Is this just a fluke?

April 11, 2008 11:03 PM

What interesting things can I do with watercress?

I've been given a 100g bag of watercress, and I have no idea what to do with it. Googling turns up recipes for salad or soup, but I'm wondering if there are any other interesting recipes that I should consider trying first?

I'm not a big salad eater, and soup just seems like a fall-back, though I would have a go. I've never even tried watercress before, so I want to do something more creative. I have the usual store cupboard stuff to hand - rice, spices, soy sauce, etc.

Any ideas?

posted by Solomon to food & drink (10 comments total)

Pesto.

Cress sandwiches, esp with goat cheese.

Faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaabulous as an addition to other sandwiches--roast beast particularly.
posted by dirtynumbangelboy at 11:15 PM on April 11

Linguine with crab and watercress. I just use prepicked crab (not canned - that's nasty) and it's fine.
posted by obiwanwasabi at 11:28 PM on April 11

A bunch of different salads and such here.
posted by Darkenon at 11:46 PM on April 11

Spring Orzo Salad (photo, self-link). Yumm.
posted by rhapsodie at 12:29 AM on April 12 [1 favorite]

Honey roasted ham and brie with lots of watercress on rye bread. I used to love this sandwich so much I ate it 3 times a week for lunch, for 6 months straight.

With the rest you can blanch it briefly (cook in boiling water for about a minute), drain, cool rapidly in cold water, squeeze out well, and season either with soy sauce and bonito flakes Japanese style, or make namul (self link) Korean-style.

Otherwise it's great refreshing garnish for anything meaty. And a proper creamy watercress soup is a French classic.
posted by thread_makimaki at 2:00 AM on April 12 [1 favorite]

Egg and cress. Isn't life wonderful? Little fucking miracle.

(That's an egg salad and watercress sandwich on good whole wheat bread...)
posted by ontic at 4:14 AM on April 12

I too have blanched it quickly, then added cannelli beans, and served as a side to grilled salmon. Would probably work well for other various beans as well. I just think of it as a different spinach.
posted by NikitaNikita at 7:58 AM on April 12

A Chinese restaurant not far from here makes a great fish and watercress soup. It's just chunks of mild, white fish (not "fishy" tasting) in a clear light broth with blanched watercress.
posted by gimonca at 9:22 AM on April 12

Clothing.
posted by muzzlecough at 4:51 PM on April 12

I stir-fry it with sesame oil, sliced garlic, soy sauce, and chili flakes. It reduces down to very little, so your big bag will all but disappear into a more manageable eating size. A whole big bunch of watercress prepared like this is only enough for one side dish (for me!).
posted by rmless at 8:17 AM on April 14