Braised Spring Vegetables

, from Issue #38. September, 2015
Photography by Aaron McLean.
Braised Spring Vegetables

This dish is a lovely way to bring the best out of spring vegetables. Don’t worry if one or two aren’t yet available, just leave them out or replace with a frozen or preserved version.

Serves: 6

INGREDIENTS

8 shallots
1 medium fennel bulb
300 grams small waxy new potatoes
 1/3 cup olive oil
½ teaspoon dried tarragon
1 red onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 sticks celery, sliced on the diagonal
200 grams round green beans, stem end removed
1½ cups chicken or vegetable stock
4 cooked artichoke hearts, halved
200 grams podded broad beans, cooked and peeled
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
zest 1 lemon
sea salt and freshly ground pepper

To serve
grilled sourdough bread

METHOD

Peel the shallots, leaving the root end intact and cut the fennel into small wedges, reserving the fronds. Scrub the new potatoes and slice 2 cm.

Heat the olive oil in a wide sauté pan over a low heat and cook the onion, shallots, garlic, celery and fennel with the tarragon and a good pinch of salt for 5 minutes. Add the potatoes, green beans and stock. Season, cover and simmer until the vegetables are tender. Add the artichokes and broad beans allowing them to just heat through. 

To serve: Transfer the vegetables to a wide serving dish and scatter with the parsley and lemon zest. Serve warm or at room temperature with grilled bread to mop up the juices.