Rhubarb's tart taste and healing powers are overshadowed in the produce section

WHO-BARB?

When most people think of rhubarb, they think of pies and poison, but in China people most frequently associate this fruit with medicine.

Chinese herbalists started cultivating rhubarb in 2700 B.C. and have used it in their practice ever since. The fruit has strong laxative properties, which Chinese and American herbalists believe help with chronic constipation, hemorrhoids and gastroenteritis. In China, Da huang, or Chinese rhubarb, has been used to remove toxins from the intestinal tract for thousands of years. It is also used to controlling gastrointestinal hemorrhaging by promoting the formation of blood platelets and in treating jaundice, burns, conjunctivitis and traumatic injuries, according to answers.com.

"Chinese herbalists also use rhubarb root for diseases and disorders in the upper body, including sinus and lung infections, nosebleeds, and eye infections," according to an article in answers.com. "According to the principles of traditional Chinese medicine, rhubarb root makes the heat in the upper body discharge through the bowel."

Recent studies in China and Japan suggest that rhubarb can stop the progression of chronic renal failure, function as an anti-inflammatory and fever-reducer, and help with endometriosis.

But despite its many medicinal uses rhubarb has fallen out of favor with many cooks. The fruit arrived in the United States between 1790 and 1800 and was planted by a Maine gardener, after he obtained seeds from Europe. The farmer introduced the plant to growers in Massachusetts and by 1822 it was sold in produce markets, according to The Rhubarb Compendium.

Today rhubarb is not used in mainstream medicine, and few people have heard of or have eaten the fruit. The few that have though say the fruit has a distinctive tart flavor that separates it from almost all other tastes.

Betty Cortez, of Donna, grew up eating rhubarb in a neighbor's backyard.

"We'd eat it raw," she said. "We'd eat the red part. When we'd get to the green part, we'd stop and through it away."

Cortez stopped eating rhubarb briefly after her mom told her the plant was poisonous - the green leaves contain oxalate. Even small dose of calcium oxalate can cause burning feelings in the mouth and throat, swelling, and choking. In larger doses, however, it causes severe digestive upset, breathing difficulties and - if enough is consumed - convulsions, coma and death.

Fortunately, if people - as Cortez wisely did - only eat the red stem, the fruit causes no danger.

Cortez no longer eats rhubarb raw - instead she enjoys it cooked in pies. She especially likes the pies where the rhubarb is mixed with strawberries, which creates a complex flavor of tart and sweet.

Raw or cooked Cortez is a huge fan of the red, celery-like fruit.

"I love it," she said. "I can't get enough of it."

Paige Lauren Deiner covers features and entertainment for The Monitor. You can reach her at (956) 683-4425. You can reach her at (956) 683-4425.

Go Anywhere Rhubarb Squares
Ingredients:
1 c. flour
1/3 c. powdered sugar
1/3 c. butter

Filling: 1 c. sugar
1/4 c. flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp. vanilla
3 c. finely chopped fresh or frozen rhubarb

Procedure:
Combine flour & powdered sugar; cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Press into the bottom of a greased 11-inch x 7-inch x 2-inch baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 12 minutes. For filling, combine first four ingredients. Stir in rhubarb; pour over warm crust. Bake at 350 degrees F for 35-40 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Serve warm if desired. Store in refrigerator.

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Oatmeal-Rhubarb Bars
Ingredients:
1 cup All-purpose flour
3/4 cup Oatmeal -- uncooked
1 cup Brown sugar -- packed
1/2 cup Butter, unsalted -- melted

1 cup Sugar
2 teaspoons Cornstarch
1 cup Water
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
4 cups Rhubarb

Procedure:
Mix flour, oatmeal, brown sugar and butter until crumbly. Press 1/2 into greased 9" pan. Add rhubarb, cut in 1/2" pieces. Combine sugar, cornstarch, water and vanilla; cook till thick and clear. Pour sauce over rhubarb. Top with other half crumb mixture. Bake at 350F for 45 minutes.

Rhubarb-Raspberry Jam
Ingredients:
4 cups 1-inch pieces fresh rhubarb (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1  1/2-pint basket raspberries
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
Procedure:
Combine rhubarb pieces, sugar and fresh lemon juice in heavy large Dutch oven. Cover and refrigerate until juices form, stirring occasionally, at least 8 hours or overnight.
Bring rhubarb mixture to simmer over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to high and boil until rhubarb mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Add raspberries and boil until mixture is thick, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes longer. Remove jam from heat. Stir in ground cardamom. Cool jam completely. (Jam can be made 1 week ahead. Store in covered container in refrigerator.)
Makes about 2 cups
Pork Chops with Rhubarb Onion & Raisin Chutney
Ingredients:
1/2 cup  Golden raisins
1/2 cup  Hot water
2 tablespoons Balsamic or red wine vinegar
1 pinch Ground cloves
1 pinch Ground nutmeg
2 tablespoons Sugar
2 tablespoons Vegetable oil
4 3/4  Pork chops; trimmed
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 medium Onion; finely chopped
1 1/2 cup  Diced fresh rhubarb

Procedure:
In a bowl combine the raisins, hot water, vinegar, cloves, nutmeg, and sugar and let stand. In a large skillet heat the vegetable oil over moderately high heat. Season the pork chops with salt and pepper and cook until browned on both sides. Transfer browned chops to a shallow baking dish and place in a 300 degree F. oven. In the drippings in the skillet cook the onion, stirring occasionally, until tender. Add the raisin mixture, bring to a boil, and stir. Add the rhubarb, do not stir in the rhubarb, cover and let simmer for 5 minutes. Stir the mixture and cook, uncovered, for another 3 minutes or until the rhubarb is just tender. Return the pork chops to the skillet with any juices that have collected in the baking dish. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

Glazed Roast Lamb with Rhubarb Salsa
Ingredients:

LAMB:

1 Leg of lamb (4-6 lbs) Boned and rolled 3 tb Honey
1 ts Garlic salt
1/4 ts Ground pepper
2 tb Red wine vinegar

RHUBARB SALSA:

1 c Chopped onions
2/3 c Dark or golden raisins
1/2 c Honey
2 tb Red wine vinegar
4 ts Chopped Jalapeno pepper
2 Cloves garlic, minced
1/2 ts Ground cardamom
6 c Fresh or frozen sliced Rhubarb (1-1/2 lbs)

Procedure:
LAMB: Combine the 3 tablespoons honey, garlic salt, pepper and 2 tablespoons vinegar. Place meat on rack in roasting pan; brush with glaze mixture. Roast in 325 degree oven for two to four hours or until desired doneness (150 degrees for medium rare or 160 degrees for medium), brushing occasionally with glaze mixture.

RHUBARB SALSA: In a large saucepan, combine the onions, raisins, honey, vinegar, jalapeno pepper, garlic and cardamom. Stir in rhubarb. Bring to boiling; reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes, stirring as little as possible. Uncover and simmer for 5 minutes to reduce the liquid slightly. Stir only if necessary to prevent scorching. Set aside. Serve at room temperature as accompaniment to sliced roast lamb. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Gramp's Rhubarb Strawberry Pie

Ingredients:
9 inch pie crust
6 Tablespoons flour
2 Tablespoons corn starch
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups rhubarb
2 cups strawberries
2 Tablespoons butter

Procedure:
Mix all dry ingredients together and then mix with rhubarb and strawberries. Place in crust. Put little chunks of butter around on top. Sprinkle a little nutmeg over it. Put on top crust and make a few slits. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Then bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes or till done.

Rhubarb Wine
There are two things that you have to know about to make good rhubarb wine: 1) Chop up your rhubarb stalks and freeze them in plastic bags for a few days before you make the wine. I really don't understand why this should make a difference, but it does. If you use fresh rhubarb the wine never comes out as good. 2) You have to have patience. Rhubarb wine can taste uninteresting at eight months and really good at ten months. You have to let it mellow.

Ingredients:
3 pounds rhubarb
3 pounds white sugar
1 tsp. yeast nutrient
1 gallon hot water (doesn't have to be boiling)
2 campden tablets (crushed)
wine yeast
Procedure:
Use frozen cut up rhubarb. Put it in the primary fermentor (a "kitchen-size" clean plastic garbage can works really well) along with the sugar. Cover and let stand for 24 hours. Add the hot water, mix everything together and then strain out the rhubarb. Put the liquid back in the primary fermentor and when it is luke-warm add the rest of the ingredients. Cover and leave it to ferment for three or four days. Then siphon the liquid into gallon jugs with fermentation locks. There will be a fair amount of sediment, so when the wine settles a bit (about a month) you will want to rack it. Be sure to top up the bottles. We bottle ours at about 6 months. This last year I made one batch of straight rhubarb and the other batch was mostly rhubarb with about a pound of green grapes crushed and thrown in as well. Both were entirely drinkable, but the one with the grapes added was definitely better.