Swiss chard is quite a famous recipe that brings a mellow and bitter flavor to your meal. However, in some situations, the bitterness of the Swiss chard can overwhelm the recipe. Many users seem to be confused about how to manage the bitterness of this recipe while still enjoying the mildly sweet flavor.
In most situations, relying on the right set of ingredients will get the job done. So, you should try to learn from an expert how to cook Swiss chard, so it is not bitter. With that said, let’s go through a few options that will further enable you to manage the bitterness of your Swiss Chard.
How To Cook Swiss Chard So It Is Not Bitter?
- Source Older Chard
While buying the chard, many users tend to go for the freshest option to include in their meals. Now, the fresh and new chard does bring a more robust flavor and improved texture to the recipe, but it is also several times more bitter than the older chard. So, you need to keep this information in mind while purchasing chard from the market.
If you’re struggling with managing the bitterness, then it is always a better idea to go with older chard. The flavor might not be as robust, but you will still be able to overcome the bitterness issues without the extensive use of acidic ingredients. Furthermore, older chard is easier to work with, and you will easily manage the cooking procedure.
Overall, this method is one of the most viable options that can help you deal with bitterness. You won’t have to modify the spice mixture in any dimension, and the overall flavor of the dish will almost remain the same. So, just grab yourself older chard, and it will help you with the bitterness of your dish.
- Cook on Lower Heat
If you don’t want to use older chard in your recipe, then you can also get around the bitterness issue by cooking the chard on a lower heat. Most users just try to rush through the process and they struggle with managing the overwhelming bitterness after the process. So, just slow down the cooking procedure and try to keep chard on a lower heat as you’re adding in other ingredients. That way, the bitterness of the new chard won’t come out as quickly and it will absorb flavor from other ingredients.
Along with managing the bitterness, cooking the chard over low heat will help you with the texture and overall cooking procedure. You will have more control over the flavors in your recipe, and you won’t be as concerned with drying out the ingredients.
All in all, lowering the heat while cooking chard can minimize the bitterness by a substantial margin and enhance your control over the dish. So, if you’re dealing with a situation where you can’t seem to mask the overwhelming bitterness of new chard, just cook it at a lower temperature. Hopefully, you won’t have to deal with intense bitterness again.
- Use Sweet Onions
Using Sweet onions in your chard recipe will help you mask the bitterness with mild sweetness. Unlike other onions, you won’t have to worry about the tangy or sharp flavor that these onions bring to your recipe, and it will be quite easy to develop a balanced dish. The quantity of onions depends entirely upon the type of chard you’re using and your personal preferences.
If you’re using new chard and the bitterness is overwhelming, then it is better to use a generous number of sweet onions. On the other hand, if you’re using old chard with mild bitterness, then there are no issues with using a minimal number of sweet onions.
This ingredient is readily available in all households, and you won’t have to put any extra effort into including sweet onions in the recipe. With that said, it will take a few tries before you have perfect control over the flavor of your recipe. So, make sure to test multiple times in the middle of the cooking procedure. That way, you can easily avoid the development of undesirable bitterness in the dish.
- Use Vinegar
Vinegar is one of the most used ingredients that help users balance out saltiness or bitterness in any dish. The acidic properties of this ingredient are perfect for controlling the final flavor of the recipe. So, if you’re new to cooking, it is the perfect opportunity for you to experiment with vinegar to balance out the bitterness in your chard.
Ideally, sticking with a few drops of vinegar should be enough to manage the bitterness of your chard. However, using an increased amount of vinegar will negatively impact the flavor and make it tangy. So, you should always limit the use of vinegar and make sure not to include more than a few drops depending upon the size of your dish.
The best way to add vinegar is by testing the flavor again and again until it is perfect. If you add all the vinegar at once, then you will have to rely on cream to salvage your recipe. So, to be on the safer side, just add a few drops of vinegar and test the flavor after a few seconds. After that, you can add some more vinegar to the dish if it seems necessary. That way, you won’t go overboard with the use of vinegar in the chard.
- Use Garlic
Just like vinegar and sweet onions, garlic is another viable option that you can include in the chard. All three of these options are viable in balancing out the bitterness. As long as you’re aware of how much quantity to add to the chard, it will be effortless to maintain a balanced flavor. So, depending upon your personal preferences, you can either use garlic, sweet onions, or Vinegar in the dish.
All in all, if the chard is extremely bitter, then the only viable solution is to add more ingredients to mask the bitterness. However, if the bitterness is within a manageable range, you can just alter the cooking method and use low heat to minimize the bitterness. Hopefully, all of these methods will help you deal with bitterness in your Swiss Chard.