How do I stew rhubarb? (blush)

[misscreosote]

OK, really basic question - I can and do cook, honest, I just never cook fruit (or is rhubarb technically a vegetable, I never know)! I've got a tonne of rhubarb and am planning to stew some to make a kind of fool thing with meringue and creme fraiche (mmmmm). But how? Do I add water, sugar, how much?

(And any other ideas what to do with the rest would be appreciated!)

thanks

Rhubarb is lovely roasted in the oven. Just wash it, chop it, add sugar (I guess the quantity) but no water. Bake at 180 for about 20-30 minutes, until it's soft.

You can also add other flavours, e.g. orange zest and juice, or ginger or cinnamon. Brown sugar is nice instead of white as well.

I just usually cut it into bitesize chunks, put in pan, add water so it is barely covering and throw in some caster sugar. It only takes a matter of minutes to soften so if you like it al dente then keep an eye on it.

My nana always used to say that you didn't need to wash the pan after cooking rhubarb - what that's all about I dont know!

A splash of water or squeeze of orange juice. The amount of sugar will vary depending on how sweet the rhubarb is (the pinker forced stuff is usually sweeter) so you will have to taste it.

tiniest amount of water, some lemon juice, sugar and the chopped rhubarb in a covered pan on a very low heat. Stir and taste occasionally and add more sugar/lemon as you wish.

Cook it until it's completely fallen apart, or leave some slightly solid bits. If you're me, you'll then add a lot bit more sugar.

Glad you asked this misscreosote, was just about to do a search for the same thing! Just been given a load of rhubarb, never even really eaten it before and haven't a clue what to do with it!

Silly question, but if I'm making rhubarb crumble then do I need to cook it before putting the topping on? I don't normally with other fruit...

I normally just bung some sugar on and heat it up very gently - I never add water as it seems to contain soo much juice and can end up VERY watery.

Sometimes I add a pinch of cardamom or spot of vanilla extract.

Oooh, all sounding lovely. Especially liking all the different flavourings. Will go easy on the water and sugar and see how it goes then!

PS monkeybumsmum, I think for crumble you don't need to pre-cook (have vague memories of making it as a kid), but I'm not the one to ask as you've seen! PS if you've got a foolproof and simple recipe for crumble topping then I'd love to have it, to use up the rest...

I made rhubarb crumble for the first time last week and added pear for extra flavour.

Ooh yes, is very nice and easy - 100g butter, 100g demerara sugar, 200g plain flour (I like using half wholemeal/half white). Mix butter and flour together until mixture resembles breadcrumbs, then mix in the sugar.
Bung in oven for 25(ish) mins Gas 6.
Easy as...well, crumble
IMO it's even nicer if you leave some slightly bigger lumps in the mixture as they get nice and crunchy!

Thanks mc, shall be making rhubarb crumble tonight!

Don't use an aluminium pan. Can't recall why not, it could be the acidity in the rhubarb....but I was always told that.

ooh thanks MBM, boy has DH got a treat in store for him tonight! (no, not that kind of treat, I'm 8 months pregnant, no chance )

misscreosote
How was the crumble? Hope you liked the topping! Am just about to get ours out the oven...

Have you tried making a rhubarb tart?

Shortcrust pastry base

Rhubarb cut into chunks spread over

topping of equal parts semolina, sugar and butter, rubbed in together, then spread over rhubarb.

Bake 30 mins or until topping is golden brown and rhubarb is soft.

If you part-cook rhubarb in a microwave for about 3-4 mins ( depending on quantity) it will be nice and soft in a crumble.Add a handful of muesli to the topping for a more interesting texture.

Stewing generally - add the sugar after you've stewed it.Less chance of it sticking to the pan. Grated orange rind, a little of the orange juice and cinnamon make a tasty flavouring.You can stew fruit in the microwave, by the way.

Ginger is also very good in rhubarb, and a small amount of sodium bicarbonate (which will fizz like crazy) will mean you need less sugar.If you put too much bicarb in, not only does it taste disgusting, it's not very good for your blood pressure because of the added sodium

Thanks for all the help - we had stewed rhubarb (with orange) last night, with creme fraiche and meringue. Wolfed down by DH (and me). I see what you all mean about a tiny bit of liquid - it was still a bit watery and I didn't add that much juice (but still lovely, and I've leftovers to have with yogurt today). And so easy to do, where have I been living all these years?!

Will be trying out the crumble this weekend - is it OK to make the topping with a marg type spread rather than butter? Just that DD is allergic to dairy, so would prefer to use her special spread so she can have some too.

Marg type spread should be fine. Presume you don't use low fat version for DD which can be tricky in some sorts of mixtures, but crumble's a very simple one. You could use block marg to be sure but I wouldn't bother.

Just make sure the spread's cold or it'll get v sticky when rubbing in!

Your rhubarb pud last night sounds delicious

One of my favourite breakfasts is stewed rhubarb, stirred into Total full fat Greek yogurt, with some vanilla essence.

Stewed fruits, preferably organic, are dead easy and require no sugar - perfect superfoods . Try experimenting with different mixed fruits - great for babies as they are nice and tart and no chemical additives. Add 0% Total Greek Yoghurt as cream\custard substitute if required.

Stewed rhubard with strawberries and a bit of orange juice / zest is a killer combo - use in crumbles, pies or with icecream or custard - take your pick.

I had limited facilities and used sweet cicely given to me by a gardener. I just dangled it into the saucepan while stewing the rhubarb and it worked as sugar (i didn't have sugar and wasn't near shops). The rhubarb came out fine and was sweet enough for my taste. I was amazed it worked so well.

If anybody has any rhubarb crumble left over I'm certainly willing to judge your efforts all comers guaranteed high praise I will rhubarb crumble now !