Hops, shoots and recipes

From an April 2002 article by Lisa Morrison in the OBC newsletter.

Hop shoots have a decent shelf life if kept refrigerated. If they go limp, simply
stand in cool water, like you would with celery or regular asparagus. I have heard
that wrapping them with damp toweling before storing the shoots in the vegetable
crisper can help keep them fresh, also.

One caveat: You will want to cut the shoots early as they are just popping out of the
ground, before they get too tough and “thorny.”

Here are a couple of recipes to get you hoppin’:

Hop Salsa - Sandwich Topping

Yields 1 1/2 Cups
4 oz. diced hop shoots
4 oz. water
1 oz. capers
4 oz. diced celery
4 oz. diced sweet onion
3 oz. diced red bell pepper
1 oz. chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1 tbsp. minced thyme
1 tsp. cracked black pepper
Olive oil and lemon juice to taste
In the microwave, steam the hop shoots in a small amount of water, in a microwavesafe
dish, on “high” setting for about 4 minutes. Drain and let cool.
Blend the other ingredients, and stir in the hops. Spread as a topping on deli sandwiches
or toasted bruschetta.

Poached Eggs on Hops

Makes 4 Servings
4 eggs
8 oz. hop shoots
Water
1 tsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. butter
Salt and pepper to taste
Wash the hop shoots and place in a 2-quart saucepan, filled with salted, boiling
water. Add lemon juice and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Run hop shoots
briefly under cold water to halt the cooking process. Place hop shoots in a warmed
serving dish and dot with butter. Place water in egg poacher and bring to a boil.
Add eggs and cook for about 5-6 minutes or to taste. Place poached eggs on top of
hop shoots. Serve with toast.

I ran into someone that told me about a bar in western Wisconsin the has a hops shaker next to the popcorn machine. I haven't tried it yet, but it does intrigue me.

Cross posting to the Hops thread for Hop Asparagus.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=60899

I debated posting them on that thread, but decided they belonged here.

No I agree. I thought I'd throw a link here and there.

Looks interesting David, I may have to give the salsa one a try.

Cut the shoots when they reach about a foot long.

Remove leaves and leaf stems.

Snap them or cut them to length like you would asparagus to eliminate the tough bits.

Remove any stringy bits.

Steam until tender.

sautee tender hops shoots in w white wine, butter, thyme, and garlic reduction and then plate drizzling the butter sauce over the shoots.

serve paired as you would green beans or asparagus.

^^^^^That's what I am doing this year. Only a week or two and the shoots will be ripe for the pickins'. I am gonna pair them up with a nice rare steak and hopefully a Victory Pilsner.

Naked City had some pickled hop shoots when I was there. They were pretty good, kinda reminiscent of pickled chard stems which I am a fan of.

GilaMinumBeer said:

Cut the shoots when they reach about a foot long.

Remove leaves and leaf stems.

Snap them or cut them to length like you would asparagus to eliminate the tough bits.

Remove any stringy bits.

Steam until tender.

sautee tender hops shoots in w white wine, butter, thyme, and garlic reduction and then plate drizzling the butter sauce over the shoots.

serve paired as you would green beans or asparagus.

^^^^^That's what I am doing this year. Only a week or two and the shoots will be ripe for the pickins'. I am gonna pair them up with a nice rare steak and hopefully a Victory Pilsner.

Click to expand...

Sounds pretty good, I'll give it a shot. I have a few shoots that are approaching a foot now