I want to give a shout out to all the radicchio out there that I have passed up in the store time and time again. For the past whatever weeks, I walk into the store thinking, “I’m going to do radicchio this week,” only to find another fruit or vegetable. Radicchio has been patient and kind while I continuously look past it for the glitzier produce. Let’s just take a moment to let radicchio into your heart.
So these look like little baby red cabbage, but once you pick them up you soon realize this is not cabbage at all. To explain all of this, I had to do a little research because I kept seeing that radicchio is a type of chicory. I had no clue what that was, so I discovered that chicory can be used in salads to add a touch of bitterness and its roots can actually be used as a coffee substitute. Being in the minority of hating coffee, I guess I’ll be addressing the leafy red heads instead of the roots.
I think they look gorgeous though, just look at that beauty within. Before I sliced it in two I felt like I had to be careful because the leaves are so delicate. You can instantly tell it isn’t cabbage because you can peel the leaves like tissue paper. It was difficult to find some with minimal bruising, again, please take a moment for the radicchio I passed up only to let other shoppers pick them up and bruise them.
I expect the texture to be like a soft cooked cabbage whenever I eat it. Hopefully it doesn’t turn into a horrible mush because the leaves are so thin. I may try a bite or two of it in its natural state but I’ve always had issues eating bitter lettuces in some mixed salads so I may bypass the raw approach.
Either way, radicchio is finally getting its moment to shine and I hope you all treat them right!
Try 52 