Rhubarb in rude health
Vegetable soup with cheese and rhubarb croute; champagne and rhubarb sorbet; pan-fried duck breast with honey and rhubarb glaze; parsnip and rhubarb mash; salmon poached in olive oil with raw rhubarb; cucumber and mint salad all a far cry from the stewed rhubarb and lumpy custard of our schooldays.
Rhubarb originates from the banks of the Volga. It was transported down the Old Silk Road to China, where its use in medicine was recorded in 2700BC. Marco Polo brought it to Europe and it arrived in these islands in the 18th century. It was used in Britain to treat stomach, colon and liver illnesses, but is now promoted as a way to lower cholesterol. Its ability to raise calcium levels makes it a good treatment for brittle-bone disease.
Rhubarb is a vegetable, not a fruit. It is the plant name for 70 odd species of the rheum family. Recently the Annual Rhubarb Festival was held in Wakefield in the UK. This cultural event, now in its seventh year, was initiated to stem the apparently terminal decline of the Rhubarb Triangle between Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield, which once supported 190 growers. It's been a success beyond their wildest dreams several hot chefs have rediscovered rhubarb and are having fun pairing it with both sweet and savoury dishes.
We've been enjoying rhubarb sauce with roast pork for years and its clean fresh bittersweet taste also works well with fish, particularly oily fish like mackerel. Rick Stein did wonders for the sale of rhubarb when he chose Oldroyds and Sons as one of his Food Heroes in his recent television series. Demand doubled when he pronounced rhubarb crumble as "the best pudding in the world".
Janet Oldroyd Hulme is delighted that rhubarb seems to be back in fashion. For generations, her family have been growing rhubarb on the sulphurous soil which is particularly suited to the Siberian plant.
The more delicate flavoured varieties of rhubarb are forced for the early market in a constant temperature of 13C by the light of candles and a couple of 40 watt bulbs. With this renewed passion for rhubarb, both from the culinary and medicinal point of view, the future looks infinitely more rosy. The medical value of the crops is just as important as its gastronomic qualities and a valuable insurance policy against the vagaries of haute cuisine. According to Mrs Olroyd Hulme, "they're finding more and more medicinal uses for rhubarb." It has a huge amount of calcium and also lowers cholesterol levels.
