Rhubarb

About

Rhubarb is a vegetable native to Siberia; its leaves are poisonous, and only the pink stalks are eaten. Once its intense sourness is balanced with sugar, its flavor combines candied strawberry and cooking-apple notes with a thick, tomato-like quality, and these fruity notes survive cooking and retain their freshness even after sweetening. Rhubarb pairs well with sweet ingredients such as maple syrup, honey, and anise, along with vanilla, almonds, cream, or butter, and its gooseberry-like, apple-like sourness also makes it a match for fatty meat and oily fish.

Pairs well with rhubarb

• CiOrangeOrange zest and rhubarb are commonly paired, especially in crumbles, though the combination can feel more conflicting than complementary,…
• WoAlmondCranachan, a traditional Scottish dessert of cream, honey, and toasted oatmeal (often with raspberries and whisky in modern versions),…
• CiGingerGinger and rhubarb were traditionally paired for their shared reputation as good for digestion, even though the flavors don't always sit…
• MePorkRhubarb chutney is a traditional accompaniment to pork chops, and the pairing has more recently shown up in barbecue and Asian-inspired…
• GrAniseChef Mark Miller adds roasted, crushed anise seeds to the sugar in a rhubarb crumble topping, a technique that also works for apple and…
• MeLambRhubarb's tartness works in the same way spices do in North African tagines, and appears in an Iranian khoresh where cubed lamb is braised…
• MaOily FishRhubarb, like sour gooseberry, cuts effectively through the oiliness of mackerel.
• BeRosemaryA raw rhubarb, dried apricot and dried cranberry compote can be built around marinating the fruit in honey and rosemary for a couple of…
• GrCucumberRaw rhubarb dipped in sugar is a classic sharp, mouth-puckering treat; some cultures instead dip rhubarb in salt.
• FrStrawberryA standard US pairing, rarely absent from a rhubarb pie or tart.
• CrMangoChef Richard Corrigan pairs rhubarb with Alphonso mango, since their growing seasons overlap.
• GrSaffronFood writer Mark Bittman tested rhubarb against several herbs and spices, rejecting tarragon, mint, cumin and coriander, before settling…
• MeBlack PuddingRhubarb's tartness, like apple's, can cut through the richness of black pudding, as in a quick rhubarb chutney.
• BeJuniperChefs pair rhubarb's natural sourness with juniper rather than masking it with sugar, for instance in a gin and rhubarb sorbet, where the…