These Turnip Recipes That Prove Just How Delicious the Veggie Can Be (2024)

FAQs

How do you get the bitterness out of turnips? ›

If you want to try a different cooking method, I tend to like turnip boiled and mashed. If the turnip is old (and likely bitter) you can add an apple. I've also read that you can stir in baking soda after the turnips have boiled to remove the bitterness. You would then need to rinse thoroughly.

Rutabagas (Brassica napus) are a type of oblong root vegetable similar to turnips, although rutabagas are actually the result of a cross between turnips and cabbages. They have a slightly bitter taste and are usually yellow or purple in appearance.

Rutabagas are also generally much larger than turnips. So for a quick rule of thumb, the brownish-yellowish ones are rutabagas, and the smaller white and purple ones are turnips. In terms of their flavor, rutabagas are slightly sweeter-tasting than turnips whereas turnips have a slightly more radishy flavor.

One turnip website from the United Kingdom notes that if you boil them, add a little sugar to tame the scent and add baking soda to reduce bitterness.

How do you get the bitterness out of turnips? Peel the turnip about ¼" down, below the yellow bitterness line you can see when you cut the turnip in half. Boil the turnips in salt water. Add a few potatoes to the boiling water.

A variety of herbs and spices can be added to the mashed turnips. Try a tablespoon of finely chopped sage or rosemary, a clove or two of roasted or sautéed garlic, or a pinch of paprika or ground ginger. If your turnips came with the greens, don't throw them away.

Add baking soda.

Salt is one of my favorite ways to cut the bitterness in turnip greens. I then add about 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda to the broth and simmer for the last 20 minutes. Works like a charm!

You can't make turnips taste better because they are the best tasting food there ever could be. Roast them instead of boiling them. Serve with salt, pepper, and butter. You can use other spices or things like vinegar too if you like.

Originally from Mexico, the jicama is sometimes also known as a Mexican turnip or yam bean. Although the root is safe to eat, the rest of the plant, including the beans, are toxic.

Use turnips any way you would use a potato, and then some. Try them baked or boiled in stews, soups and stir-fries, or lightly steamed with some butter, salt or lemon juice for flavor.

Can you eat a turnip like an apple? ›

Smaller, sweeter turnips can be sliced into wedges and eaten raw like an apple. Raw baby turnips can be sliced or diced and used in salads. Raw turnips can also be grated and used as a garnish.

Encourages healthy bowels

A cup of boiled and mashed rutabaga provides 4.32 grams (g) of dietary fiber toward the 14 g of fiber per 1000 calories that the American government recommends people consume. Dietary fiber helps to keep the bowels healthy and can decrease the risk of: constipation.

Though they are most commonly cooked, turnips can be enjoyed raw as well. If you plan to eat them raw, simply peel and slice the turnip like an apple to eat with dips or add to the top of your salad. Be sure to slice off the root end and remove the greens – which can be saved for cooking as well.

It is the norm that supermarket rutabagas (many also refer to them as turnips) be peeled before cooking because of their wax-coated skin. First, as those who grow them know, those big turnips are really rutabagas, a cabbage/turnip cross. Second, waxing is a great way to seal, retain moisture and preserve the rutabaga.

Soak in water: Place the turnip cubes in a bowl of cold water and let them soak for about 30 minutes. This step will help remove any bitterness and make them more tender.

You cannot “remove” the bitter taste, bur you can counterbalance it using more salt, adding sugar or honey. Ingredients possess flavors. Human's posses sense of taste capabilities. Therefore, look at flavor and taste as being two different things.

Experiments 1 and 2 showed that addition of small amounts of sugar and salt each reduced the bitterness (and increased sweetness and saltiness) from all three vegetables without altering other sensory properties (e.g. texture or aroma).