I love to serve this easy yet indulgent side dish of leeks with nutmeg, white wine and cream with things like roast chicken or sausages. As it pairs nicely with potatoes, it's particularly great with bangers and mash. The flavours here all marry together beautifully in a way that could even leave a leek-skeptic wanting seconds!
Step 1
First things first, slice your leek then take a minute or two to wash it.
Pop your leek rounds in a colander or similar under cold to tepid running water. Then get in with your hands and push the leek around and press it apart a little with your fingers until all the grit is gone.
Leave to drain in the sink.
Step 2
Finely dice or crush your garlic and set aside.
Warm the oil in a medium non-stick pan and pop in the garlic along with about 10 grinds from your pepper grinder. Cook gently until the garlic has been fizzling for about 30 seconds, then add the butter, followed by the leeks.
Step 3
Stir to evenly coat the leeks with the butter. Then leave on medium-low for 5 minutes. Stir once half way through, and add a generous pinch of sea salt.
You can partially cover the pan while the leeks cook down if you're worried about them drying out. However, I don't have a lid big enough for the pan I use for this and it always turns out great.
At the end of the 5 minutes, your leeks should be soft and your kitchen should be imbued with a lovely garlic aroma.
Step 4
Add your wine and turn up the heat to medium high.
Cook, stirring, until almost all the liquid is gone.
Step 5
Before the leeks cool, add your nutmeg and stir. It won't take a lot of nutmeg to lend a lovely aromatic quality to the dish, so start with a small pinch.
Then add your cream, stir once more, and your leeks with nutmeg, cream and white wine are done!
Feel free to be liberal with the garlic and cream here as there are no hard and fast rules for this dish. I make it a little differently every time. I occasionally add in a little chicken stock if I have some spare and/or am making a large amount. If you do chose to do this, go light on the sea salt.
