Sorrel: So much to use..

[andiesenji]

Chris -- a quick glance at Google makes it seem as though hibiscus tea is also called sorrel tea or Jamaican sorrel tea.

So I made the carrot dish.  The sorrel lost color immediately on blanching  !  Bugger.  Should I have blanched the carrots and sauteed the sorrel?

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I put the chopped or chiffonade sorrel in a wire basket and dip it quickly in and out of simmering water and immediately into ice water. I haven't had problems with it losing color, although it is not quite as bright as when raw but it should hold this color. If cooked without blanching, it turns a sort of gray-green or sage green. Actually I don't mind the color, no more than I mind the color of gray lentils.

[bavila]

There was a little bit of lemon sorrel in yesterday's CSA box. I made a pesto with it plus basil, garlic, pistachios, parmesan, EVOO, salt, pepper. Used it atop some seared then baked halibut. Yum. More leftover. yay!

[scottie]

Of course, you want to be careful about the oxalic acid content.

Just thought I'd mention it since no one else has.

I wonder if sorrel would be good in a savory cheesecake?

[Jason Perlow]

Jamaicans make sorrel into an iced tea drink with ginger.

http://www.jamaicans.com/cooking/seasonal/sorrel.shtml

Its actually quite refreshing and very good.

[Fengyi]

Jamaicans make sorrel into an iced tea drink with ginger.

http://www.jamaicans.com/cooking/seasonal/sorrel.shtml

Its actually quite refreshing and very good.

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I don't mean to be presumptuous, preachy or anything but the sorrel drink one gets in the Caribbean is certainly based on the Red Sorrel, Hibiscus sabdariffa, which is a type of hisbiscus flower (I used to drink this A LOT when I was at uni in the Caribbean and boy does it ever stain your mouth red!!) rather than the herb/green/eat-the-leaves kind of sorral (which is apparently Rumex scutatus).

As JayT pointed out, it is completely different as a plant although I found that the refreshing taste of the Caribbean drink had similar notes to the lemony European herb-type sorrel - there's a second opinion on this (which confirms my taste-sense ) at A Description of Red Sorrel

I just had to say this because, after leaving the Caribbean, I was really jonesing for red sorrel punch - and every place (non-Caribbean) in which I asked for sorrel (me thinking big red flowery things) showed me the leafy green stuff instead

However, I do grow the green sorrel now (and yes! it grows like a weed!) and frequently use it in salads with smoked salmon and cold grilled asparagus.

I find the colour it turns when cooked faintly off-putting though (Sorry!)...

Edited May 21, 2006 by Fengyi (log)

[zoe b]

I just got three nice little bunches of sorrel from a fellow vendor at a market--something i've only read about, but always wanted to try.

I spent a lot of time searching--found only sorrel sauce--for salmon, usually, and soup--we're having people for dinner and i wanted to use it then.

For want of inspiration, I'm thinking salmon with sorrel sauce--have any other ideas?

Also, I'm unclear on how to handle it--should it only be added at the very last minute?

If i do a soup, i like making enough for leftovers---so what is lost when sorrel is reheated--the green color or flavor--or both?

Z

[Magictofu]

Add any heat to sorrel and you will loose the color.

A sorrel sauce is a simple thing: butter, shallots, cream, chopped sorrel (in that order).

To make a greener sauce, you can add other herbs and leaves and whiz everything with a stick blender.

You can add a few leaves in a salad too.

[Pam R]

Schav is a sorrel soup - like a borscht. I've never made it, but it was a very popular soup in the Jewish community a generation back. Something my grandmother used to make 50 years ago. More on it, including a recipe, at The Food Maven:

The schav my grandmother made from scratch, which meant ordering enormous bunches of large-leafed sorrel -- what she called "sour grass" -- from her fruit and vegetable man.

[FoodMan]

I just got three nice little bunches of sorrel from a fellow vendor at a market--something i've only read about, but always wanted to try.

I spent a lot of time searching--found only sorrel sauce--for salmon, usually, and soup--we're having people for dinner and i wanted to use it then.

For want of inspiration, I'm thinking salmon with sorrel sauce--have any other ideas?

Also, I'm unclear on how to handle it--should it only be added at the very last minute?

If i do a soup, i like making enough for leftovers---so what is lost when sorrel is reheated--the green color or flavor--or both?

Z

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The most sorrel recipes I've ever seen are in Richerd Olney's book "Simple French Food". I can look some up later tonight and get back to you if you like. Soups, gratins, sauces, sorrell mousse...

On the other hand it looks like Amazon has the book and you can "search inside it". Do a search for "sorrel" and you'll get a bunch of items.Here is the link.

[zoe b]

Magictofu--

A sorrel sauce is a simple thing: butter, shallots, cream, chopped sorrel (in that order).

good --sounds delicious--I'm doing this!

PamR--

Schav is a sorrel soup - like a borscht. I've never made it, but it was a very popular soup in the Jewish community a generation back. Something my FoodMan--

grandmother used to make 50 years ago. More on it, including a recipe, at The Food Maven:

I also came across this soup and it sounds interesting--I d like to make it some day--I'm definitely going to try and grow sorrel next year so i can have access to large quantities of it.

FoodMan--

The most sorrel recipes I've ever seen are in Richerd Olney's book "Simple French Food". I can look some up later tonight and get back to you if you like. Soups, gratins, sauces, sorrell mousse...

That option to search within the book is pretty neat--thanks for tipping me off about it.

I actually have this book--in a box somewhere, unfortunately--so searched in it on Amazon--I forgot what a magnificent book this is. It was one of my first cookbooks and i didn''t know enough then to realize what a treasure it is--Olney was a wonderful writer as well as a cook--and a wonderful teacher, too--i made all kinds of exotic things successfully from this book--pates and stews and salads not ever heard of in my American childhood.

Those other sorrel options in the Olney book are intriguing.

I also found in a Food & Wine Annual cookbook a recipe for roasted new potatoes--you put them in a bowl with olive oil and butter, and mix in a lot of julienned sorrel--supposedly the sorrel melts into the potatoes--i like the sound of this--again for future experiments.

So, I'll probably go with salmon baked with some kind of a crust--pecan seems to be popular--and the sauce a la Magictofu--buttered orzo, roasted aparagus.

I'll make a simple arugula salad (got this from the same farmer--our arugula is just finished) with sliced apples and dried cranberries and some more pecans.

For dessert--ice cream with prunes in port and snickerdoodle biscotti .

Thanks for sharing thoughts about sorrel with me-your input really helped my get a grip!

Z

[Smithy]

One other trick for the sauce is to save a small amount of the chopped sorrel and use it as a garnish on the sauce before serving. I love sorrel, but it really does turn a dread army drab green when it's cooked. The green garnish will liven it up. Could use another green herb, of course.

The Zuni Cafe cookbook has a recipe for a sorrel panade that I think is out of this world. It's ridiculously easy to make, as well; however, I wouldn't recommend your changing plans tonight.

Chicken with sorrel sauce is another of my go-to recipes. One thing I've learned the hard way is that you really must pull out the main leaf veins (ribs) if the leaves are large. I decided to skip that step one time. The larger veins on the large (old) leaves rolled into little spiky hollow needles that just couldn't be chewed comfortably. We had to fish them out of our dinner that night. I don't think this is a factor with young leaves or the smaller veins.

[Smithy]

I also found in a Food & Wine Annual cookbook a recipe for roasted new potatoes--you put them in a bowl with olive oil and butter, and mix in a lot of julienned sorrel--supposedly the sorrel melts into the potatoes--i like the sound of this--again for  future experiments.

Z

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Extra note: sorrel really does just melt, except for those pesky stems I mentioned above. The Zuni Cafe panade to which I referred simply requires that you remove the main ribs from the leaves, then lay the leaves into the layers with the other ingredients (sauteed onions, chunks of cheese, chunks of bread). The equivalent recipe that calls for chard requires that you sautee the chopped chard first.

I don't think I've tried sorrel with new potatoes, but I'm thinking it would be very good.

[FoodMan]

I actually have this book--in a box somewhere, unfortunately--so searched in it on Amazon--I forgot what a magnificent book this is. It was one of my first cookbooks and i didn''t know enough then to realize what a treasure it is--Olney was a wonderful writer as well as a cook--and a wonderful teacher, too--i made all kinds of exotic things successfully from this book--pates and stews and salads not ever heard of in my American childhood.

Those other sorrel options in the Olney book are intriguing.

Sorry for going slightly OT, but I have to add my sentiment to yours here. I picked this one up on discount and it is a treasure. Wonderful writing, at times VERY opinionated and certainly personal. His voice comes through like an old respected teacher and you just want to keep reading. Many unique and simple French recipes that actually teaches experienced cooks some tricks (much more than I can say about the brand new in English "The Complete Robuchon"...more OT so I'll stop).

[johnnyd]

If you have any left, I read somewhere about wrapping pollack in sorrel leaves and poaching in court bouillon and serve with a mustard sauce. I have it growing in my garden in-season and I get a ton - so much that I give most of it to a local French restaurant.

[zoe b]

If you have any left, I read somewhere about wrapping pollack in sorrel leaves and poaching in court bouillon and serve with a mustard sauce.  I have it growing in my garden in-season and I get a ton - so much that I give most of it to a local French restaurant.

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Yes, the farmer mentioned that his customers do this.

Menu plans changed at the last minute--the hub wanted MEAT for dinner--so I did a braised rump roast (wine and garlic and onions) , boiled potatoes, and added the sorrel along with the butter and olive oil. It didn't really melt since i wasn't actually cooking it with the potatoes--it stayed pretty green. It was good, but the sorrel flavor wasn't really intense--it was rather delicate.

Zoe

[johnnyd]

If you have any left, I read somewhere about wrapping pollack in sorrel leaves and poaching in court bouillon and serve with a mustard sauce.  I have it growing in my garden in-season and I get a ton - so much that I give most of it to a local French restaurant.

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Yes, the farmer mentioned that his customers do this.

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I saw pollack for 2.99 and bought some just to test this recipe. I loosely wrapped a tail-fillet in wide sorrel leaves, having cut out the stems and poached it in chicken stock. After a few minutes, the sorrel turned brown and some slipped off the fish. I removed the fish - which was perfectly done - and added a capful of white vermouth to the broth and reduced it by half; added whole-grain and regular dijon mustard and a squirt of lemon juice, and poured it all over the fish. Julienned sorrel for garnish.

Many have warned me not to over-do the sorrel, but I needed an identity for this stuff. Man, I got it in spades. I was lucky I had a nice strong mustard sauce and a very fresh piece of pollack because I ended up with three distinct flavors on the plate today. Served with fresh baguette w/local butter and a thimble-full of white wine.

[Lapin d'Argent]

If the leaves are young and tender, I like to cut them into a chiffonade and use them instead of basil in a Salade Nicoise. The fresh, tart, lemon flavor is perfect paired with good-quality tuna, whether an oil-packed imported variety, or a piece you've poached yourself.

Yum!

- L.

[RobertCollins]

Well, this has been a good thread, I have the Sorrel growing for the past 2 yrs and haven't used it 'cause i didn't know how. Now some ideas and have ordered Olney's book. I will pull out Alice Waters too.

Thanks especially to johnnyd for the pollack recipe, I think it will work just fine on Halibut too.

[DanM]

Good morning,

I picked up a half pound of locally grown Sorrell at the market yesterday. I am not familiar with this green, so I was wondering what are some classic preparations for it.

thanks!

Dan

[Chufi]

Soup seems to be the classic way to use it.

I love it with eggs - in omelets or quiche. I made these litle tarts recently:

sorrel tarts

(Dutch text, but if you like the look of them you could put the recipe through Google translate).

[jackal10]

Soup - green borscht - look under schav

Sorrel wrapped salmon

Sorrel ommlette

Sorrel puree

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/200...e.foodanddrink1

[Jamon.Iberico]

Can't forget the classic 80's wonder-dish created by Pierre Troisgros:

Salmon with Sorrel Sauce

[sadistick]

Sorrel Sauce!

Dice onions, sweat - add garlic -

Add sorrel, little stock if you have, cook it down, finish with butter and season to taste.

fantastic on fish, potatoes (especially wood oven roasted!), etc.

[andiesenji]

You can use it just as you would grape leaves to wrap small portions of rice and meat or rice pilaf, etc.

The lemony flavor of the sorrel goes very well with rich, fatty meats.

As noted above, it is often paired with carrots, squash, pumpkin, etc., in soups or purées.

I have layered it in strattas with artichokes, eggs, bread and tomatoes, occasionally with ham or similar type meat.

[DanM]

Soup seems to be the classic way to use it.

I love it with eggs - in omelets or quiche. I made these litle tarts recently:

sorrel tarts

(Dutch text, but if you like the look of them you could put the recipe through Google translate).

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Those tarts look amazing! I have added the recipe to my cookbook for future use. I think it is a little too rich for our diet at this time.

Thanks for the reference!

jackal10

Thanks for the link to the Guardian Article. After reading it I pulled up the River Cottage Cookbook on Google Books and found a couple of new ideas. The Eel in Green Herb Sauce looks mighty good, but made with a kosher fish.

http://books.google.com/books?id=lbscLPGd1...qyZFW#PPT357,M1

Dan