Leeks in thick syrupy wine sauce

I was browsing recipe books when I found this rather interesting dish of leeks. Adapted from the book “Cooking French” by Murdoch Books. The recipe book calls it ‘leeks a la grecque’ and it uses Greek method in preparing the vegetable.

I love trying out new recipes from time to time mainly because I get to taste it instead of just staring at it and not knowing how it taste like. At least now I know I like it.

I got myself some local leeks, washed, with the upper green part and the roots trimmed. After trimming the roots, make a crisscross cut at the bottom of the leeks.

Ingredients

8 leeks (refer to the above for preparation)
3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp tomato paste
1 Tbsp tomato puree
2 tsp brown sugar
2 bay leaves (bruised)
2 sprigs of lemon thyme
3 cloves garlic (crushed)
5 coriander seeds (slightly crushed)
5 black peppercorns (crushed)
100 ml white wine
juice of half a lemon
a dash of balsamic vinegar

Method

1. In a large sauce pan, put in olive oil, tomato paste, puree, bay leaves, lemon thyme, garlic, coriander seeds, peppercorns and approx. 250ml filtered water. Bring to boil, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
2. Slowly, add in the trimmed leeks in a single layer and continue to simmer. Make sure it is on low heat and cover with a lid. Simmer for 30 minutes until the leeks are soft and tender.
3. Take out the gravy soaked leeks carefully and place on a flat serving dish.
4. Add white wine, balsamic vinegar and freshly squeezed lemon juice to the gravy. Increase heat to thicken gravy until syrupy in texture. Pour over the neatly arranged leeks.
5. Can be served hot or cold.

The above recipe has been modified to suit my taste buds. Check out the original recipe in “Cooking French” recipe book.