A.K.A

endive, witloof

What is it?

Belgian endive, a member of the chicory family, has slightly bitter, juicy, and crisp leaves that grow in a tight, elongated head no longer than about six inches.  The leaves are pale white, tipped with yellow-green or reddish-purple. The whole leaves, especially the smaller interior ones, make a wonderful spoon-like base for all kinds of hors d’oeuvres. Chopped crosswise, the leaves add a refreshing crunch to winter salads, pairing especially well with blue cheese and walnuts. Endive can also be cooked—wrapped with pancetta and then grilled, or stuffed and braised in stock, where it becomes meltingly tender and develops a rich nuttiness.

Don’t have it?

In salad, try other bitter winter greens, such as frisée (curly endive) or radicchio.

How to choose:

Endive should be snow-white, with just a little yellow or red at the tips. The ribs and bases should not show any browning. White heads of Belgian endive are most common, but you may run across red-edged heads, too.

How to prep:

Pull off any wilted or brown leaves and wipe the head of the endive with a damp towel. Wait until just before serving to slice raw endive; its cut edges brown quickly.

How to store:

Endive that has been in the light for more than a few hours will start to turn green and may taste bitter. So tuck the heads right into the vegetable crisper, keep endive away from light, and plan to use it within a few days.

Cross Reference

curly endive;

Recipes

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  Recipe

  Sear-Roasted Skirt Steak with Endive and Blue Cheese

  Cooked until tender, peppery endive is great alongside beefy skirt steak slathered with blue cheese butter.

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  Recipe

  Grilled Endive with Gorgonzola and Pecans

  This appetizer hits all the right notes: charred yet fresh, with a hint of bitter tempered by sweet, and creamy with just the right amount of crunch. Make sure your…

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  Recipe

  Endive and Radicchio Salad with Hazelnuts and Gorgonzola

  Bitter endive and radicchio are beautifully balanced by pungent gorgonzola nad sweet-tart cranberries in this quick and easy side dish. Serve with braised beef or seared steak.

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  Recipe

  Roasted Beet, Apple, and Pear Salad with Goat Cheese, Cherries, and Pecans

  It's a fruit salad and green salad on one platter. Roasting enhances the natural sweetness of the apples, pears and beets, paired with tangy goat cheese and crunchy pecans. Customize…

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  Recipe

  Spinach and White Bean Salad with Tuna

  The bright, fresh combination of endive and spinach makes this salad an elegant lunch or light dinner. Water-packed canned tuna works fine, but oil-packed tuna has a richer, more satisfying…

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  Recipe

  Endive, Walnut & Grape Salad

  This bright, fresh salad is a wonderful contrast to the other rich dishes in the Nordic Christmas Feast menu. In Scandinavia, chicory (Belgian endive) is called yule salat because we…

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  Recipe

  Crispy Flounder with Pears, Endive, and Meyer Lemon

  Smoother, rounder, and deeper in color than standard lemons, Meyer lemons are less acidic, with orange and floral flavor notes.

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  Recipe

  Endive and Watercress Salad with Apples and Herbs

  In this refreshing salad, cool, crisp endive and apple pair well with peppery watercress and tangy lemon-shallot dressing. Fresh chervil, parsley, tarragon, and chives—a classic French herb mixture known as…

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  Recipe

  Endive and Apple Salad with Warm Goat Cheese

  Crisp and somewhat bitter when raw, Belgian endive develops a mellow, slightly nutty flavor when cooked. Pair it with sautéed apples, rounds of hazelnut-coated goat cheese, and a sweet-tart dressing…