My rhubarb went limp! What to do with it?

No, this isn't sexual innuendo, my rhubarb actually did go soft on me. I have a bit over a pound of rhubarb left from the Food52 Rhubarb Party here in NY. I'm unexperienced otherwise with rhubarb - are crisp stalks necessary? I already have marmalade and savory jam in the fridge, so something different from those would be great.

Emily Hanhan
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9 Comments

susan G.
susan G. June 3, 2011
To me it's balanced, so you could put it out as a meat sauce or pour over ice cream. When we finished the first jar, I sliced onions and put them in it, which my husband is enjoying on sandwiches, with eggs... good stuff!
 
Emily H.
Emily H. June 2, 2011
Thanks for all the stalk refresher tips, I will give that a go before I cook with it.
Helen, thanks for the rhubarb site. And the NY event was indeed lots of fun.
Peter, thanks for the rhubarb knowledge. It's still a new ingredient to cook with for me.
Susan G, that recipe looks mighty intriguing! Is it more sour than sweet? An equal balance?
 
susan G.
susan G. June 2, 2011
http://www.food52.com/recipes/12003_hot_sweet_and_sour_ginger_rhubarb

I thought this was wonderful, and you have just about the right amount of rhubarb. In this and other recipes, by the time you're finished cooking it in liquid, the (ahem!) exchange of fluids takes care of the limpness.
 
Peter
Peter June 2, 2011
I imagine that rhubarb, like celery, usually goes limp when it loses some of its water content. The same solution then should work -- trim the end and stand it in some cold water.

That said, pretty much every application of rhubarb will cook the heck out of it and lose most the water anyway so maybe just adjust your cooking time down a moment or two or add a dash of water if things look too thick.
 
Kevin S.
Kevin S. May 31, 2019
This works *remarkably* well, just took revived some spaghetti rhubarb in 15 minutes
 
Declan'sDad
Declan'sDad June 2, 2011
We made a strawberry-rhubarb compote with ours, and it goes great over ice cream. Since the rhubarb was going to be cooked down anyway, I'm sure it won't matter that it's a little past its prime.
 
marisab67
marisab67 June 2, 2011
JAM!!!!!!
 
Helen's A.
Helen's A. June 2, 2011
You can try refreshing the stalks in a basin of cool water for 30 minutes or so. That should perk it back up. There are lots of wonderful recipes at: http://www.rhubarbinfo.com/recipes
We had lots of fun at our Boston Rhubarb event... sounds like you did, too!
 
EmilyC
EmilyC June 2, 2011
This rhubarb-crumble pie is so fantastic, and I don't think it will matter if your stalks are a little limp: http://www.marthastewart.com/343999/rhubarb-pie

Come to think if it, when I made this a few weeks ago, my stalks weren't super crisp either, but it turned out just fine. I threw in some strawberries. So, so good.
 
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