![Ribbons of puntarelle radicchio dressed in salad dressing and garnished with a lemon wedge. White plate with fork on the side.](https://briarpatch.coop/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Puntarelle-all-Romana.jpg.webp)
Puntarelle is the most interesting-looking member of the chicory family – think escarole, endive, radicchio – but with long pointy leaves encircling hollow, pointed tubes with a bitter but pleasant flavor Italians call amarognolo (ah-mahr-own-YOlo).
The tubes are traditionally sliced thinly and enjoyed raw as a salad with an anchovy-based dressing similar to what you’d put on a Caesar salad. This version was inspired by a recipe from a San Francisco firehouse. If you want to make your puntarelle salad “alla California,” use the optional avocado and lemon for a simple, guac-like base to top with the salad.
No puntarelle? Thinly-sliced endive is a good substitute.
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 3-4 cloves garlic
- 1.5 oz jar anchovy filets in oil
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 cup olive oil
- Salt/pepper to taste
- 1 head puntarelle (about 1 lb)
- ½ lemon
- Optional: 1 avocado, ½ lemon
Directions
- Cut bottom off puntarelle and remove large (more bitter) outer leaves to be used for something cooked like a soup or sauté.
- Take a small tube and, slicing from the open end towards the pointy top, cut into thin ribbons that are held together by the top. Alternately, julienne tubes into separate strips.
- Place puntarelle strips in a bowl with cold water, some ice cubes, and the ½ lemon (squeeze slight to release juice into water). Let rest for an hour, taste for bitterness. If you want less bitterness, change water and continue soaking for another ½ hour. This will also cause the cut tubes/strips to curl.
- While puntarelle soaks, make dressing: Add lemon juice, Dijon, vinegar, Worcestershire, garlic, anchovy filets and their oil, Parmesan and olive oil to a blender and blend until creamy. Adjust taste with salt/pepper.
- Drain puntarelle and dry in a salad spinner
- Optional avocado layer: Mash avocado with juice from ½ lemon and salt/pepper to taste. Thinly spread a dollop of mashed avocado onto serving plates. Top with dressed puntarelle divided into equal portions.
- For a vegan version, sub 1 Tbsp chopped capers for anchovies and use a vegan Worcestershire sauce. To maintain texture, stir capers into blended dressing right before adding to puntarelle.