Leeks With Anchovy Butter

By Amanda Hesser

Updated Dec. 11, 2020

Leeks With Anchovy Butter
Kiyoshi Togashi for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Jill Santopietro.
Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
4(191)
Comments
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Leeks have gone in and out of favor throughout history. Here they’re prepared as the more-esteemed asparagus: Blanched, then slathered with butter mixed with pungent anchovy (another looked-down-upon ingredient).

Featured in: The Way We Eat; Market Value

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Ingredients

Yield:Serves 4
  • Salt
  • 6thin leeks, trimmed, halved lengthwise and washed
  • 4tablespoons butter, softened
  • 4anchovy fillets, drained
  • 1tablespoon chopped parsley
  • 1teaspoon chopped basil
  • 1tablespoon chopped shallot
  • 1teaspoon lemon juice, plus more to taste
  • Freshly ground black pepper
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

154 calories; 12 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 10 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 2 grams protein; 209 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Using cooking twine, tie the leeks into two bunches. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the leeks and cook until tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Drop into ice water to stop the cooking. Drain, then press out excess water on a towel. Set cut-side up in a large baking dish.

  2. Step 2

    Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Place the butter, anchovies, parsley, basil, shallot and lemon juice in a large bowl. Mash with a fork or potato masher until well blended and the anchovies have dissolved into a paste. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

  3. Step 3

    Spread the butter mixture over the cut sides of the leeks. Bake for 5 minutes or until warmed through. Squeeze over more lemon juice, if you like.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
191 user ratings
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Comments

William Knospe

A dusting of grated parmesan on the leeks before dotting with the butter to go into the oven is lovely. Also, I often substitute chopped marjoram for the basil and parsley very successfully.

Karen

Combined this with the salmon with anchovy-garlic butter recipe on this blog. Went great together!

Ryan

Combined this with their broccoli & anchovy recipe. Perfect combination to go with rice.

Elise

I pan fried the leeks until lightly golden, then added some white wine and stock and cooked over medium heat until the leeks were soft, then baked with dots of the butter. I drizzled the butter from the pan over lamb loin chops, served with a roast vegetable cous cous. Absolute perfection.

Elise

I pan fried the leeks until golden then added some wine and stock and cooked th down until the leeks were soft then dotted with butter and baked. the butter from the pan over lamb loin chops, served with a roast vegetable cous cous. Absolutely

Matthew

This is one of those rare dishes that tastes much better than it should for the little effort involved. Put simply, it's better than the sum of its parts.

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