Sure, you can steam or saute Swiss chard; it’s quick, and, let’s face it, it’s good, but rather pedestrian. What if we were able to tell you a way to amp up the flavor of your Swiss chard without any additional effort? Would you go for it? Of course you would, fellow scratchers. Who wouldn’t? We would, and did, and you can, too.
The idea for this comes from wanting to do something different with that large bunch of Swiss chard we picked up at the CSA last week. We really wanted something simple, but a bit different. Then we vaguely remembered recipe from Jacques Pépin that we saw in Poulets & Legumes. We had the idea that it was for spinach and figured that it would work for Swiss chard, but, when we looked, it was for green beans! We did say we only vaguely remembered the recipe. But, we figured, what’s good enough for the bean is good enough for the chard, and went with it, anyway.
Swiss Chard in a Mustard Cream Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 Tbs heavy cream
- 1/2 Tbs Dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 2 Tbs olive oil
- 2 Tbs finely diced onion
- 1 bunch Swiss chard, roughly chopped (about 3/4 of a pound)
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix together heavy cream, mustard, salt, and pepper.
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and fry until tender. Add Swiss chard and continue to cook until chard begins to wilt.
- Add cream sauce and bring to a simmer, stirring to coat. Continue to cook until chard is done. Serve immediately.
Ingredient discussion:
For the heavy cream, we try to use organic, simply because it’s just cream. No thickeners, just cream, is what you’re buying. Dijon mustard is sharper-tasting than most mustards, but we think any mustard will work here. And, if you decide to use another vegetable in place of Swiss chard, you might want to blanch it first, depending on what you’re using.
Procedure in detail:
Make cream sauce. We’re not sure you even have to make the cream sauce in advance. You could probably simply measure the appropriate amounts of ingredients (or use your best guess) right into the pan while you’re cooking the chard, but, we did measure them out in advance. Why not? So, in a small bowl or something similar — we used a measuring cup with a spout — mix together the heavy cream, mustard, salt, and pepper. Set aside for now.
Cook onions. The original version of this recipe called for shallots, and we love shallots, but we didn’t have any, so we diced up some white onion, instead. Feel free to use shallots, if you have them on hand. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat, add the onions, and fry until tender, about 3-5 minutes.
Cook chard. Add the chard and stir to coat. Continue cooking until the chard begins to wilt, then add the cream sauce, and stir to incorporate. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce simmers and the Swiss chard is cooked all the way through, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.
We really didn’t need much in the way of exposition for making this side. But, just because it’s so simple doesn’t mean it’s not good. We really liked it. It had a nice mustard-y taste without being overpowering, and, well, let’s face it, anything with heavy cream is bound to taste great. For something so quick and easy, this is a five-star side dish.
