A great winter salad, best served whilst the radicchio is still warm from the griddle.
Charred Radicchio and Chickpea Salad
The intense bitterness of the deep pink leaves is softened and sweetened by a blast on the griddle or under the grill.
Serves 4 as a main with toasted ciabatta
Devised recipe to celebrate United Nations International Year of Pulses 2016, created by Jenny Chandler.
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Ingredients
6 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
500 g home cooked chickpeas or 2 x 400 g can of chickpeas, drained
2 tbsp. olive oil for brushing
2 small heads of radicchio
A handful of flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
Juice and zest of 1/2 - 1 lemon (to taste)
Salt and pepper
100 g Parmesan cheese, grated
75 g roasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped.
Preparation Method:
Gently warm the olive oil with the garlic in a medium saucepan. Once you begin to smell the garlic, tip in the chickpeas, switch off the heat and leave the flavours to infuse.
Heat up your grill or griddle. Cut the radicchio into quarters or sixths depending on the shape and size, keeping each section held together by the core at the base. Brush with olive oil and grill for about 6-8 minutes until beginning to brown and crisp. Alternatively, if you are using a griddle pan, place the oiled radicchio onto the searing hot griddle and turn after about 4 minutes.
Meanwhile add the parsley, lemon juice, salt, pepper, parmesan and hazelnuts to the chickpeas. Stir and taste. The seasoning should be really assertive with plenty of black pepper and lemony acidity.
Serve the chickpeas topped with the radicchio and eat whilst still warm.