I used to have NO idea what to do with leeks let alone how to clean leeks. I thought they seemed so exotic, but was totally clueless about where to start. Have you wanted to use leeks, but didn’t really know what to do with them? Well, here is a video of how to clean leeks, which is the first step. Watch this first, then I’ll give you some ideas for what to do with leeks.
Make sure you clean them really well! I fill the salad spinner(that’s the name of it!) 
with water and swish them around, then drain and do it again, then spin the water out of them.
So now that you have them cleaned what do you do with them???
You’re basically going to use them like onions and garlic. They have a mild onion flavor, but I find that they just add a great additional flavor in any recipes. They also have many health benefits such as fighting against cancer and heart disease. Leeks have a large amount of vitamin A, K and antioxidants and help to protect the blood vessel linings from damage.
I use them in all my soups, stews, and my pita pizza recipe with zucchini. I use the white part and a good amount of the dark green leaves too. You just need to cook the darker parts a little longer. You might want to separate the white parts from the dark parts if you’re going to freeze them.
So, get out there and try them! You’ll like them, I promise!! :)!
Here’s the recipe for the Stew I made above.
Hearty Turkey Stew
2 lbs ground turkey or you could use beef or bison
32 oz chicken broth – I use pacific organic, low sodium
2 TBSP of coconut oil
1 sweet vidalia onion diced
2 leeks, washed and sliced
6 cloves of garlic minced
2 medium size squash diced
1 zucchini diced
2 sweet potatoes, diced
2-3 big carrots diced
8 oz of mushrooms or more if you like, washed and sliced
1-2 ears of fresh corn cut off the cob
handful of washed and sliced kale
oregano, thyme, sage, garlic and onion powder, himalayan pink salt, and any other herbs you like, basil to garnish
1. Melt about 1 tbsp of coconut oil in your dutch oven or heavy stock pot, add the leeks, onions, garlic, and mushrooms, and herbs(a generous amount) cook until onions are almost translucent. Then add the sweet potatoes and carrots. Add some chicken broth as needed when it gets too dry.
2. In a frying pan, melt the remaining coconut oil and brown the turkey adding some salt. Add the turkey to the onion mixture.
3. In the same frying pan add the corn and sautee for about 5 mins, then add that to the stew.
4. Add the squash and zucchini until just tender, then add the chopped kale and let it wilt.
5. It’s ready to serve! Server over quinoa or brown rice, or have on it’s own with some blue corn chips.
