Sautéed Escarole

This sturdy leafy green is a part of the chicory family, and has a pronounced but appealing bitterness.  Sautéed or cooked escarole is much milder, with a silky texture, and an incredible side to all kinds of rich main courses.  It’s very popular in Italy, particularly in Rome and the surrounding areas.  Sautéed escarole is a common side dish in Sicilian cooking.   Sometimes you might find it labeled or referred to as broad-leaf endive, Bavarian endive, Batavian endive, scarola, and scarole. Leave out the anchovies if you want a vegetarian/vegan escarole side dish.

What Does Escarole Look Like?

It looks like a small-ish head of lettuce, the broad leaves on the outside that have jagged edges.  It’s a variety of endive, which is evident by its bitter taste, and also the more tender, paler leaves in the core of the lettuce head.  The outer leaves are a more vibrant, dark green color.

During the season, spring through summer, escarole can be found at farmers’ markets.  You can find it year-round in supermarkets and grocery stores near the endive, chicory, radicchio, and other greens. Look for firm heads with unblemished leaves.  Any leaves that are tinged with brown will be particularly bitter, so remove them before using the escarole. Young pale leaves can be used in Escarole Salad.

How to Prepare

Escarole can be boiled, blanched, sautéed, steamed, and also eaten raw.   The pale, less bitter inner leaves are best for eating in salads and other uncooked preparations.  Escarole salads can be absolutely amazing — if you see one on the menu of a good Italian restaurant, give it a go.  The studier outer leaves are more bitter and best used for cooked preparations.

The following recipe is for a simply cooked escarole in the Italian style.  I personally think this dish goes with everything!  You can also add sautéed escarole to soup and stews and use it to top bruschetta or crostini.

Cook Time

How long it takes to cook escarole is very much dependent on the taste of the cook and the diner!  Escarole can be cooked quite briefly, for about 5 minutes or so, or it can be cooked for much longer, until very tender.  I like the combo of blanching the lettuce leaves, then sauteing them, which I think softens the bitterness just enough.  The longer you cook escarole, the milder it will get.  I like the leaves to be softer and wilted with some bitterness left, but not limp and overcooked.

Sauteed Escarole: This simple Italian side dish, made with olive oil and garlic goes with all kinds of main courses.

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How Do You Make Escarole Not Bitter?

The blanching before the sauteing helps remove the bitterness, as does the sauteing in olive oil.

Is It Better Raw or Cooked?

That is also a total matter of taste!  Escarole is significantly more bitter when raw, though again, the inner leaves are milder.  Plain cooked escarole is much less bitter.  And escarole can also be added to soups, stews, braises, and so on, where its bitterness might be just a flavor note in the bigger picture.

What Does It Taste Like?

Escarole, on the whole, is fairly bitter.  The larger outer leaves are more bitter than the tender pale inner small leaves.  Each layer of leaves gets progressively lighter toward the core.  It is at its most bitter when eaten raw.  When it is cooked, the bitterness softens quite a bit.

How to Wash and Store

Trim the base, and remove any bruised or damaged outer escarole leaves.  Separate all of the leaves from the core.  Fill a large bowl or a very clean sink with cold water.  Dunk the leaves into the water and swish them around.  Drain or pour out the water, and repeat until there is no grit left on the bottom of the bowl or the sink.  You can spin the escarole leaves dry in a salad spinner or roll them up in clean paper towels or a clean dish towel and let the moisture get absorbed.

You can store escarole in its head form in a loose plastic bag in the fridge for up to 4 days.  If you want to wash the escarole first, that’s fine. Wash well and store it in a paper towel or dish towel in a loose plastic bag for 4 days.

How to Sauté Escarole

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Have a large bowl of ice water nearby.  When the water is boiling, add the washed escarole, and simmer, stirring occasionally for 3 minutes until wilted.  Reserve ½ cup of the cooking water, and drain the escarole in a colander.  Plunge the escarole into the ice bath; this will lock in the color.  

Drain and roughly chop into smaller pieces.  Set aside.

Return the pot to medium heat, and heat the oil.  When the oil is hot, add the garlic, red pepper flakes, and anchovies, if using.  Stir until the garlic is lightly golden.

Then add the escarole (it should still be a bit wet from the ice bath) and sauté for 3 or 4 more minutes until the escarole is wilted and hot and well combined with the seasonings.  

Transfer to a serving dish or bowl, and serve hot or warm with a nice final drizzle of olive oil and the lemon wedges.

Sautéed Escarole Add-Ins

• Capers
• Golden or black raisins
• Chopped olives
• Minced anchovies or anchovy paste
• Peas
• Pine nuts

What to Serve With Sautéed Escarole

• Pork Chop Marsala
• Baked Tortellini
• Chicken Parmesan
• Porchetta
• Baked Salmon

Other Cooked Greens

• Spinach
• Broccoli Rabe
• Swiss Chard
• Kale

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