Allotments 4 All

HI all,
Got some great swiss chard and leaf Beet growing at the moment. The swiss shard tastes lovely and sweet a big favourite. Its my first time growing leaf beet and after tasting it it left a dry chalky taste in my mouth, is this normal? is it the stems that taste this way?? If so I'll stick to swiss chard!!
:P

I'm the other way around biscombe - I dislike Swiss Chard but can find room in the kitchen for leaf beet!  ???

Do you use the stems or just the leaf? Wonderin If its the stem that leave the chalky taste?

just the leaf :)

I'll try cooking the leaf not the stem! fingers crossed I dont get the dreaded chalk mouth!! what other greesn do you grow like chard & beet cant grow kale and cabbage its a favourie of the swede midge

leef beet can get a bit 'ropy' for want of a better word if left to get old and too big (imo) and best when young and sweet

I also believe that all the spinach family are good at uptaking minerals and the like from the soil and that's good ones and not so good ones, so your leef beet might taste different to others due to this - someone else might be able to add to this

try rotating your crops more as the kales should be really easy and quite trouble free (whitefly at this time of year being the worst) and try spring cabbages as they over winter well and plump up before most of the creepy crawlies start getting ideas  :)

Funny - if this is Leaf Beet - http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/joomla/smf/index.php/topic,25417.0.html - it's the tastiest & tenderest that I've eaten. Stems & all - as with Swiss & Rainbow Chard.

Don't forget, B, there are many ways of cooking it.

I think thats the way Tim! Saag Aloo chuck loads of curry powder in!!!
Thanks for the replies :)

We love perpetual spinach or leaf beet. I like it with cheese sauce. We usually have it with Russian fish pie ( I learned to make it at school) and yes I can remember back that far!!!!!. Just roll out some puff pastry then put a layer of fish then a layer of tomato's and then a layer of hard boiled egg. bring the 4 corners of the pastry up together to make an envelope.Pinch edges together and bake . Serve with either scolloped potato's  leaf beet or broccolli or cauliflower and cheese sauce. Beautiful

Sounds lovely come the next recipie I really hope I dont get chalk mouth UUuurrrgghhh!!
has no one else had this experience?

sometimes, with some spinach - not always
could be the oxalic acid concentration? pucker up :-*

I don't get chalk mouth, but sometimes when the frost has had a go at the kale, I do get fury teeth!  They all have individual mink coats on!!  I love my chards and spinach, just wish the rest of the family were as keen.