CICORIA: Chicory – Bitter Green

Cicoria (chicory) is of one of my favourite winter greens. This bitter, leafy vegetable is found in markets and greengrocers all over Italy, but is not as commonly here in Australia.

I especially love the open-air markets, where the bunches seem to have a life of their own and carts of wild-foraged cicoria are plentiful.

Cicoria is cultivated and sold in bunches, it is a green vegetable, but sometimes the stalks are tinted red.  The cicoria family includes catalogna and puntarelle (also called Cicoria cimata). These are usually  used in salads.

To the uninitiated, cicoria may seem like just another bitter leafy green. But in Italy, it holds a much more significant role.

What Is Cicoria?

Cicoria is a catch-all term Italians use for a variety of bitter greens: wild dandelion, catalogna, and puntarelle (which look like cicoria that has started to sprout). In English, it’s loosely translated as chicory, though it includes more varieties than you’d typically find at a greengrocer’s, especially in Australia.

In many parts of the world, chicory is seen more as a medicinal herb or a coffee substitute (in fact, chicory essence was widely consumed as “coffee” when I first arrived in Australia). But in Italy, it’s cherished—an essential vegetable in cucina povera, the humble, healthful peasant cooking that defines much of the country’s food culture.

Italians will tell you that bitter greens are “good for the liver”—and they’re right. Cicoria’s natural bitterness stimulates bile production, supports digestion, and nourishes the gut. Like artichokes, another bitter Italian favourite, it’s as healing as it is flavourful.

How I Cook Cicoria

There are endless ways to prepare cicoria, and most Italian recipes begin with boiling or blanching to soften it. That said, I don’t always do this—I often sauté the greens first, then add a bit of liquid, cover with a lid, and let them cook gently.

Cicoria Ripassata

The most traditional—and simplest—method is to boil or blanch the greens, then sauté with aromatics. This is known as cicoria ripassata: after boiling, the greens are “repassed” in olive oil with garlic and chili. Though often credited as a Roman dish, it’s made this way all over Italy. (The chili is optional.)

Boiled Cicoria with Lemon and Olive Oil

Surprisingly refreshing: just boiled cicoria with a drizzle of good olive oil and a squeeze of lemon. Sometimes served with a bit of its poaching liquid, this method is known as rinfrescante—cleansing and hydrating for the digestive system.

Cicoria with Legumes

Bitter greens pair beautifully with creamy beans. Mix cicoria with lentils, borlotti, or cannellini for a hearty side dish—or turn it into pasta e fagioli. I also like spooning cicoria and borlotti over polenta or cooking it with fresh Italian pork sausages and pasta.

Frittate

Leftover sautéed cicoria makes a fantastic frittata. I use all sorts of vegetables as a contorno (side dish) the day before, then reuse the leftovers in a frittata or add them to soups.

Salads

The tender inner leaves of the long leaf cicoria can also be eaten raw. I like mixing the young central leaves into salads with lettuce, rocket, radicchio, fennel, and endive.

Varieties like puntarelle and catalogna are also very popular salad ingredients. Romans traditionally dress puntarelle with anchovy vinaigrette.


Cicoria Ripassata

I often serve this as a contorno (side dish).

Ingredients:

1 large bunch of cicoria (chicory or dandelion greens)

2–3 cloves garlic, smashed

1 dried or fresh chili (or chili flakes)

Extra virgin olive oil

Salt, to taste

Instructions:

Clean the cicoria thoroughly, removing any tough stems and soaking well to remove grit.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Blanch the cicoria for 5–10 minutes, until tender. Drain well and gently squeeze out excess water.

In a wide skillet, heat a generous glug of olive oil. Add garlic and chili, and let them infuse the oil for a minute or two.

Add the cicoria, season with salt, and sauté for another 5 minutes, tossing to coat in the flavours.


Purea di Fave e Cicoria

(Broad Bean Purée with Chicory)

A Southern Italian winter favourite, this dish is both comforting and nutrient-rich. I sometimes swap fava beans for butter beans for convenience—they’re creamy, mild, and velvety. I often serve the purée with slivers of fresh or toasted bread, much like hummus. Try it as an antipasto with a Southern Italian wine such as Malvasia Bianca, Verdeca, or Fiano.

Ingredients:

1 cup dried split broad beans (or whole beans, peeled after soaking)

1 bunch of cicoria

2 cloves garlic

Extra virgin olive oil

Salt, to taste

Instructions:

Soak the broad beans  overnight. Drain and peel if needed.

In a pot, cover the beans with fresh water and simmer over low heat until very soft (about 1 hour). Add water as needed. Once cooked, mash or purée with olive oil and salt until smooth and creamy.

Meanwhile, clean and boil the cicoria until tender. Drain and sauté with garlic and olive oil.

To serve, spoon the broad beann purée onto a plate, top with the cicoria, and finish with a generous drizzle of olive oil.

The fragrance is incredible.

Other Cicoria recipes:

CICORETTA CON SALSICCIA (Chicory with fresh pork sausage)

CICORIA and Puntarelle (Chicory)

A RAVE ABOUT BORLOTTI BEANS

SEASONAL WINTER VEGETABLES in Melbourne, Australia

BITTER GREENS and AMARI (Aperitivi and Digestivi)

Below, wild greens seller in Sicily.


SEASONAL WINTER VEGETABLES in Melbourne, Australia

I really like seasonal produce and winter vegetables are outstanding. The variety is immense, the quality eminent.

Winter vegetables include: artichokes, Asian greens, avocado, beans, beetroot, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, cardoons, carrot, catalogna, cauliflower, cavolo nero, celeriac, celery, chicory, cime di rapa, cucumber, daikon, endive, fennel, kale, Kohlrabi, lamb’s lettuce, leek, lettuces, mushrooms, okra, onion, parsnip, potato, pumpkin, radicchio, radish, rocket, shallots, silverbeet, spinach, spring onions, swede, sweet potato, turnip, watercress and witlof.

Winter vegetables are truly a gift of the season. With their rich variety and exceptional quality, they bring such vibrant flavors to the table. From earthy root vegetables to crisp, leafy greens, there’s so much to celebrate.

The bounty of winter vegetables includes everything from artichokes and Asian greens to beetroot, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, and celeriac. There’s also a lovely mix of leafy greens like kale, cavolo nero, and chicory, alongside hearty roots like carrots, parsnips, and swede. And of course, we can’t forget the starchy vegetables like sweet potato, pumpkin, and potato, or the peppery hit from radicchio, rocket, and radish. The list goes on, from daikon and fennel to mushrooms and shallots—each one offering a unique flavor and texture to work with in the kitchen.

As I look at this  list, I realize there are still some vegetables I haven’t shared many recipes for on my blog, All Things Sicilian and More, specifically, daikon, okra, parsnip, shallots, swede, and possibly turnip. It’s not that I don’t use these ingredients—I do! I just tend to focus more on Mediterranean vegetables in my posts, reflecting the influence of my Italian background, both from Trieste and Sicilian, my childhood, and the foundation of my cooking. While the “More” in my blog’s title hints at a broader culinary horizon, Italian cooking remains the focus of my recipes.

That said, I’m always experimenting, and winter offers the perfect opportunity to revisit and reimagine old favorites. For example, I love cooking Asian greens, particularly mustard greens, and preparing them in the same way I cook cime di rapa (a type of Italian turnip green) with pasta. I also enjoy stir-frying Chinese leafy greens in olive oil and garlic, with a few anchovies or a sprinkle of chili flakes for a little extra punch. The marriage of Italian and Asian flavors is something I truly enjoy.

This winter, I’m diving back into some of my favorite winter vegetable recipes, and I’m starting with two of my go-to chicories: Cicoria and Catalogna. These hearty greens are perfect for the season, offering both depth of flavour and versatility.

Cicoria – Chicory

Catalogna is a variant of cicoria. In Italy is also called Puntarelle or cicoria di catalogna or cicoria asparago: asparago means asparagus and this name is very appropriate as the plant looks like a head of shoots.

Catalogna (Puntarelle) has leaves that look like large leaves of chicory and dandelions, but more pointy and narrower; its leaves and shoots have the same bitter taste. And I love bitter greens.

Like chicory, the young and tender shoots of Catalogna can be eaten raw in salads. It is common to soak the puntarelle shoots in ice water for a while so that they curl. and then to dress them with a vinaigrette with anchovies and garlic. They are delicious.

Dressing with anchovies: 500g- 1 kilo puntarelle, 2 tbs extra virgin olive oil, 1tbs of vinegar, 3-4 anchovies, 1 clove of garlic. Pound the anchovies and garlic, add the oil and vinegar.

I have been writing about cicoria and puntarelle for a very long time.

This post was published on Nov 9, 2009 and it is worth looking at:

CICORIA and Puntarelle (Chicory)

There are other posts with recipes and information about chicory:

CICORETTA CON SALSICCIA (Chicory with fresh pork sausage)

WANT NOT WASTE NOT- Chicken livers and chicory, twice

 BITTER GREENS and AMARI (Aperitivi and Digestivi)

 

 

 

WANT NOT WASTE NOT- Chicken livers and chicory, twice

This week on Wednesday I was reading about Massimo Bottura’s Italian upbringing: his never-throw-anything-away attitude in the kitchen and his – seasonal, humble and delicious food – and then I thought about my cooking and how I maximise how I use my produce.

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On Sunday night I pan fried some chicken livers with onions, sage, a little grated nutmeg and deglazed them with red wine – simple, humble and delicious. I accompanied them with a little home made Harissa…always a staple in my fridge.

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I also cleaned the outside leaves of two bunches of chicory and braised them = you know how Italians do this, in extra virgin olive oil and garlic.  No chili this time because of the harissa with the livers.

It is winter in Melbourne and chicory is in season. I had two bunches, one bunch with red stalks and one all green. They taste similar, but perhaps the red tinted stalks are more bitter.

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On Monday night I used the left over chicken livers and turned them into a salad.

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I used the juices of the livers as a base.

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I hard-boiled some eggs, made a simple mustard and extra virgin olive oil and wine vinegar dressing, used the inside, softer, lighter green leaves to make a salad.

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I added a little left over beetroot and some cooked brown lentils that I had in the fridge; I like sweetness and bitterness together.

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Like Bottura, I have that never-throw-anything-away attitude in the kitchen and this – seasonal, humble and delicious.

And I forgot to say – simple-easy- quick-fresh and healthy. Although I did not say that the livers and the eggs were free range, of course they were!!!

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Chicory, see earlier posts:

Cicoria (chicory)

Cicoretta con Salsiccia (Chicory with Fresh Pork Sausage)

In Praise of Seasonal Vegetables

Harissa made with fresh Chillies

HARISSA (A hot chilli condiment)

 

 

CICORIA and Puntarelle (Chicory)

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I bought some chicory at the Queen Victoria Market this morning – it is a winter vegetable but obviously still around and in good condition, even in November. As you can see in the photo this particular type of chicory has scarlet stalks but most chicory is green.

Well, I call this chicory. There is so much confusion about chicory; it gets confused with endives, escarole, radicchio (especially the green coloured radicchio, often called radicchio biondo or radicchio di Trieste) and even witlof. They all have a distinctive bitter taste, but to me chicory is this one, the one with the long serrated leaves.

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I cook the outer leaves of the chicory  as I do leafy greens – softened before I braise them in oil, garlic and a little chilli (see CAVOLO NERO).

The tender, lighter coloured green (or red) stems and leaves from the centre (or the sprouting shoots in the latter part of winter) I use in salads, either as part of a green leaf salad, or to contrast a sweeter tasting ingredient, for example, beetroot, borlotti beans, or fennel and orange.

A favourite way to use the centre is to use it like Sicilians use cicorino (chicory, often wild and found in spring in Sicily and also called la prima – the first). Pino Correnti, a respected food authority about Sicilian food thinks that this salad is eaten in Troina, in north – central Sicily.

INGREDIENTS
chicory (see below for amounts and type)
extra virgin olive oil
lemon juice
vinegar
salt and pepper
hard boiled eggs
anchovies

PROCESSES
Wash and cut into small pieces the chicory.
Make the vinaigrette with the oil, vinegar, lemon and seasoning.
Add a few chopped anchovies to the dressing and dress the salad.
Add hard-boiled eggs cut into quarters.

Accompany it with bread.(I like it as a first course as well. For this option I add more eggs and whole anchovies).

Puntarelle are the shoots of a variety of chicory called catalogna. The shoots are either picked while the plant is very young and tender, but more commonly when the plant is going to seed and sends out a greater amount of shoots shoots. The word puntarelle (from punta) means small shoots or points.

The shoots or puntarelle are soaked in cold water before making them into a salad; this process makes the shoots curl (as in the photo below).

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FEATURE PHOTO: Puntarelle with a dressing of extra virgin olive oil, a dash of vinegar, minced anchovies and topped a with some soft ricotta. Creamed goats’ cheese would be OK also. Because there are anchovies in the dressing, a sharp cheese like feta also works well.