Braised Belgian Endives
Endives Braisées is a classic Belgian recipe. Great on its own or all dressed up. Belgian endives are popular across Europe as comfort food or a side dish worthy of any dinner party. In the US, they’re usually served raw, in dips and salads — not my favorite, to be frank, too bitter. I prefer the European way of braising them.
Ingredients
- 4 medium-size Belgian endives, split lengthwise in half
- 1/2 cup (70 g) smoked bacon cut into matchsticks
- 1 Tbsp butter
- juice of a lemon
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) white wine
- 6 Tbsp crème fraîche or heavy cream
- salt and freshly ground pepper
Preparation
Melt butter in the pan and add bacon pieces. Fry them until crunchy over medium heat taking care not to burn the bacon, stirring now and then. When nicely browned, remove them from the pan and drain them on paper towels.
Discard most of the fat accumulated in the pan. Leave just about 2 tablespoons of it. Scrape any bacon bits left on the bottom of the pan. They give an extra taste to the wine and cream sauce later on.
Add the endives cut side down first in a single layer. Sprinkle them with pepper. Don’t add any salt at this stage as the bacon is already salted. Sprinkle bacon sticks around the endives and add the white wine. Bring everything to a quick boil. Reduce the heat to low and sauté them gently for 30 minutes turning them gently now and then until they are nicely golden but do not fall apart. Pierce them in the center with a small knife to test their doneness.
Add lemon juice and cream swirling the pan around to mix the juices. Taste for salt. Warm it again without letting it boil.
Notes
A note on names: in the UK, Belgian endives are called chicory, while in the US “chicory” refers to curly endive, a different leaf used for salads. In Australia and New Zealand, Belgian endives go by their Flemish name, witloof. Confusing, indeed.
