Lampascioni En Salsa Rossa
Hycainth bulbs preserved in mildly spicy tomato sauce inspired by an Italian book on wild foods I've been translating. Their bitter taste makes an interesting antipasti served with olives, cheese, cured meats and grilled bread. Yield: 1 pint
Servings: 6
Ingredients
Lampascioni
- ¾ lb or 25-30 Muscari comosum hyacinth bulbs *see note
- For cooking the bulbs
- 4 cups water + 1 Tablespoon kosher salt
For pickling the bulbs
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary or thyme
- 1 large guajillo chili or your favorite hot pepper or chili sauce, to taste
- ⅓ cup white wine vinegar
- 1 cup tomato juice or pulsed tomatoes from the garden, strained
- 1.5 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
Instructions
Trimming and blanching
- Cut the top and bottom off of each hyacinth bulb, then cut a shallow X in the root end of each.
- Bring the 4 cups of water and tablespoon of salt to a boil with the hyacinth bulbs, and cook for 15 minutes.
Leaching
- Drain the bulbs, discard the water, and cool. Cover the bulbs with fresh water by a couple inches and allow to rest in the refrigerator overnight or for as long as few days, changing the water a couple times if you find them unpalatably bitter. Remember that the flavor will change a bit after they're seasoned and aged in their jars.
Salsa rosa
- For the sauce, toast the chilis or guajillo on the stove top, then crush and remove the seeds (or leave them in to make it extra spicy).
- Puree the chilis, garlic, vinegar, salt and tomato juice in a blender until smooth-ish, then pack the still hot lampascioni in jars, cover with the sauce, jiggle the jars around to remove air pockets, and leave half an inch of headspace. process jars in a water bath for 10 minutes, then cool and store in a pantry.
- Sealed jars can be stored for 12 months.
Notes
*I've used Hyacinthus orientalis here in place of the traditional muscari bulbs. Hyacinthus bulbs have a very mild flavor compared to Muscari bulbs, which are very bitter. When eating new foods, make sure to consume small amounts the first time you try them (1 oz or less).