Posts Tagged ‘Watercress’

100g watercress
500g belle de fontenay potatoes, halved
150g smoked mackerel, flaked
juice of 1 lemon
2 tsp wholegrain mustard
3 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper
150g mache and peashoots
1 avocado

Boil the potatoes in salted water for 10-12 minutes until tender.

Blend the watercress with the lemon and mustard in a blender, add the olive oil and season with salt and just a touch of pepper.

Toss the cooked potatoes and the mache and peashoots together with the dressing, and place in a large serving bowl.

Slice the avocado and arrange with the flaked mackerel on top of the salad. Serve with more of the watercress and lemon dressing drizzled over.

Taste: These peppery and tangy little leaves are the perfect lift me up in many dishes. They add a kick to salads, soups, dressings or mashed potatoes. Try them with fish or meat, blend in a pesto, let you imagination free to improvise. You can’t go wrong!

Region: We get our spinach from France, where they grow in larger, darker and beautifully peppery leaves.

Quality: We buy watercress twice a week directly from the market in Paris, where our buyer only select what’s looking and tasting best. You can be sure it’s extra fresh and that it hasn’t been sitting on a shelf for too long.

Cost: We always let you know the price per kg so you can easily compare our prices. This superb watercress is not only better quality, but also cheaper than what is found in the supermarket.

Natoora “Watercress” £1.34/100gr, £13.40/kg

Ocado “Watercress Waitrose” £1.35/100gr, £13.50/kg

Prices checked on 13/01/2011

Celebrating this nutritious leaf

This week our favourite peppery green is in the limelight – beautiful, fragrant, intense watercress. If ever a leaf deserved a bit of attention, it’s this fantastic salad! Watercress is absolutely jam packed with nutrients, with over 15 vitamins and minerals and more vitamin C gram for gram than oranges.

British and French watercress is fantastic at this time of year, harvested from pure spring water for that uniquely refreshing taste.

Looking for your watercress fix?

Add it to home-made mayonnaise and serve with fish.
Try it in Jane Clarke’s asparagus and San Daniele salad.
Get refreshed with our courgette and watercress soup.
Or read on to find out how to make a delicious watercress sauce.

Recipe: Watercress Sauce

Delicious with fish

25g Butter
2 Shallots
1 Stick of Celery
1/2 Glass Dry White Wine
75ml Vegetable Stock
1 Bay Leaf
150ml Double Cream
170g Watercress

Melt the butter and add the shallots, finely chopped. Add finely chopped celery and fry gently until tender (about 3 minutes).

Add the wine, stock and bayleaf and simmer for a further 2-3 minutes. Remove the bay leaf.

Pour in the cream and chopped watercress. Heat through and season with salt and pepper.

If preferred, liquidise before serving.

This is fantastic drizzled over salmon, cod or other white fish.