Want to Know Some Escarole Substitutes? Here are About 7 of Them

If you’ve found yourself wondering if you can substitute arugula for escarole or what could be a good replacement, then look no further.

A Few Handy Tips

❧ Refrigerate the greens unwashed until right before cooking. If they are damp, they quickly rot.
❧ Wash them in a sink full of lukewarm water, rather than cold water. This will help the soil and dirt to come off easily and vitalize the leaves.

Escaroles are often used in many meals. They are rich in vitamin A and K, and high in fiber and folic acid. These flavorful greens can be eaten raw, cooked, or sautéed. They have a less bitter taste, making them a great addition to soups, salads, and side dishes.

Escarole Substitutes

Arugula

Arugula is a salad green that is often seen in Italian cuisines. It is known for its slightly peppery and bitter flavor. They often make great additions to salads, tomato dishes, sautéed vegetables, egg dishes, and pastas. They best complement ingredients, viz., walnuts, potatoes, nuts, pears, Parmesan and/or blue cheese, olive oil, lemon, garlic, and avocado.

Alternative Names: Garden rocket, Italian cress, Rocket, rocket salad, Mediterranean rocket, oruga, rugola, rugula, ruchetta, rughetta, wild rocket.

Substitutes: Watercress, spinach, Belgian endive, escarole, dandelion greens, young mustard greens, and radicchio.

Chard

Chards have fleshy, thick, tender, emerald green leaves, and a light beet-like flavor to it. The leaves take longer time to cook but they make a great side dish and work as an add-on to pasta dishes, risotto, and pizza.

Alternative Names: Leaf Beet, Seakale Beet, Silver Beet, Spinach Beet, Swiss Chard.

Substitutes: Spinach, beet greens, turnip greens, bok choy, escarole, and mustard greens.

Frisée

Frisées are crisp and bitter greens that are often used in salads and side dishes. The leaves go well with a mixture of baby greens. Frisée derives its name for its unique appearance, which has narrow, curly, and frizzy leaves. Frisée aux Lardons is a classic traditional dish that puts the spotlight on frisée itself. These leaves make a great garnish on poached eggs.

Alternative Names: Chicory, curly chicory, curly endive, chicory endive.

Substitutes:Rocket, raddichio, dandelion greens, and mustard greens.

Kale

Kale is from the cabbage family and comes in two distinct forms: curly or smooth form. Curly is best known amongst the two. These greens are more peppery than bitter. Their taste and texture make them ideal for Kale chips, pesto, sauté, soups, and lasagna.

Alternative Names: Curly kale, dinosaur kale, Georgia collards, ornamental kale, salad savoy.

Substitutes: Cabbage and dandelion greens.

Mustard Greens

Mustard greens are closely related to broccoli and kale. They have a mild peppery flavor and pungent bite. These leaves work especially well when boiled, steamed, or sautéed. Mustard greens are best in African, Chinese, Indian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, and soul food cuisines.

Alternative Names: Brown mustard, Indian mustard, leaf mustard, mustard.

Substitutes: Turnip greens and Kale.

Radicchio

Radicchio is the Italian relative of chicory. It is known for its distinct burgundy leaves with white ribs. These leaves makes a great addition to any old green salad. The leaves can be used as a base for many d’oeuvres or as a side dish to a meal. It has a slightly bitter flavor, which makes it ideal to zest up any salad, pasta, or pizza.

Alternative Names: Red chicory, red leaf chicory, red Italian chicory.

Substitutes: Chicory

Spinach

Spinach is power-packed with iron. It can be cooked, made into soup, baked, tossed into a salad, or served up as a side dish. The leaves have a distinct bitter flavor, but they are a highly versatile vegetable to work with. Spinach goes well with butter, cardamom, carrots, cottage cheese, chilies, peas, cream, egg, fish, ginger, garlic, hollandaise sauce, cumin, lemon, mushroom, mustard, nutmeg, olive oil, olives, tomatoes, vinegar, soy, etc.

Alternative Names: Palak.

Substitutes: Amaranth greens, beet greens, arugula, Chinese spinach, Swiss chard, beet greens, kale, turnip greens, etc.

Like it? Share it!