Farmer's market haul leave you with more than you can handle? We can help.
By Margaret Eby Updated May 28, 2019
rhubarb hero
Credit: Ali Salehi Yavani/Picture Press/Getty Images, Johner Images/Getty Images
If you've never encountered rhubarb before, it can be a perplexing plant. It crops up at the farmer's market this time of year, and looks a whole lot like pink celery. Except rather than being used primarily for savory applications, like celery, rhubarb is usually used more like a fruit. It's also used often in desserts in combination with other fruits, because its naturally tart flavor pairs really well with sweeter berries that are in season around the same time. Strawberry and rhubarb is a classic combination for exactly that reason. Rhubarb is mildly toxic when raw, and its leaves are poisonous enough that you don't even want to compost them, since they may have ill effects for your lawn.
But maybe you know all that, because you've just been to the farmer's market, or to pick up your CSA share, and you've found yourself with a whole heck of a lot of rhubarb. What should you do with it? Beyond the usual rhubarb tart and maybe a raspberry-rhubarb crisp, you still have a lot of it left. Here are some idea oof how to bust your rhubarb stash.
Make Jam
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. Once you have jam, the timeline on your rhubarb stock gets elongated by a lot. You can put it on toast, throw it in a dessert or put it into a blender with banana and yogurt for a smoothie.
Make a Compote
If you want to take things in a more savory direction, a rhubarb compote might be a good bet. A compote is a simple sauce made by simmering or sweating vegetables and then pureeing them. Rhubarb pairs really well with garlic and ginger for a sauce that goes well with lamb or chicken, or even with a mild-flavored fish.
Make a Liqueur
The bright tart notes in rhubarb are great in co*cktails, and you can make your own without much fuss. Take about a pound and a half of chopped up rhubarb and put it in a jar with vodka, Grand Marnier, and simple syrup for your own rhubarb liqueur. It Would be great with lemonade, club soda, or combined with sparkling wine.
Throw It In Salad
You don't have to cook rhubarb much to remove its mild toxicity. This strawberry rhubarb salad takes the flavor profile that works well in dessert and makes it into a cold salad—just cook the rhubarb in boiling water for a minute and let it cool in the pot for 15 minutes.
Put It In BBQ Sauce
It might sound weird, but rhubarb adds a beautiful bright tangy note to traditional barbecue sauce. Most of the work you have to do for the sauce is cooking the rhubarb with vinegar, chiptole, sugar, and ketchup, and then putting the ingredients in a blender to turn it into a smooth sauce. Voila: Rhubarb-b-q sauce, a treat for adding to smokey grilled chicken.
Still having trouble? Flip through this gallery of Our Best Rhubarb Recipes and see if it strikes your fancy.
FAQs
4 Ways To Use Leftover Rhubarb
- Candied. Simply bake rhubarb pieces with sugar and lemon in the oven to obtain a candied version that you can spread on toast or pour over a scoop of ice cream.
- In co*cktails. Rhubarb and summer drinks go hand in hand. ...
- Homemade syrup. You don't even need a recipe to make rhubarb syrup. ...
- Compote.
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.
How do you neutralize rhubarb? ›
Adding a bit of baking soda to a recipe can help reduce the acidity of your baked rhubarb dish. Rhubarb has versatility for sweet and savoury applications; for instance, it is often part of Iranian and Afghan stews and is used as you would use spinach.
What to do with one stalk of rhubarb? ›
Many suggest dipping the stalk in sugar or some other sweet, such as honey, maple syrup or agave nectar, to mellow its tartness a touch. Sprinkling diced rhubarb over yogurt or cereal is an option too.
What happens if you eat too much rhubarb? ›
Side effects might include stomach pain, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and cramps. Rhubarb leaves are possibly unsafe. Rhubarb leaves contain oxalic acid, which can cause stomach pain, diarrhea, vomiting, seizures, and death.
When should you not eat rhubarb? ›
When do you have to worry about rhubarb? Rhubarb in your garden that has frozen to the point where the stalks become damaged or mushy should be discarded. Check the leaves, too. If the stalks are firm and upright and the leaves have little damage, the rhubarb is OK.
How do you get rid of rhubarb? ›
Rhubarb can be a tenacious survivor, but if you keep digging at the roots it will eventually succumb. Since you want to plant vegetables, I wouldn't advise spraying it. Since the root system may continue to pop up, I'd plant crops with short maturities to harvest until you're sure you've gotten out all the rhubarb.
How do you remove oxalic acid from rhubarb? ›
Extracting Oxalic acid from Rhubarb?
- Cut up rhubarb leaves finely and soak in 40 degree Celsius water for several days (so the oxalic acid leeches out)
- Add calcium carbonate to form calcium oxalate which will precipitate out.
- Re-acidify with HCl.
Solution: Soak the rhubarb in water to reduce the acid, simmer in orange juice and sugar (and don't stir too much) to retain texture and color, and layer with lightly whipped, sweetened cream for ideal flavor and texture and an attractive, unusual presentation.
Why do you put a bucket over rhubarb? ›
Forcing rhubarb
Earlier harvests of sweeter, tender, pale stalks can be produced by covering rhubarb plants with a forcing jar, tall bucket or dustbin in mid-winter, so the stems form in the dark. Choose an early variety, such as 'Timperley Early', and only use a strong, healthy plant.
and Environmental Research, Bugwood.org. To renew your rhubarb, it will be necessary to divide the root. The root has become too old and tough to grow well. The time to divide the root will be as early in the spring as you can dig it up.
Can you harvest too much rhubarb? ›
Unless it's a massive plant, you don't want to harvest more than a few stalks at once from a single rhubarb. As long as you don't over harvest it, this low-maintenance edible perennial should come back year after year for you to enjoy.
How do you preserve rhubarb for later use? ›
Spread a single layer of cut rhubarb on trays, freeze until firm (1 to 2 hours), then put in air tight bags or containers. Rhubarb may also be frozen with sugar or syrup. For a sugar pack, mix 1 part sugar and 4 parts rhubarb and allow to stand until sugar is dissolved before packing into freezer containers.
Why is rhubarb a laxative? ›
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.
