IF fatigue is setting in for the same old wintry merry-go-round of leeks, cabbage, parsnips and turnips, you are not alone.
But there is one exciting exception of which I never grow tired. Oddly (to me, anyway) a lot of people I encounter seem slightly wary of it. This strikes me as a very unjust way to treat the gorgeous Jerusalem artichoke.
My friend Rob, who has an impressive vegetable patch at the top of his garden, is a big fan, rightly proud of his Jerusalem artichoke output and generous in offering me handfuls of them in times of plenty. This is not rare: his family can be reluctant enthusiasts.
Perhaps it is not the vegetable itself which is unwanted, but the alleged after-effects. The bottom line here is all about flatulence. The Jerusalem artichoke is perceived as (how can I introduce this delicately?) hanging around long after it has been eaten up. This can get right up some people's noses.
There is a solution: par-boiling the peeled tubers before proceeding. After that, they are as versatile as potato but with a unique sweet smokiness. In the restaurant we use them for creamy dauphinoise gratin, brittle deep-fried crisps, satin-like puree and dense savoury panna cotta. We also stew them fricassee style, finished with crème fraiche and crispy pancetta to reinforce the vegetable's own smoky depths. A simple soup is a perfect way to appreciate the Jerusalem artichoke. My gratin recipe will certainly remove any whiff of lingering doubt.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article