Celtuce

Has anybody tried it?

Saw it for the first time today at the farmer's market. The name suggests a combination of celery and lettuce, and that's what it looks like: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/17/celtuce_n_6330026.html, or http://paleomagazine.com/what-is-celtuce-and-how-do-you-eat-it/. Of course I had to buy some.

It did not taste like a combination of celery and lettuce. Raw it was very strong and intense, in a woodsy way, not in the peppery celery-type way. I sauteed it for a while to take that edge off, and it retained the woodsy nuttiness, but obviously got sweeter as well. I put it in a crab and noodle soup and it was tasty enough. I didn't love it, it was very intense. But perhaps will keep trying it for a bit to experiment with different preps.

So--a lettuce cultivar intentionally bred to bolt. It sounds perfect for New England gardens. I've seen this vegetable in Chinese markets and wondered what it was. It looks as though it's used much the same way as young bamboo shoots in stir-fries.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

I have not tried it, but can't to wait to now! Thanks for the post. It will be on my radar next time I'm shopping at an Asian market in Vancouver. There's honestly no green that I don't like except dandelion greens.

I have not tried it, but can't to wait to now! Thanks for the post. It will be on my radar next time I'm shopping at an Asian market in Vancouver. There's honestly no green that I don't like except dandelion greens.

Sounds good. But remember for celtuce you're eating the root, not the greens.

[Jenise]

Understood. I mean to type green vegetable and wasn't exclusively referring to just 'greens' per se. As someone who likes the stalk of the broccoli plant better than the crowns, and who considers an elongated heart in a stalk of bolting celery the best part (whenever I accidentally get one like that), celtuce makes perfect sense.

Sounds good. But remember for celtuce you're eating the root, not the greens.

The stem, actually.

-Paul W.