Radicchio – Red Chicory, is a vegetable characterised by its typical bitterish taste. We made it as an Italian Chutney version, great to pair with boiled or roasted meat, to spread on a slice of bread for an unusual breakfast. Its perfect match, however, is with cheese: a little bowl of Radicchio Chutney is a classy touch for a cheeseboard to serve as starter, particularly with the aged-ones like Grana Padano or Parmigiano Reggiano or any cheese with a piquant taste will highlight the sour and sweet notes of Radicchio Chutney.
Serves 3-4 | Preparation time: 10 mins | Cooking time: about 50 – 60 mins
- Radicchio – Red Chicory: 500 g
- Brown sugar: 100 g
- Cloves: 1
- Juice of 1 orange
- 90 ml apple vinegar
- a pinch of nutmeg
- Grana Padano or Parmigiano Reggiano piece
Method
Rinse in cold water. Trim off the bottom stem and cut out the core, cut leaves into strips. Blanch for 1 minute in unsalted boiling water. Drain and squeeze it well and let it cool.
Boil the apple vinegar with the sugar, add the filtered orange juice and the clove and a pinch of nutmeg.
Stir and let the sugar dissolve, then add the radicchio strips.
Bring to the boil and cook on a low flame for about 50 minutes or until the mixture is soft and caramelised. Remove the clove.
Allow to cool it down. Cut some piece of cheese to serve along with Radicchio Chutney.
How to Store Radicchio Chutney?
Buy glass airtight containers to preserve the chutneys and sterilize them before using; it will lasts about 3 weeks in the fridge if preserved correctly.
To prepare the jar, place it in a pot full of water; bring the water to a boil and let it boil for 1 hour before removing the jar. Use a clean cloth to dry the jar, then fill it up with the chutney.
2 Comments
I would truly love this for a cheese board – thanks for a really creative recipe!
Thanks to you for the appreciation, David.
We managed to sweeten the Radicchio!
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