🥬 Endive

Endive is a bitter-sweet salad plant related to chicory, forming frilly curly heads (frisée) or broad-leaved heads (escarole). It is at its best in autumn and early winter, when lettuce is over, and its slight bitterness is a welcome change.

Sown in summer, endive resists bolting better than lettuce. Blanching the hearts by covering them for a few days reduces the bitterness and gives tender, pale leaves.

Types and varieties

Endive has two leaf types, both sown in summer for autumn cropping.

Sow from June to August, 1 cm deep, in modules or directly in rows 30 cm apart, and thin or plant out to 25–30 cm. Sowing before June risks bolting. Seeds germinate best in cool conditions, so sow in the evening in summer.

Choose a sunny spot with fertile, moisture-retentive soil. Late sowings under cloches carry the crop through winter.

Top tips

• Sow from June.
• Sow in the evening in hot weather.
• Space 25–30 cm.
• Use modules for easy transplanting.

Water regularly and evenly, since drought makes leaves bitter and tough. Feed lightly if the plants look pale. Mulch to keep the soil moist.

To blanch, about 10 days before harvest, tie the outer leaves loosely together or cover the head with a plate or bucket, excluding light. Slugs and aphids are the main pests. Do not blanch in wet weather, which leads to rot.

Top tips

• Water evenly.
• Blanch 10 days before harvest.
• Blanch only in dry weather.
• Check for slugs.

Watch out for

SlugsAphidsRot when blanched in wet weatherBolting from early sowing

Cut whole heads when they are firm and 20–25 cm across, from September to December, once blanched. Cut at ground level with a knife. The plants are hardy to about -5°C, but heads rot in prolonged wet or hard frost.

Loose outer leaves can be picked as needed. Take heads in before severe frost, or protect with fleece.

If you do not wish to blanch, you can simply cut the leaves young for a milder taste. Curly types may hold water in their frills, so drain and shake well before storing. Tying the outer leaves with a rubber band or soft string is a quick method of blanching.

Top tips

• Cut blanched heads at ground level.
• Protect from hard frost.
• Pick outer leaves as needed.
• Harvest before wet rot.

Use endive raw in salads, mixed with sweet ingredients such as oranges, apples, walnuts or bacon to balance the bitterness, with a mustardy dressing. Larger leaves can be braised, sautéed or added to soups.

Heads keep 1–2 weeks in the fridge, wrapped in damp paper. Soak cut leaves in cold water to mellow the bitterness and crisp them up.

Top tips

• Balance with sweet and salty flavours.
• Soak leaves in cold water.
• Braise larger leaves.
• Dress with a mustard vinaigrette.