leek side dish

This Buttered Sautéed Leeks recipe shows you how easy it is to make leeks into a soft, tender, and tasty side dish.

Buttered Sautéed Leeks

leeks

olive oil

butter (or all oil to make it vegan)

thyme leaves

garlic (minced)

¼ teaspoon each salt and black pepper

Cut off and discard the root and dark green leaves of the leeks. Wash the remaining light green and white part and cut into ¼” rounds. Set aside.

Heat the oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Add the leeks and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes or until it’s just beginning to brown.

Stir in the thyme, garlic, salt and pepper and cook for a further 2 minutes or until the leeks are soft.

Serve and enjoy.

These tender braised leeks are a delicious, easy, flavorful vegetable side that just melts in your mouth. Made with simple ingredients, they are vegan-adaptable and gluten-free.

 Braised Leeks Recipe

4-6 large leeks (similar diameter)

salt and pepper

veggie broth

thyme leaves, plus a few sprigs for garnish.

Prep the leeks

Slice the white and light green parts of the leeks into equal 1-to 1 ½-inch-tall rounds.  (You want to be able to plop them in your mouth in one bite, like sushi). I usually use as much of the tender part of the leek as possible. Rinse if necessary. 

Saute

Heat a large oven-proof skillet or braiser over medium-low heat.  Add the oil, and season the pan with salt and pepper, swirling it around, then add the leeks. Let them get perfectly golden brown, checking often so they don&#8217;t get overly dark. Use tongs to flip them over.

Add braising liquid

Add the vegetable stock and sprinkle with the thyme leaves Bring to a simmer.

Bake

Cover tightly, place in the oven, and bake until meltingly tender,  25-30 minutes.

Uncover

Spoon some of the braising liquid over the leeks. Test them for doneness. If you want a little more caramelization, continue baking uncovered for 10-15 minutes longer, adding the optional cheese at this point and let it melt. 

 Serve

Serve the leeks in the same braiser (they are tricky to move), sprinkle with more thyme sprigs and lemon zest if you like.

How is it possible that in all my 65 years of cooking, I’ve never cooked leeks like this before. I love all that I’m learning on this blog. Simply the best.

Delicious!   I’ve not cooked leeks as a side before, and we were pleasantly impressed!

This simple side dish brings out the best in leeks, making them meltingly tender and full of flavor.

Braised leeks

oz leeks (12 ounces is around 3 small (see notes))

tbsp butter

dry white wine

vegetable stock (or chicken stock)

thyme

salt (approximately)

pepper

Pell the outer layer off the leeks and trim off the stem end carefully so you just take off the end but the leek still largely holds together. Remove the dark green park of the leafy end. Cut the leeks in half lengthwise then place in a dish with water to help remove as much dirt as possible. Leave for a couple minutes, turning or rubbing any obvious dirt off as needed. Then remove from the water and drain - I often place on kitchen paper to dry a bit more and save breaking up the layers by shaking.

Melt the butter over medium heat in a skillet/frying pan large enough to hold the leek halves in a single layer - a little snug is fine - and that has a lid to cover it.

Once the butter has melted and is bubbling, add the leeks, cut side down. Leave to gently brown for around 2 - 3 minutes then turn and brown a minute on the other side )you can skip this if you prefer, but I like to get a slight browning/caramelization on both sides). Carefully turn back to cut side down, if you turned them.

Add the wine and allow it to bubble and become more syrupy as it part evaporates. Add the stock, thyme, salt and pepper and gently move the leeks a little so the seasonings are more evenly distributed.

Cover the skillet/frying pan with the lid, bring to a boil then reduce to simmer for around 10 minutes. Then uncover, test the leeks - they should be fairly tender, and continue to simmer, uncovered, for another 5 minutes or so as the liquid reduces.

Serve warm, or room temperature, with the remaining cooking liquid drizzled on top (there won&#39;t be much, but it has fantastic flavor so you don&#39;t want to waste it!).

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These braised leeks are wonderfully flavorful and lusciously tender, really making this often overlooked vegetable shine. They're gently sweet, silky smooth and tasty, and perfect as a side or topping.

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Buttered Sautéed Leeks

Braised Leeks Recipe

Braised leeks

Top 3 leek side dish recipes from across the web

The most viewed leek side dish recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Buttered Sautéed Leeks

Braised Leeks Recipe

Braised leeks

The most viewed leek side dish recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine