How To Prepare Leeks?

[Velocivixen]

My DH came home from our garden plot with some leeks he planted, and I don't know what to do with them. Don't want potato-leek soup. Any ideas? I've never had a leek before.

[Kimmyt]

Just use them like you would onions, they have such a lovely mellow flavor!

I make a pie with leeks and chicken in it that is really tasty.

K.

[Becky]

Pizza! The Moosewood Low-Fat cookbook has a really delicious leek and feta pizza recipe in it. As I recall, the leeks are sauteed with basil and spread on top of the crust before baking.

Google turns up a lot of pizza recipes, but not the one I'm thinking of... A bunch of them look really good too!

[Velocivixen]

Hey thanks for the quick replies. I was thinking about sauteeing them in olive oil with crushed garlic? Sounds like I could throw them on a salad or something similar.

[Norse]

Hey thanks for the quick replies. I was thinking about sauteeing them in olive oil with crushed garlic? Sounds like I could throw them on a salad or something similar.

That sounds good, perhaps throw in a little crushed red pepper with the olive oil before adding the leeks and garlic. My favorite leek dish involves sauteeing them with garlic and chicken stock, then adding fresh thyme, sauteed cut up chicken breast and a pat of butter for the finish and then serving over an egg noodle, or lemon-pepper pasta.

[tulip]

My favorite leek dish involves sauteeing them with garlic and chicken stock, then adding fresh thyme, sauteed cut up chicken breast and a pat of butter for the finish and then serving over an egg noodle, or lemon-pepper pasta.

Oh my goodness that sounds good!

[Velocivixen]

@Norsegoddess, I've written it down! So would you sautee the chicken first, remove from pan, then saute the leeks with chicken broth, oil, garlic, pepper flakes & thyme a bit, then add the chicken back in? I have all the ingredients for this! Sounds delicious.

@tulip, thanks for the omelette advice. My DH already removed all the outer, green long "fronds" and put them in the yard debris barrel. Okay, I'll slice them in half long ways and soak.
Now I'm actually excited!

[Norse]

That sounds good, perhaps throw in a little crushed red pepper with the olive oil before adding the leeks and garlic. My favorite leek dish involves sauteeing them with garlic and chicken stock, then adding fresh thyme, sauteed cut up chicken breast and a pat of butter for the finish and then serving over an egg noodle, or lemon-pepper pasta.

Oh my goodness, I forgot a very important ingredient! After the leeks and garlic have sauteed in olive oil until they start to soften a little, and before I add the chicken stock, I deglaze with a little dry white wine to add a punch of acidity. Bon appetit!

[tulip]

I adore leeks! They take so long to grow in the garden, but they are so worth it to me. Mine are getting to harvest size, and I planted them last July or August...whew! I have 74 that made it through the winter, so I will soon be eating alot of leeks.

I like them in omelettes (sautee first) and all sorts of soups. I will have to try them on pizza--that sounds divine!

Use the white parts and just a bit of the light green parts. Be sure to wash them very thoroughly because the fans hold dirt. If you soak them for an hour, that usually floats all the dirt up. Or you can split them and take the layers apart.

Toss the green parts in your compost--your garden will thank you for it.

[shootingstar]

Dearie makes a soup or we use them like onions.
Consider them as a great opportunity to make a vegetable stock with other veggies.

The other option is to add them to omelet with mushrooms and garlic.

[withm]

I made an asparagus quiche the other day with 2 or 3 shallots. No reason you couldn't use a leek instead of the shallots.

Just make sure to wash them thoroughly. Slice the leek in half lengthwise. Fan out or completely separate each leaf, and make sure to get all the dirt out from between the leaves. Then I sort of nest them back together, and slice very thin and proceed with my recipe.

Leeks are milder than regular onions.

[Grog]

Slice lengthwise, remove outer leaf (a bit stiff). Wash carefully to remove all dirt.

Spray with olive oil, add salt and pepper, roast in oven (cut size down on a baking sheet) at 425... I don't know, 12-15 minutes? Sprinkle with parmesan and enjoy.

Yum, leek! I'm so jealous.

[OakLeaf]

Lucky you - Martha Rose Shulman is doing leeks all week.

Only the first recipe is posted so far, but there should be five for the week.

[Velocivixen]

I ended up sautéing in a little oil with tilapia. I cut them lengthwise first & soaked in water for an hour or so. Very nice flavor.