Gruyere Roasted Leeks Recipe
Roasting is one of the best ways to cook leeks; it mellows them out and makes them sweet. Topping them with a sharp, nutty cheese like Gruyere just takes it to another level. This is a side dish that’s simple but looks and tastes like you put in a lot of effort.
Ingredients
- 8 medium leeks
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt
- 3/4 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
- 1 1/3 cups shredded Gruyere cheese
Get the Leeks Cleaned and Prepped
Set your oven to 400F.
The first and most important step is cleaning the leeks.
They trap a surprising amount of sand and grit in their layers.
Slice off the hairy root bottoms and the dark, tough green tops. You want to be left with the white and light green parts. Then, slice them in half, lengthwise. Run each half under cold water, gently separating the layers with your fingers to wash away any dirt. Pat them completely dry.
First Roast for Tenderness
In a large baking dish, toss the leek halves with the olive oil, salt, and pepper until they’re all evenly coated.
Arrange them cut-side down in a single layer.
This helps steam them slightly and get them tender.
Roast for ~20 minutes. You’ll see the edges start to brown and caramelize.
Top with Cheese and Finish
Take the dish out of the oven. Use tongs to flip all the leeks so the cut side is facing up. Cover them evenly with the shredded Gruyere.
Put the dish back in the oven for another 7-10 minutes. The dish is done when the leeks are fork-tender and the cheese on top is melted and bubbly with some browned spots.
Gruyere Roasted Leeks
Ingredients
- 8 medium leeks
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt
- 3/4 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
- 1 1/3 cups shredded Gruyere cheese
Method
- Preheat oven to 400F.
- Trim leeks, keeping white and light green parts. Halve lengthwise, rinse thoroughly between layers, pat dry.
- Toss leeks with olive oil, salt and pepper in baking dish. Arrange cut-side down in single layer.
- Roast 20 minutes until edges begin to brown.
- Flip leeks cut-side up, top with Gruyere cheese.
- Return to oven 7-10 minutes until leeks are tender and cheese is bubbly and browned.
