Texel chefs and seakale

‘Good that such a vegetable is available again’

Jef Schuur from Culinaire Verwennerij Bij Jef in Den Hoorn on Texel: “It is good that an almost forgotten vegetable is available once again and can inspire us to make unusual dishes. Seakale combines very well with fish, oysters or coquilles. It tastes a bit earthy, maybe somewhat radishy, but less pronounced. Unusual. A touch salty. And even nutty, with a slight bitter. The structure is fragile, like pak-choi cabbage. It must not be handled too much, it has a taste of its own. I like to prepare it raw, thinly cut and with a warm sauce to retain the crunch. Or scald in olive oil so you can use the larger stalks. I definitely enjoy cooking this vegetable.”

‘A taste which one savours in the mouth for a long time’

For Michel Arends from the Hotel Brasserie Rebecca in De Waal on Texel, seakale has an extremely unique flavour: “A very light cabbage flavour, somewhat similar to green cabbage, but not too strong. At the same time, it is a flavour which one savours in the mouth for a long time. I also taste a bit of salt. You can do so much with it: blanch, stir-fry, process raw or add to mashed potatoes. Of course, seakale tastes great together with fish, but also lamb or sweetbread. Raw in a salad makes a lovely dish. In this course, I use seakale in two ways. I have blanched the stalk for a very short time, the pieces have been scalded in some oil. I am combining it here with a filet of lamb in its own gravy and some couscous. By adding a small amount of pumpkin oil, I accentuate the flavour of the seakale just a bit more.”

‘An exciting and decorative vegetable’

Aart Wijker, chef of the Grand Hotel Opduin in De Koog on Texel, finds seakale an exciting and decorative vegetable: “It is a lovely product which can be used in many ways. It combines excellently with fish, but also with lamb or veal or fowl, for example with a nice softly prepared quail drumstick. It tastes a bit like cabbage, but definitely doesn’t dominate. Fine, succulent and soft. You can blanch seakale, even scald in butter or oil or process it raw. And because the product is grown on Texel, seakale for me represents an island feeling. That is always a plus. In the dish that I have made, seakale is shortly stir-fried in butter and accompanies various fish creations: an eel marbé, minced smoked salmon and scampi in Bloody Mary.”