Leeks Vinaigrette
Leeks and salad dressing sounds boring but please bare with me! Leeks vinaigrette or "Poireaux vinaigrette" in French is mind blowing considering how easy it is to prepare and how much it costs. This is a classic French starter that you should find in all decent French Brasseries and Bistros. Give this recipe a try, you will love it!
More traditionally, leeks are boiled in water until tender but I find them too soggy and watery. In this recipe we will bake the leeks in the oven to build sweetness inside the vegetables.
Serving: 4 persons
Preparation time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Resting time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
2 large leeks
1 boiled egg crushed into small pieces
1 to 2 table spoons of chive or flat leave parsley
1 table spoon of finely diced shallotte (onion would also work)
1 clove of diced garlic
6 table spoons of olive oil
3 table spoons of vinegar (I personally use white balsamico, wine vinegar works too)
1 tea spoon of Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper
Step 1 - Clean your leeks
Cut off half of the green part, you will not need it.
Now, very important, you need to wash your leeks. Some dirt and soil is usually trapped between the layers of leaves. With a knife, make a cut (only on one side of the leek) from the green part until the beginning of the white part and wash the inner layers under water to remove all the dirt. Do not slice the leeks all the way.
Step 2 - Bake your leeks
Put your leeks as they are (no oil needed) straight into the oven at 180 celcius for 1 hour.
Half way into the baking, flip them to let the other side cook too.
Step 3 - Prepare your dressing, the vinaigrette
In a bowl, mix the following ingredients:
1 tea spoon of Dijon mustard
A generous pinch of salt and black pepper
A generous table spoon of very finely diced shallot or white onion (Shallot is better)
A crushed or finely diced clove of garlic
6 table spoons of olive oil (Sunflower would work fine too)
3 table spoons of white balsamic vinegar (Cider or white wine vinegar would work too)
Half a tea spoon of honey
A bit of finely chopped chive (use parsley as an alternative)
Mix the your vinaigrette to incorporate everything together and add the the crushed eggs into the sauce in the end.
Step 4 - Plating, 2 options
Option 1 consists of getting rid of the first couple of layers that have been burnt during the baking in order to serve only the inner part of the leek. Cut in several cylinders and pour the vinaigrette dressing on top.
Option 2 is the more rustic way where you serve the leeks as they come from the oven covered with your vinaigrette dressing and sprinkled with some extra crushed boiled eggs or finely chopped chive. (the photo illustrating this recipe on the top of the page)
Enjoy, bon appétit!