15 Surprising Savory Rhubarb Recipes (2024)

FAQs

Do you have to peel rhubarb before you cook it? ›

Peeling rhubarb is rarely necessary. Most recipes require the rhubarb to be cut into batons. Using a paring knife, top and tail the stem, slice at an angle into the size that the recipe requires – this could vary from 1 inch chunks for quick-stewed rhubarb to longer batons for roasting or poaching.

Rhubarb is a truly special ingredient. With its vivid pink colour and distinctively tangy taste, it can be stewed, poached, roasted and puréed in a range of dishes as well as drinks. Use it in a comforting crumble, a classic syllabub, a fruity chutney or a zingy kebab sauce – the possibilities are endless.

"You want to peel off the first layer, and then you want to simmer it with some brown sugar and ginger," he explains. "Once you let it simmer, and it's soft, let it sit overnight. Now you have these tender ribbons that you can jar up, or you can put them on anything."

The classic move of using up an abundance of summer fruit is through making up a jam, and that works really well with rhubarb too. Rhubarb preserves are tart on their own, so if you'd rather balance that out, you can make something like this Strawberry Rhubarb Freezer Jam.

So, in conclusion: You don't have to peel rhubarb before eating it. Of course, you can if you want to. But doing it means that some of the lovely red flavor is going to disappear. I usually just prepare rhubarb by rinsing it and then cutting it into thin slices!

You can freeze rhubarb raw, blanched or fully cooked. Regardless of which stage you choose to freeze at, the rhubarb will break down more as it defrosts, so it's best used in dishes where you don't need neat sticks of it.

Rhubarb is good to eat in spring or early summer months, so before late July, to be exact. However, during the late summer months, rhubarb stalks tend to become more fibrous and start to lose their characteristic natural flavor. So, it's better not to eat rhubarb in the late summer.

If you already have kidney disease, avoid rhubarb. Kidney stones: Rhubarb contains a chemical that the body can convert into kidney stones. If you have ever had kidney stones, don't take rhubarb.

A cup is a measure of volume while pounds is a measure of weight so a direct calculation is difficult. If we only take liquid weight into account, one cup is eight ounces and two pounds would be 32 ounces so two pounds of rhubarb would equate to 4 cups.

In Jenny's mind, rhubarb needs little more than two additional ingredients and 30 minutes in the oven to come to life. It also can rely on some of nature's best sweeteners—honey and orange juice—to bring it to its sweetest, most flavorful heights.

What is the prime season for rhubarb? ›

Depending on your location, rhubarb is typically available from early spring (the end of March or early April) to late spring or early summer (around May or June). Since fresh rhubarb is almost always available in April, it's a common choice for Passover and Easter desserts, as well as other spring celebrations.

Raw in salads – balance tartness by pairing with sweeter ingredients and slice very thinly. Roast with Orange and Maple is a lovely simple way no-refined sugar way to eat Rhubarb. Saute – Saute coconut oil, butter, olive oil – add maple or balsamic vinegar for a dessert or warm salad.

You can store frozen rhubarb for up to a year. That said, it will start to deteriorate a bit after 3 to 4 months. It won't spoil, but it will start to lose color and will be more likely to lose its structure when defrosted or cooked.

Sennoside A and other dianthrone derivatives are reported to be the active ingredients causing rhubarb's laxative effect (6). They are metabolized by β-glucosidase of enterobacterial origin and are converted into rhein anthrone, which produces the purgative activity.

The bottom line

Since it may be high in oxalate, you should avoid eating too much of it and try to select stalks from low-oxalate varieties. If you are prone to kidney stones, it might be best to avoid rhubarb altogether. On the bright side, rhubarb is a good source of antioxidants, vitamin K, and fiber.

Maincrop rhubarb can sometimes have tough, stringy ribs, so after washing it, strip these off with a small, sharp knife and slice the stalk thinly or thickly as required. Forced rhubarb should be tender enough not to need peeling – just wash, then trim the top and bottom of the stalks and slice.

To prepare: Wash the stems and cut off the leaves and the ends. Cut into 2cm lengths, removing any strings if necessary. Stew or poach in some water and a little sugar. When making a crumble or a pie, the rhubarb does not need to be cooked first.