Abby’s Famous Swiss Chard (with a Side of Steak)

Guest-post from 10-year-old Abby:

I am so sick of kale. Good thing I taught my family to like chard with this world famous dish. Well not world famous, but famous in my house.

I love chard. The second I saw the rainbow-colored stems at farm camp growing in a garden with beautiful fluffy green leaves I knew that they would taste good. One morning I bought then at the farmers market. Later though, when we brought it home, I had no idea how to cook it. My dad started cooking the chard in a pan and putting red pepper on it. I took a taste, but it was a bit spicy, so I added some soy sauce to make it salty and to balance the spicy-ness. Then I tried it again, and it tasted really good, but it needed some sweetness. Finally I thought of the perfect solution: Rice Wine vinegar! (Mom’s note: seasoned rice wine vinegar!) I drizzled it on and sampled the chard. It was delicious! I put the whole thing into a bowl and honestly could not stop eating it. By the time it was dinnertime there was only half the amount I had cooked left in the bowl. Since that dinner, I make the recipe very often and every time it tastes even better.

And my mother (now typing) would like to add that it’s very delicious with a quick broiled (or grilled) marinated skirt steak. Here are both recipes:

Quick Broiled Skirt Steak with Abby’s Chard
Her mother would also like to let you know that this entire dinner can be made in 2o minutes, 15 if you have a 10-year-old sous chef taking over the chard.

Steak
1 1/2 pounds skirt steak
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
olive oil
salt and pepper

In a glass dish or plastic bag, marinate the skirt steak in vinegar,  olive oil, salt and pepper for at least 15 minutes and up to 8 hours. (You can do this in the morning before you leave for work.) On top rack of the oven, broil for 3 minutes a side, then let rest for 10 minutes before slicing against the grain. (You can also grill for 8-10 minutes over medium-hot coals, flipping half way through.)

Chard (slightly adapted by Abby’s mom)
olive oil
2 tablespoons shallots (or finely chopped onions)
shake of red pepper flakes
1 bunch chard, chopped
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons seasoned rice wine vinegar

Add olive oil to a skillet over medium heat. Add onions and red pepper flakes and cook until onions get soft, about 2 minutes. Add chard and cook until just wilted. Drizzle in soy sauce and vinegar and serve with steak and crusty bread.

Abby’s recipe book. Also includes classics such as: Homemade Butter, Romaine Salad, and Fried Flounder.

Thanks Abby!

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24 Comments

Kimbo

I am curious about leftovers, do you think reheating the chard would be a disaster? I don’t think I’ve tried to reheat something leafy and wilty (totally not a word).

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Jenny

@kimbo – I don’t know about reheating leafy wilty greens — I think they’d probably too soggy. I’d just as soon eat them right from the tupperware container, cold. Or just use drop them into an omelet or mix into grains for a side dish reprise.

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Janet @Rainbowplate

Thanks Abby (and Jenny) for showing that it’s the kids who are the future cooks of the world! I’m also a huge fan of rainbow chard – well, actually rainbow anything 🙂 . I grow tons of it in my garden every summer. I love how you created a balance of salty, sweet and spicy with this recipe. Looks awesome!

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Mollie | Jennings Brae Bank Farm

Abby, I agree with you that I love chard! However, it just doesn’t sell well for us at Farmers Markets. I wonder if that’s because people just don’t know what to do with it? Would it be ok if I shared your recipe with customers that are curious about chard?

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Erin

Thanks, Abby! I’ve been trying for ages to come up with something clever for Swiss Chard. A gorgeous veggie deserves a delicious recipe and yours shows all kinds of promise. Can’t wait to give it a whirl this week for a special dinner with friends. Cheers!

Reply
Awads

Also over kale! I shy away from chard b/c i think you are supposed to first saute the stems, then the leaves…and that just seems to complicated when i’m looking for a quick saute. did you saute them all together?

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Mary @ flavorrd

Abby, you are making me hungry! I love chard too, and your recipe sounds so perfect with the steak and crusty bread. I’m buying groceries to make it next week!

Keep cooking, and share more of your recipes on your mom’s site!

Reply
E.R.C.

1. I eat swiss chard plain. I think I’ll like it your way even better since I love vinegar and soy sauce.

2. I see we have the same pepper grinder.

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sharon

Thanks for sharing Abby! While I’m not over kale just yet, I think my 3 year old and almost 6 year old are. I think they’ll love trying a new recipe knowing it was written by a young chef such as yourself.

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CanadianJane

How wonderful is this?!!!

Thanks Abby. Your chard looks like it ROCKS and I’m gonna try it this week for dinner.

You should make a cookbook too, my dear!

Reply
P

Loved Abby’s post! I am not tired of kale (yet), but have yet to try chard and this post makes me want to do so ASAP!

Just a quick question though. What is the difference between rice win vinegar and seasoned rice wine vinegar (other than the word seasoned)? I use the kind I find at my grocery store, the Marukan brand (here: http://recipes.wikia.com/wiki/Rice_vinegar). Would that work for this recipe?

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Elizabeth

Thanks! We had a bunch of rainbow chard in our box this week. All princesses love rainbow food.

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Julie

I love chard and have never really learned to like kale. I still try. Abby, this is a great recipe and I think your cookbook is simply wonderful. You have good penmanship (an old fashioned term for handwriting) too. Keep up the good work!

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Lori

We literally inhaled this! So good. Thanks, Abby! I shared with our CSA crowd.

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