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Curley Endive creates the base of leafy greens in this refreshing winter salad, boasting crisp apple slices and sweet, crunchy pecans.
Allow me to introduce a salad green that deserves a shot in weekly salad rotations in your kitchen starting with this recipe. Crunchy celery, apples, and candied pecans pair perfectly with the curly leaves of curly endive, a bitter green known for its ability to stand up in a salad.
Curly Endive Salad may not have quite the same ring as say a Ceasar salad, but is so darn tasty and fast to assemble, I think I will have you convinced from that first bite. Dress with this easy vinaigrette or your dressing of choice and you’ve crunchy, hydrating, and damn delish.
Ingredients for A Curly Endive Salad
- curly endive also known as Frisée
- celery ribs with leaves
- a large, red apple
- a small lemon
- candied pecans
optional for serving
- vinaigrette or dressing
- crumbled, cooked bacon strips
- parmesan shavings
- Roquefort crumbles
How to Make This Curly Endive Salad
Wash and Prep the Endive
To prep a head of curly endive (or any leafy vegetable for use in a green salad) in advance, remove any bruised outer leaves and discard. Wash the inner leaves and lay on paper towels to dry.
Tear the leaves by hand into a small bowl with or without the ribs. Squeeze some lemon juice over the leaves and use a wooden spoon to toss to coat. The lemon juice will prevent the torn edges from browning.
Wait 5 minutes before rinsing under cold water. Use additional layers of paper towels to dry or a salad spinner to reduce the total time drying the leaves. Place into a DRY bowl, cover with plastic film, and use within three hours.
ProTip: to ensure the leaves remain crisp and crunchy, be sure to dry them thoroughly after washing. I like a salad spinner for this reason, however it can also be done using paper towels and a little extra elbow grease.
Chop the Celery and Apple
Using a sharp kitchen knife, thinly slice the celery ribs and leaves on a severe angle, leaving you with very pretty, elongated slices. The distinguished slicing adds to the visual appeal of the vegetable.
Add to a large salad bowl then slice the apple into thin slices as well. Add all but a few slices of apple to the bowl, holding a few out as garnish for your platter or for each individual salad bowl.
For the slices you hold aside, place into a small bowl and toss with a small amount of fresh lemon juice. Fill the bowl with water and set aside until ready to assemble the salad.
Chop Most of the Candied Pecans
I swear these pecans make the salad, chiefly because they offer the right amount of sweetness to this curly endive lettuce salad without taking anything away from the other ingredients. Again, hold a handful of whole candied pecans out as garnish while chopping the remainder with a sharp kitchen knife and adding to the bowl.
Dress the Salad with Vinaigrette or Dressing
Finally, add the hearty green salad leaves to the bowl with the celery and apple slices. Drizzle 1/8-cup of vinaigrette or salad dressing of choice over the bed of greens and fruit and toss well to combine.
Use a wooden spoon to scrape the salad out onto a pretty serving platter or kitchen tongs to fill individual salad bowls. Add additional vinaigrette or dressing to the greens if desired or plan to offer additional table-side.
Drain the reserved apple slices on a paper towel. Add the apple slices and the reserved whole candied pecans to garnish the salad.
Modifying the Norm to Make It Not Entirely Average
- Cook and crumble thick slices of bacon and add to the salad as a garnish for a sweet and salty flavor experience
- Use a vegetable peeler to slice thick, long curls of block parmesan cheese, then add to the salad as garnish
- Toss the base salad with Roquefort or Bleu cheese crumbles and a simple olive oil and red wine vinegar emulsification just before serving
- Turn this salad into a main dish salad by adding your protein of choice
Curly Endive Salad with Celery, Apple and Candied Pecans
Equipment
- kitchen knife
- salad platter or individual salad bowls
Ingredients
- 1 large head curly endive, washed and prepped
- 7 ribs celery, with leaves; washed
- 1 large apple, washed
- 1 medium lemon, halved and juiced
- 1 cup candied pecans
optional for serving
- vinaigrette or dressing of choice
- cooked, crumbled bacon
- parmesan shavings
- Roquefort or Bleu cheese crumbles
Instructions
- Remove any bruised outer leaves of a large head of endive and discard. Wash the inner leaves and lay on paper towels. Tear the leaves by hand into a small bowl with or without the ribs. Squeeze some lemon juice over the leaves and use a wooden spoon to toss to coat. The lemon juice will prevent the torn edges from browning. Wait 5 minutes before rinsing under cold water. Place in a salad spinner to dry the leaves. Place leaves into a DRY bowl, cover with plastic film, and use within three hours.
- Using a sharp kitchen knife, thinly slice the celery ribs and leaves on a severe angle. Add to a large salad bowl (separate from the leaves) then slice the apple into thin slices as well. Add all but a few slices of apple to the bowl, holding a few out as garnish for your platter or for each individual salad bowl. For the slices you hold aside, place into a small bowl and toss with a small amount of fresh lemon juice. Fill the bowl with water and set aside until ready to assemble the salad.
- Hold a handful of whole candied pecans out as garnish while chopping the remainder with a sharp kitchen knife and adding to the bowl with the celery and apple. Add the endive leaves to the celery and apple and drizzle 1/8-cup of vinaigrette or salad dressing of choice over the bed of greens and fruit and toss well to combine.
- Use a wooden spoon to scrape the salad out onto a pretty serving platter or kitchen tongs to fill individual salad bowls. Add additional vinaigrette or dressing to the greens if desired or plan to offer additional table-side.
- Drain the reserved apple slices on a paper towel. Add the apple slices and the reserved whole candied pecans to garnish the salad.
Notes
- Cook and crumble thick slices of bacon and add to the salad as a garnish for a sweet and salty flavor experience
- Use a vegetable peeler to slice thick, long curls of block parmesan cheese, then add to the salad as garnish
- Toss the base salad with Roquefort or Bleu cheese crumbles and a simple olive oil and red wine vinegar emulsification just before serving
- Turn this salad into a main dish salad by adding your protein of choice
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
