and immediately transfer them to the frozen water;
- When they have cooled, transfer them to a colander and let them drain.
Step 5. Heat the extra virgin olive oil over medium heat
Use enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan (about 2-3 tablespoons depending on size).
Step 6. Cook the stems for 4 minutes (optional)
If you have decided to cook the stems as well, put them in the pan first and let them simmer in the oil for 4 minutes or until they have softened slightly.
Step 7. Add the garlic and fry it for one minute
Chop two wedges and let it cook for about a minute or until it has softened slightly.
If you wish, you can also add an onion or diced shallot and a light pinch of red pepper
Step 8. Add the leaves, cover the pan and let them cook until wilted
Put the leaves in the pan without mixing them. Cover them with a lid and let them cook for a couple of minutes so that they lose volume.
The water left on the leaves after washing them should be enough to make them stew. If they don't start to wilt within 30 to 60 seconds or if the garlic starts to burn, add an extra couple of tablespoons of water
Step 9. Serve or cook the leaves with the vinegar or lemon
The acidity will dampen the bitter taste typical of beet leaves. Cut a lemon into wedges and serve with the leaves or season them with your favorite vinegar immediately after removing them from the heat.
- For a stronger acid note, add a couple of tablespoons of vinegar directly to the pan along with the juice of an orange. Let the leaves simmer for another 2-3 minutes or until all the liquid has evaporated. Sprinkle the leaves with chopped orange zest before serving.
- Beetroot leaves are naturally high in sodium, but if you want you can add a pinch of salt and a sprinkle of pepper to make them even tastier.
Method 2 of 3: Make the Beetroot Leaf Pesto
Step 1. Wash and trim the beet leaves
Start with a bunch of leaves weighing about 120g. Remove the stems, whole or only the thickest part if you want reddish streaks to be visible in the pesto; then wash the leaves.
If you want you can also add a handful of basil leaves, to get a more traditional taste pesto, or some radish leaves if you like strong and spicy flavors
Step 2. Blanch the leaves and stems
In addition to softening, they will keep their beautiful colors unaltered. Prepare the kitchen tongs and blanch the leaves and stems following these directions:
- Fill a bowl with cold water and ice cubes;
- Bring water to a boil in a saucepan and cook the beetroot leaves for one minute;
- Transfer the leaves to the ice water, let them cool, and then drain them.
Step 3. Toast the dried fruit
Walnuts and pine nuts are the most used varieties, but you can also use pistachios if you want to give a more original taste to the pesto. Once shelled, toast them in a pan over medium heat without adding any type of fat. Stir frequently as they tend to burn easily. Turn off the heat when the scent of toasted nuts begins to spread in the air. Pine nuts, pistachios and other varieties of nuts are coated with a skin; after toasting them, put them inside a clean cloth and rub them to remove it. The time required for roasting varies according to the type of dried fruit.
- For the pine nuts it takes about 5 minutes.
- It takes about 10-15 minutes for the nuts.
- It takes about 6-8 minutes for the pistachios.
Step 4. Chop the garlic and nuts with the food processor
Assemble a metal blade suitable for chopping and add the coarsely chopped garlic cloves and the toasted nuts. Turn on the food processor at short intervals until you have a coarse pesto.
Step 5. Add the other ingredients
Chop the beetroot leaves with your hands and place them in the food processor. Add the grated Parmesan cheese and turn on the robot at short intervals to mix the ingredients coarsely chop them; then start adding the oil slowly and continue until the pesto acquires a thick and homogeneous consistency. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste.
- The amount of oil can vary up to a maximum of about 180 ml.
- If you wish, you can also add 20 g of fennel beard, 45 g of fresh parsley and a tablespoon (15 ml) of lemon juice.
Step 6. Use beet leaf pesto
You can spread it on toast at aperitif time, use it to garnish and flavor a soup or dilute it with a little cooking water to make it a sauce for pasta. Beetroot leaf pesto is also excellent on pizza or paired with roasted beets.
You can keep the pesto in the refrigerator for about a week. If you want it to last longer, put it in an ice mold, cover it with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and freeze it to make ready-to-use cubes. Once frozen, you can transfer the cubes to a freezer bag to return the mold to its original purpose
Method 3 of 3: Additional Recipes
Step 1. Serve raw beetroot leaves in salads
They have an intense taste, so it is best to combine them with other strong-flavored ingredients. For example, they go perfectly with feta, anchovies and most sheep or goat cheeses. You can dress the salad in the traditional way and maybe add a teaspoon of tahini or replace the classic vinegar with that of strawberries or with another ingredient with a marked acidity.
Beet leaves become harder and bitter as they grow. If you intend to eat them in salads, it is best to select the smaller ones, which are young and tender. The ideal season to buy them is the one between the end of spring and the beginning of summer
Step 2. Add the sauteed leaves to a soup
Sauté them with other savory ingredients, then add them to the soup during the last few minutes of cooking. Beetroot leaves can make bean or lentil soup even tastier and generally go well with all creamy soups.
Step 3. Make some crunchy chips
Compared to what you can get with the leaves of other vegetables, these will have a thicker texture and a more intense herbaceous taste, but if you've tasted the beetroot leaves prepared otherwise and liked them, chances are you will love it:
- Preheat the oven to 175 ºC;
- Remove the stems, wash the leaves and then dry them with a clean kitchen towel;
- Grease them with a drizzle of olive oil, also add salt and pepper if you wish (taste them first because they are naturally tasty);
- Line a few baking sheets with parchment paper and cook the beetroot leaves for 15 minutes, then flip them over and cook for another 10 minutes.
Advice
- The flavor of beet leaves goes well with that of many foods, condiments and spices, such as garlic, scallions, cumin, nutmeg, hot sauce, cheese sauce and hollandaise sauce.
- Season the boiled beet leaves with ginger to get the most vitamin C.
- Store the beetroot leaves in the refrigerator, sealed in a bag, and eat them within 3-4 days to prevent them from wilting. If they lose vigor, let them soak in room temperature water for an hour.
Warnings
- In about 12% of people, the urine turns red after eating the beet root or stems. It is a harmless effect which however seems to occur mainly in people who have an iron deficiency. Find out how to increase the consumption of iron-rich foods and the body's assimilative capacity.
- Do not eat beets if you have been diagnosed with calcium oxalate kidney stones or if your doctor has warned you of this possibility.
- Beetroot juice tends to stain most surfaces. You can remove stains from fabrics using detergent or bleach; while to clean the kitchen cutting board it is better to use a piece of damp bread.
