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Turnip is a vegetable that looks like radish, but has the properties and taste of cabbage. This root product with white, greenish or purple-red skin belongs to the Cruciferous family and has been growing all over the world since ancient times.
Today, producers grow for commercial purposes about 30 varieties of “domesticated” turnips – the closest relative of wild turnips. You can prepare this vegetable in different ways – bake, cook and roast.
However, professional chefs consider roasting the best way to prepare the product.
How to choose turnips for roasting
In order for the cooking process to bring the expected results, you must be able to choose this vegetable correctly. Professional chefs highlight the following tips:
- When choosing turnips, pay attention to the color. The white root vegetables are soft and juicy in taste, while the yellow turnips are fleshy with a sharper taste.
- In summer, choose young, small-sized turnips (like a medium-sized apple). The skin should be smooth and without cracks. In autumn and winter, choose larger vegetables. They contain more vitamins, so necessary for the body in the cold season.
- Choose a dense turnip, without voids inside.
- Also pay attention to the size of the root crop: it is better to give preference to a small turnip, which easily fits in the palm of your hand. Such a vegetable will not have a bitter taste.
Do you need to peel turnips before roasting?
Before frying turnips in a frying pan, you must peel them. Do it using the following technology:
- Cut the tail and the top rosette of turnip leaves to the base.
- Next, peel the turnips with a vegetable peeler. If there are black dots on the surface of the vegetable, remove them with a knife.
- Rinse the turnips under cold water to remove dirt and starch secretions.
However, some cooks advise not to peel small vegetables, so as not to remove the main amount of vitamins and minerals.
What is the difference between rutabaga and turnip?
Many beginners in cooking confuse two similar vegetables: turnips and rutabagas. Turnip is a herbaceous annual or biennial plant of the Cabbage family. The edible root grows already in the first year of sowing.
The stem of the turnip is high, and there are many leaves on it. The whole plant is green, the inflorescences are yellow. While rutabaga is a biennial plant from the Cabbage family.
This vegetable is a hybrid of wild cabbage and turnips. Its plant is bluish in color, and the inflorescences are also yellow. The main difference for the question of cooking is in the taste characteristics.
Turnips are sweeter and more tender. But rutabaga is more caloric and nutritious, and contains more vitamins, iron and phosphorus.
What do roasted turnips taste like
The taste of fried turnips is somewhat reminiscent of fried cabbage with mushrooms. For some, this taste resembles a mixture of potatoes and carrots.
In general, during heat treatment, turnips always get a taste of cabbage stalk, and also get a brighter yellow color, which always decorates the dish. The leaves of young turnips are soft, fresh and a little sweet, even when cooked.
Can you bake a turnip like a potato
Turnips and potatoes are quite similar in taste, so many people believe that the cooking technologies also coincide. Is this really the case? The taste of the two products is really very similar.
However, you can’t bake and fry turnips the same way as potatoes. The whole point lies in the high content of starch in potatoes.
Turnips are a more delicate and watery product. Therefore, the baking time and temperature are completely different.
Is it useful to eat turnips?
Despite its unpopularity, turnips are a beneficial and nutritious vegetable, as well as a source of important substances for humans.
So 100 g of this root vegetable contains about 30 mg of vitamin C – a powerful antioxidant important for maintaining immunity and tissue repair.
Turnips also provide most of the B vitamins that the body needs to replenish on a daily basis.
Thus, turnips help maintain the proper metabolism of fats, carbohydrates and protein 1g levels, which are essential for the nervous system, skin, hair, liver and eyes. Turnips also contain protein 1g.
How to roast turnips
The technology of roasting turnips is quite simple. Follow the instructions:
- Peel the vegetable and cut into large slices.
- Boil the turnips in salted water for 5 minutes. Drain the water.
- Melt the butter over medium heat, and fry the vegetables for about 7-8 minutes.
If you come across a turnip of a bitter variety, then pre-soak it for 1 hour in cold water. If desired, you can also add coarsely chopped carrots to the pan. You can use fried turnips instead of a side dish or serve as a vegetable snack.
How long to roast turnips
The turnip roasting time can vary from several factors:
- The thickness of the root crop. If turnip slices or whole vegetables are thick, increase the roasting time to 10 minutes.
- The softness of the root crop. The denser the turnip, the longer the cooking time.
- The desired degree of roasting. You can cook crispy vegetables al dente by reducing the roasting time to 5-6 minutes. If you want soft vegetables, roast them for more than 10 minutes.
Roasted turnips and carrots recipe
This homemade recipe for roasted turnips with carrots will appeal to everyone. To cook it, prepare the necessary ingredients:
- turnip – 4 pcs
- carrots – 1 pc
- onion – 1 pc
- garlic – 2-3 cloves
- salt – to taste
- vegetable oil – for frying
Step-by-step technology of preparation:
- Peel and grate the carrots on a fine grater.
- Peel the turnips and cut them into thin cubes.
- Cut the onion into small cubes.
- Pour a little vegetable oil into the pan skillet and put it on a preheated stove.
- Lightly roast the onion and carrot.
- Add turnip cubes to the pan, mix and continue to roast.
- Add salt, pepper and crushed garlic.
- Mix everything well and roast for a couple more minutes.
Roasted turnips and potatoes
The turnip recipe combined with potatoes and zucchini will surprise your guests! To make such a dish, prepare the necessary ingredients:
- potatoes – 1.3 kg
- turnip – 1 piece
- zucchini – 250 g
- onion – 1 head
- garlic – 5 cloves
- lard – 3 tbsp
- salt – to taste
- fresh dill – to taste
Step-by-step technology of preparation:
- Melt the butter in a pan skillet.
- Peel and slice the potatoes. Put the vegetables in a pan. Cover with a lid and roast over high heat for 5 minutes.
- Peel the turnips and squash. Add them to the pan. Continue roasting under the lid for another 5 minutes.
- Add chopped onions, garlic, and herbs. Roast under the lid for the final 10 minutes.
Roasted turnips and parsnips Vinaigrette
If you want to cook something unusual in taste combination – pay attention to this recipe. Fried turnips and parsnips in syrup will surprise even gourmets. To make such a recipe, prepare the following ingredients:
- vegetable oil — 1 tablespoon
- of parsnip — 450 grams
- turnip — 450 grams
- chicken broth or water — 1 cup
- maple syrup — 1/2 cup
- red wine vinegar — 2 tablespoons
- butter — 2 tablespoons
- sprigs of fresh rosemary — 2 pieces
- salt and ground pepper — to taste
Step-by-step technology of preparation:
- In a large frying pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the parsnips and turnips, cook, stirring, until the vegetables begin to brown.
- Add broth, maple syrup, vinegar and season with salt and pepper.
- Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and cook for 10 minutes.
- Remove the lid and cook over medium heat until the turnips are soft and the liquid is thick. You should have a small amount of liquid left.
- Drain excess water, add butter, season with salt and pepper, garnish with rosemary and serve.
Roasted turnips in the oven recipe
You can cook roasted turnips not only in a pan skillet, but also by a combined method using an oven. This recipe will be a great option for weeknight dinner. To make it, prepare the necessary ingredients:
- baby turnips — the needed amount
- avocado oil — 3 tbsp
- balsamic vinegar — to taste
- sea salt — to taste
- spices — to taste
- ground black pepper – to taste
Step-by-step cooking technology:
- Take the needed amount of turnips, wash and peel.
- Cut the vegetable into small slices.
- In a bowl, mix a couple of tablespoons of sunflower oil, a few drops of balsamic vinegar, salt and spices to taste. Put the turnips there and mix everything thoroughly.
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit, and grease the baking sheet with olive oil. Instead of a baking dish, you can use a regular baking tray with parchment paper.
- Put the turnips on a baking dish in 1 layer. Bake for 30 minutes.
What spice goes well with turnips?
To improve the taste of cooked turnips, professional chefs advise adding various spices. Among the best options: cardamom, parsley leaves, garlic powder, thyme, turmeric, and ground ginger.
To soften the texture of a dense turnip, you can add lemon zest or lemon juice. To enhance the taste, many cooks also advise adding parsley, salt, sugar, and honey. Some stores also sell a special mixture for roasting vegetables.
In the case of turnips, this will be a good option.
Best side dishes for turnips
If the usual roasted turnip seems too primitive for you, then you can combine it with various side dishes. For example – you can make a salad of thinly sliced pickled onions, herring fillets, as well as thinly sliced pickled cucumber.
This salad should be seasoned with a mixture of vegetable oil, mustard, and lemon juice. To do this, you must mix all the ingredients thoroughly, add a little sugar, salt and ground black pepper to taste.
Meat can also be a good side dish.
Best sauces for turnips
Some gourmets like to improve the taste of turnips with unusual sauces. Among them:
- Spicy sauce. This sauce has a simple cooking technology and consists only of yogurt, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil.
- Italian salad sauce. This supplement is great for vegetables and consists of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and garlic.
- Pesto sauce. This is a traditional Italian sauce, which got its name from pine nuts. You can make it from fresh basil, hard cheese, pine nuts, olive oil and salt.
- Spanish Salsa. It is an ideal addition to vegetables and tortillas. This sauce consists of cherry tomatoes, green onions, dill, and garlic.
- Andalusian sauce. This is a fairly thick sauce, ideal for combining turnips with potatoes. You can make it from ketchup, mayonnaise, onion, lemon juice, red pepper, and cognac.
Storage rules
In many cases, it is important to know how to properly store cooked turnips. For example, you roasted a lot of vegetables and did not have time to eat all of them. What should you do in this case?
To extend the shelf life of cooked turnips to ensure safety and quality, cool the vegetable in shallow sealed containers or resealable plastic bags. With proper storage in the fridge, you can prolong the shelf life of roasted, boiled or baked turnips for 3 to 5 days.
Main tips
Professional chefs highlight a number of tips that will help you cook turnips quickly and efficiently:
- Buy only high-quality products in the grocery store. So you can be sure of the vegetable’s safety for consumption.
- Roast turnips in butter, so as not to make the product too greasy. This vegetable quickly and easily absorbs any liquid, and oil is no exception.
- Soak the turnips before cooking to reduce the bitterness, especially if the vegetable has been in the refrigerator before.
- Do not add too many spices, otherwise they will block the unique taste of turnips.
- Cut off the peel with a sharp knife. If the peel is cracked or already peeling off, you will need to thoroughly clean all the old layers. If you leave the old layers, the turnip will have a bitter taste and spoil the taste of the future dish.
- Do not roast thick pieces of turnips. Otherwise, the preparation process will increase by a few minutes.
- To prevent the cooked turnip from chapping, sprinkle it with lemon juice.
Final thoughts
Turnips are an excellent low carb vegetable with a range of nutrients. It has a unique taste that even gourmets will appreciate. There are many preparing options and turnips recipes – you only need to take peeled and cut vegetable and place it on a hot surface.
Next, add a teaspoon salt, a little spices and you will get an excellent side dish for beef stew, potatoes and other meals. Don’t be afraid to experiment and make roasted turnips the way you want.
The main thing is to follow the advice from professional chefs, choose a fresh vegetable and the right cooking time.