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Rhubarb: The Vegetable That Pretends to Be Dessert
Rhubarb’s journey from frozen Siberia to my hot oven
“The general feeling about rhubarb in Minnesota is about 90 percent favorable, and a very vocal 10 percent unfavorable, which is fine. I’ve always been jealous of the South, and the way they have this distinct cuisine which people can react to — you hate okra, you love it; you hate chitterlings, you love them; you hate shrimp and grits — well, actually, no one hates shrimp and grits. We have something to forge a food identity around: rhubarb, the okra of the north.”
— Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl “Dining with Dara: Get Rhubarb Out of the Pie,” MPR News, April 19, 2012.
Dara Grumdahl might live in the Rhubarb Capital of the World, but I live right next door to the Rhubarb Pie Center of the Universe! Sumner, Washington, just 20 miles southeast of my little town (as the crow flies), has already posted plans for their 2026 annual rhubarb extravaganza.
And why not? Rhubarb is a tart, tangy fruit that melds beautifully with all berries and most other fruits to create tasty pies, crisps, and tarts.
WRONG!
Guess what? Rhubarb is not a fruit! Despite its common use in “all things dessert-like”, it’s actually a vegetable. Botanically speaking, fruits are…
