Sautéed Escarole is a favorite Italian vegetable dish—and particularly among Sicilians. Escarole looks much like lettuce (and is usually found in grocery stores displayed with lettuce), but is actually a member of the chicory family of slightly bitter vegetables. Pick a head with bright green leaves and no brown spots.

Head of escarole.

To learn more about this vegetable, click here.   Sautéed Escarole is extremely easy to make and requires only 5 ingredients. It’s wonderful as an accompaniment to meat and pasta dishes. To view other recipes of mine that use escarole, click Risotto with Escarole and Smoked Mozzarella  and  Pasta with Lentil Sauce.

Heads of escarole tend to be very sandy and thus require careful washing. Detach the escarole leaves, fill the sink with water, and wash the leaves thoroughly in 3 changes of water, always removing the floating leaves from the water, leaving the sand and dirt at the bottom of the sink.

Wash the escarole.

Blanch the leaves in a large pot of boiling water for about 5 minutes until just tender.

Blanch the escarole.

This removes some of the bitterness. Drain the leaves in a colander, and refresh under cold water, which keeps the vegetable green and prevents overcooking.

Refresh the escarole.

Squeeze as much water from the escarole as possible.

Squeeze the water out of the escarole.

Then chop it.

Chop the escarole.

Mince the garlic. In a saucepan, heat the olive oil,  garlic, and  peperoncino (dried chili flakes) over low heat until the garlic is fragrant. Do not let the garlic brown or it will impart an unpleasant taste. The amount of garlic and oil required varies somewhat, depending on the size of the head of escarole.

Cook the garlic.

Add the chopped escarole, salt, and pepper to taste, and sauté for a few minutes on medium heat until hot, stirring occasionally.

Sauté the escarole.

Serve Sautéed Escarole as a side dish.

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