Turnips ??????

I don't like to see my garden beds lying fallow even in the winter. This year, I planted a lot of turnips though I'm not really a turnip fan. As a result, I have some gigantic turnips that I don't know how to best use. In past years, I've tried many recipes, but the turnips always remain tasting like turnips in every recipe I've tried.

I do enjoy turnip greens and could eat them at almost every meal. My greens have been through a few hard freezes and a heavy snow so they don't look so good.

Does anyone have a recipe for turnips that may disguise them and cause them to taste like something other than turnips. I don't have any fresh tomatoes to hide the turnips behind, but I do have a large amount of dehydrated tomatoes which should do a good job of hiding the turnips.

My thoughts are running this way (hide the turnips) because I know in Great Britain they grow a lot of parsnip and use them almost as a substitute for the potatoes we would use in pot roast dishes. I think if you can hide the parsnips behind other flavors, you should be able to hide the turnips.

I also have a pretty good supply of winter grown onions, carrots, and Chinese cabbage that could go into the pot with the turnips and tomatoes

Ted

[Redbaron]

It is hard for me to say because I love turnips. But just dice them up and make a soup out of them. And yes potatoes carrots onions parsnips beets celery cabbage etc are all good in the soup. Just season with a soup bone and whatever seasonings you like.

[saltmarsh]

If you like fried foods try this.

Po' Man's Dish

1 medium onion peeled and cut into 1/4" wedges
2 or 3 medium pototes cut 1/2" dice
2 carrots slice into 1/4" rounds
12 pods of Okra cut into 1/2" dice (if you like okra)
2 medium sized turnips cut 1/2" dice (make sure you peel all the outer skin, it's bitter)
2 yellow squash or zucchini 1/2" dice
Pour 1/2 cup of corn meal, 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper (or to taste) into a bag, add vegetables and shake to coat.
Fry on stovetop like you were frying okra or skillet fried potatoes.

If you don't like fried foods try this.

Baked Turnip or Rutabaga Fries

Preheat oven to 425 degrees
spray a large cookie sheet with cooking spray
Peel and slice turnips into steak fry size pieces
Put 2 Tablespoons seasoned salt like Lowery's or McCormack's in a bag, add the turnips and shake well to coat
Arrange turnips in a single layer on cookie sheet
Spray with cooking spray

Cook in preheated oven for 30 minutes or desired doneness.

[salix]

Ted, turnips or rutabagas? If rutabagas, just peel, cube, cook and then mash with a bit of butter, salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg. Mmmmm

If they are still too 'strong' for your taste, do half and half with carrots. Still Mmmmm

[Deborah]

I like them raw in salad or a slice sprinkled with a little salt.

[matilda'skid]

I also grew turnips because at the feed store they told me people plant them in their gardens over winter to improve the soil. I don't like mine either. I think the lack of rain made them strong, but I never have liked turnips.

How do you fix the greens? If you like the greens that is a good reason to grow them. I looked up the nutritional value of turnips and potatoes beat them (the root part I mean). I think the greens are very good for you.

Matilda,

I tried them as someone suggested and cooked them in the oven like large french fries on a cookie sheet. I tried two batches seasoned different ways. They still had a strong turnip taste and made the house smell like turnips. While I can't say they were great or anything, I didn't really dislike them, but I sure can't say I am a fan of them. I think my wife made my decision for me. She said she does not like turnips at all and doesn't like the odor filling the house.

The turnip greens are another story. I just cook them down in water with a little bacon. Since everyones taste buds are different, I will just say I season them to suit my taste with a little salt and pepper and a small amount of vinegar. They have a pretty strong flavor so you might like to mix them with some milder greens like spinach or collard greens. I like the crunchy texture of the central rib of the greens. Other people remove the central rib.

Ted

[Worth1]

This thread reminds me of the big 40 acre turnip field my dad shot deer out of when I was a kid.

It is also makig me laugh at how much people hate turnips.

I love turnips raw and cooked.

We used to have a big bulap sack of them and a salt shaker for just fresh eating while watching TV.
A turnip is a super food to me.

Worth

Worth,

You are welcome to come over to my place and get all the turnips you want. I will start pulling them tomorrow before preparing the bed for the onions I've already purchased. If you are at home, the drive isn't very far. If you are in Prudhoe Bay, you might want to plan for a longer trip. If you work on or around any kind of rig onshore or offshore, I have enough turnips to feed the whole crew for awhile.

Yep, I used to hunt deer over turnip and clover fields. I never could understand why those white tail deer liked turnips so much, but they did.

I also know people who like to munch on raw potatoes. I can't stand them either.

Ted

[Redbaron]

Originally Posted by tedln

I also know people who like to munch on raw potatoes. I can't stand them either.

Ted

Me too! I hate those raw potato eating people!

[Worth1]

I love raw potatoes.
I hate people that hate people that love raw potateos.

Worth

You can't hate me Worth. I don't hate people who hate people who eat raw potatoes. I hate raw potatoes. I am ambivalent about people who hate people who hate people who hate people that eat raw potatoes. (gets kinda boring when nothing is growing, doesn't it)

Ted

[Tracydr]

Have you tried lacto fermenting? Sort of like saurkraut?
I also love them in stews mixed with carrots, onions beef celery and all the other goodies.
Pasties?
Mashed with butter, salt and and pepper?

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by tedln

You can't hate me Worth. I don't hate people who hate people who eat raw potatoes. I hate raw potatoes. I am ambivalent about people who hate people who hate people who hate people that eat raw potatoes. (gets kinda boring when nothing is growing, doesn't it)

Ted

I know what you mean.
I have the dreaded turnip,carrots radish curly mustard greens red indive cabbage and snow peas growing.

Got room for bib lettuce too.

Worth

[jerzey]

This doesn't help you with your current abundance, but I highly recommend Japanese turnips to all! Varieties that I grow for market and love are Hakurei & Tokyo Cross (white skin, white flesh) and Tsugaru Scarlet (red/pink skin, white skin with white flesh streaked with pink). Best harvested golf ball size, the texture raw is like a crunchy apple (scarlet are slightly more dense), and the flavor is like a sweet, mild radish, so they are great in salad. They also go well in mixed root veggies, and make amazing pureed turnip soup. For the spring crop I love them lightly sauteed in butter with sugar snap peas.

Seed available at Kitazawa here: http://www.kitazawaseed.com/seeds_turnip.html
Johnny's also carries Japanese turnips as well: http://www.johnnyseeds.com/c-53-turnips.aspx