Salvaging bolted leeks
Until yesterday one of my consolations this miserable season in northern New England was my bed of beautiful, sized-up, healthy leeks. Sob. Apparently they mistook June for winter (geez, how'd that happen). I'd always written off bolted leeks (inedibly woody) but thanks to the internets, found a semi-fix: the minute you see the bulblet poking its way up, harvest the leek. (It can sit in the fridge for a while.) Slit lengthwise, remove and discard the solid core (easy--it's the part with no layers) and use the rest. Now I have chopped cooked leeks in the freezer a few months ahead of schedule. I'm not happy but some leeks is better than no leeks.
H/t to http://www.garden.org/regional/report...
Like she says, don't try cooking the inner core (I did, just to see; don't). As the scape is just an extension of that core I figured it was the same and dumped them.
I'll experiment with cutting leeks at ground level and trying to get a 2nd crop from the resprouted roots. Didn't think of it this time.
By Aromatherapy
on Jul 20, 2009 05:46 AM
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Good tip! Looking forward to hearing about the further experiments.
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I did cut leeks off close to the roots and leave in the ground. So far, 1-2 weeks later, they are showing a couple inches of new growth. We shall see.
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Hey, this worked! The new growth turned into leeks. They're not the plump stately beauties I lost, but what the heck. I'd have a bigger crop if I hadn't shillyshallied around praying for a miracle instead of chopping them all off at ground level when the bolting started. Haven't kept that close an eye on them but I bet the largest (which are good-sized) are the ones I amputated first. Sherri, thanks for the core tip, I have a bagful in the freezer now.
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Instead of tossing the woody core of bolted leeks and some garlic, I included them in stock and was pleasantly surprised. They add their own flavor to the pot.
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