How to Cook Turnips So They Taste Good

TURNIPS!  Don't turn your nose up at this unfamiliar seasonal vegetable. Trust me, turnips are delicious if you cook them the right way and I will tell you how!

If you belong to a CSA farm or if you shop at a local farmer's market, you may begin to start seeing turnips showing up around now! I received a large bunch along with many other veggies this week from my CSA  farm. 

Lots of Greens 

I have vague memories as a child hearing that turnips are smelly and yucky! But I heard the same about brussels sprouts, broccoli, and other vegetables that taste terrible when they are boiled way too long . 

Turnips- Yuck!!

I honestly have never made turnips before, so I went on a search on Pinterest to find some good recipes.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out that this low carb and low calorie vegetable can be substituted for potatoes in most recipes. 

AND that turnips have way fewer carbs and calories than potatoes, making them a better choice for dieters ! 

They are also high in fiber which helps regulate the function of the metabolism. They share the health benefits of any cruciferous vegetable like broccoli or cauliflower, making the turnip a great addition to any diet. 

There Are Many Ways To Prepare Turnips

• Eat them raw by grating them into coleslaws 
• Pickle them- Egyptian cultures make pickled turnips called  "Lift" 
• Roast them in the oven either sliced or halved ( I prefer sliced) 
• Roast or steam till tender then mash them just like mashed potatoes- add butter 
• Make fries- cut them just like you make french fries, toss in olive oil with seasoning,  and roast on a cookie sheet at 400 degrees- they are not as dense as potato but still good
• Salad- slice them like a radish
• Soups- use like you would a potato in soups 
• Who knew??? I've never made turnips before. 

My Favorite Way to Eat Turnips

Sliced and Roasted Turnips 

I  liked the turnips sliced, tossed in olive oil, seasoned with rosemary, pepper, and Himalayan salt.  Simple but delicious. Since turnips have more liquid than potatoes, I like to slice them which seems to produce a drier product than when I cut them in half and roasted them. 

Turnip Halves uncooked
I then cut in half, toss in olive oil and seasonings of choice, bake at
400 degrees till tender

The turnip halves are juicier halved than when they are sliced, but the slices are crispier. Both ways are good but I like mine better sliced.

Substitute Turnips for Potatoes in Any Soup

Creamy, soothing , and delicious
TURNIP SOUP WITH CARAMELIZED ONION
Follow my recipe for Potato Soup but substitute the turnips

That is why I like to belong to a CSA farm- I am, introduced to many different types of veggies that I am not familiar with and that are nutritious and taste great!

How I Decided to Cook My Turnips.

Since I wanted to make them in the simplest way possible, 
I decided to slice them, toss them in olive oil and seasoning and roast them in the oven. They were absolutely delicious especially when they first came out of the oven.

Do I peel them first? I did not peel mine because they were organic. 
The skin is very thin and tender and not necessary to peel.

 Eat The Turnip Greens Too!!

The turnips are connected to greens. These greens are tender, taste delicious , and extremely healthy. They contain substantial levels of lutein a carotenoid that is especially beneficial for eye health.

The greems taste similar to kale when cooked but are somewhat more tender.  As with most greens, they taste best when not overcooked. I simply sautee them in some olive oil spray with a little garlic and Himalayan salt until well wilted and the stems are soft ( I cut up the stems with the greens)  

uncooked

I cut them up, sauteed them in a skillet sprayed with olive oil, added a little Himalayan salt.
I ate the turnip bulb and the sauteed greens together.  

cooked

You need the right tool to peel hard to peel vegetables


Although you wont need to peel turnips, I received other hard to peel veggies in my CSA basket.

Kohlrabi

Kohlrabi has a tough outer skin which needs to be peeled. It can be a tough job unless you have a really good peeler. The one I love is light, easy to handle, and peels quickly an thoroughly cutting down the struggle on butternut squash, kohlrabi, and other vegetables that a large and need peeling.

Best Vegetable Peeler that I highly recommend

The peeler that I use can slip off the skin of a butternut so fast that it is actually easy to peel.
Using the correct tool really does make a difference.  I own two hand peelers that look almost identical.  One is the OXO Good Grips Y Peeler.and the other looks just like it- but its a different brand.

The OXO Good Grips Y Peeler.is really inexpensive but is a good investment which will take the struggle out of peeling. I used to get so frustrated.

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