In season: Rhubarb

 

Article By: Georgina Leonard   Print   Email

 

Commonly misclassified as a fruit, rhubarb is in fact a vegetable. Find out more about it here... Commonly misclassified as a fruit, rhubarb is in fact a vegetable. It originated in China and Tibet 2000 years ago and was initially cultivated for medicinal purposes. Today it is grown and harvested all around the world. Rhubarb is used mostly in desserts such as crumbles, compotes and pies, however it is also delicious in a savoury context like in relishes or baked and served with grilled meat.

Selection, storage and preparation of rhubarb
Only the stem of the rhubarb plant is edible and although the leaves and roots are sometimes used in herbal remedies, generally speaking they are toxic to humans. Having said this, one would have to eat a great deal for it to have any dire effect. Rhubarb is sold by the bunch which is usually 1-1.5kg in weight and consists of 5-6 stems. When cooked, 1kg yields approximately 2 cups. When selecting rhubarb, choose fresh crisp stalks that are bright pink, and free of disease or insect damage. Young, dark, pink, thinner stems are sweeter and more tender than thick, long, green ones, but this also depends on the particular variety of rhubarb.

It's best to pull off any stringy material covering before use. Stand the stalks in cold water for an hour or so to refresh them before cooking. The stalks can be stored in the fridge for 2-4 weeks and are best wrapped in plastic to prevent them from becoming wrinkly. Before use, discard any leaves and trim the ends. Completely peeling the entire rhubarb stem is unnecessary. Rhubarb does require sweetening to minimise the extreme tartness.

Cooking with rhubarb
The rhubarb stems can be cooked in a variety of ways. They are usually sliced into lengths and stewed either by themselves, or sweetened with a little sugar and vanilla essence. Rhubarb can be combined with other fruits like apples, quince, pears, plums and strawberries. In fact, depending on what fruit you stew it with, this somewhat slightly tart fruit will sweeten naturally without having to add too much extra sugar. Other sweeteners such as pear or apple concentrate, maple syrup, honey, artificial sweetener or even fresh orange juice are also good low-kilojoule alternatives to sugar. Apart from stewing, rhubarb can be pan-fried or baked. Again a sweetener of some sort is recommended. Cinnamon and vanilla essence are great flavour matches with rhubarb, especially if you are making a crumble and serving it with low-fat vanilla ice-cream! Here are some of our favourite recipes using rhubarb which should inspire you.

• Rhubarb stewed with apples and pears is great to have on top of muesli or porridge. Trim 500g of rhubarb removing the leaves. Cut 2 apples into 3 cm pieces and 2 firm but ripe pears into 3cm pieces, leaving the skins on. Place the fruit in a medium sized saucepan and top with the stems of rhubarb cut into 3cm lengths. Add a cinnamon quill, 1 tsp vanilla essence, 2 tbs brown sugar or maple syrup and 2 tbs water. Bring to the boil over a medium heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, for 20-25 minutes, or until the fruit is tender. Rhubarb has a tendency to break down if cooked too quickly, or stirred too often. So gently is the secret. Set the mixture aside to cool completely, then serve. Serves 4 with a POINTS value of 1.5 per serve.
  
  
• Rhubarb and strawberry crumble is a nice change to the usual apple crumble. Preheat the oven to 180C. Trim 500g of rhubarb into 1cm lengths and place in a large bowl. Add 2 tbs caster sugar, 2 tbs artificial sweetener and 1/2 tsp vanilla essence. Toss well to coat. Add 250g of hulled and sliced strawberries. Transfer the mixture to a large 2 litre capacity oven-proof dish and set aside. Meanwhile combine 1/2 cup of rolled oats, 2/3 cup plain flour, 2 tbs brown sugar and 2 tbs reduced-fat butter spread. Rub together using finger tips to combine, or until you have a coarse texture. Transfer the rhubarb mixture to the oven-proof dish and sprinkle over the crumble mixture. Bake in the pre-heated oven for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown and bubbling. Serve with warm low-fat vanilla custard if desired but remember to count the extra POINTS values. Serves 6 with a POINTS value of 3 per serve.
  
  
• Spicy rhubarb and plum chutney with grilled lean duck breasts. Nothing quite beats a sweet and spicy chutney to accompany grilled meat. Trim 500g of rhubarb into 1 cm lengths. Add 1 chopped onion, 4 chopped plums (you could use canned plums in natural juice if fresh are unavailable), 2/3 cup sugar, ½ cup white wine vinegar, 2 tsp grated ginger, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, a pinch of ground cloves and 2 tsp salt. Place in a medium sized saucepan, cover and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low, remove, cover and simmer stirring often for 30-40 minutes or until thick. Season to taste. Pour into a sterilised jar and store. Serves 12 with a POINTS value of 1 per serve.
  
  
• A rhubarb and yoghurt dessert is easy to make. Simply trim and thinly slice 500g rhubarb. Place in a medium saucepan with ½ cup fresh orange juice, 1 tsp finely grated orange zest and 2 tbs artificial sweetener. Cover and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to low, uncover and simmer, stirring occasionally until thick and the liquid has mostly evaporated. Set aside to cool. Spoon cold rhubarb mixture into the base of 4 serving glasses and top each serve with 125g low-fat vanilla yoghurt. Cover and refrigerate until chilled and set. Serves 4 with a POINTS value of 2 per serve.

For more recipe suggestions check out the links below:

• Rhubarb compote
• Rhubarb and plum tarts
• Rhubarb and apple crumble