Guide

Fruit and Vegetable Guide

Turnips

Autumn, winter

Description: When young and fresh, these half-white, half-purple root vegetables range in flavor from very sweet to a little peppery; older ones can be hot and bitter.

Selection: Choose smooth, unblemished turnips. They should feel firm and heavy for their size. Greens should look fresh. Turnips 2 inches or less in diameter are usually more tender.

Storage and handling: Refrigerate in a plastic bag up to a week. Wash in a bowl of cold water.

Preparation: Baby turnips need not be peeled, but tough skins of other turnips can be removed with a peeler or knife. Blanche large or old turnips in boiling water 4-5 minutes to get rid of a strong or bitter flavor. Boil whole or chopped turnips; pieces will take 5-8 minutes, small whole turnips 15-20 minutes. Roast in the oven (SIS, p. 251). Microwave small whole turnips, covered, 4 minutes. Drain and finish cooking as desired. Turnip greens may be boiled or steamed.

Serving suggestions: Slice or julienne young turnips and eat raw with a dip or peanut butter. Add shredded raw turnips to salads. Bake turnips with sweeter root vegetables like carrots and parsnips. When boiled and then puréed with a potato, turnips make a delicious, low-starch alternative to mashed potatoes.

Nutrients: Vitamin C.

1 lb raw = 3 1⁄2 cups
1 lb cooked = 2 cups

Guide

Fruit and Vegetable Guide

Turnips

More from our readers

Send your tips, helpful comments or recipes


	Guide General Tips Apples Asparagus Beets Blueberries Broccoli Brussels sprouts Cabbage Carrots Cauliflower Celeriac Celery Collards Corn Cranberries Cucumbers Edamame Edible flowers Eggplant Fennel Grapes Green beans Kale Kohlrabi Leeks Lettuce Melon Mesclun Mushrooms Okra Onions Parsnips Peaches Pears Peas Peppers Persimmons Potatoes Pumpkins Raspberries Rhubarb Rutabagas Spinach Summer squash Strawberries Swiss chard Sweet potatoes Tomatillos Tomatoes Turnips Wild greens Winter squash Fruit and Vegetable Guide Turnips Autumn, winter Description: When young and fresh, these half-white, half-purple root vegetables range in flavor from very sweet to a little peppery; older ones can be hot and bitter. Selection: Choose smooth, unblemished turnips. They should feel firm and heavy for their size. Greens should look fresh. Turnips 2 inches or less in diameter are usually more tender. Storage and handling: Refrigerate in a plastic bag up to a week. Wash in a bowl of cold water. Preparation: Baby turnips need not be peeled, but tough skins of other turnips can be removed with a peeler or knife. Blanche large or old turnips in boiling water 4-5 minutes to get rid of a strong or bitter flavor. Boil whole or chopped turnips; pieces will take 5-8 minutes, small whole turnips 15-20 minutes. Roast in the oven (SIS, p. 251). Microwave small whole turnips, covered, 4 minutes. Drain and finish cooking as desired. Turnip greens may be boiled or steamed. Serving suggestions: Slice or julienne young turnips and eat raw with a dip or peanut butter. Add shredded raw turnips to salads. Bake turnips with sweeter root vegetables like carrots and parsnips. When boiled and then puréed with a potato, turnips make a delicious, low-starch alternative to mashed potatoes. Nutrients: Vitamin C. 1 lb raw = 3 1⁄2 cups 1 lb cooked = 2 cups More from our readers Do you have a tip, comment or recipe you would like to add to this page? Send your tips, helpful comments or recipes Name Email Address Email Address confirm Comments The Fruit and Vegetable Guide is reproduced here with permission of Herald Press, publisher of Simply in Season. Subscribe to a recipe a week from the Simply in Season cookbook.
World Community Cookbooks Simply in Season About Recipe of the Week Fruit and Vegetable Guide Blogs & Reviews Study Guide Register Simply in Season Children’s Cookbook About Look Inside More-with-Less About Recipes Extending the table About Recipes Links MCC Web site
	© 2009 Mennonite Central Committee 21 South 12th Street, PO Box 500 Akron, PA 17501 tel: +1 (717) 859-1151 or toll free (888) 563-4676 MCC Canada, 134 Plaza Drive, Winnipeg, MB, R3T 5K9 tel: +1 (204) 261-6381 or toll free (888) 622-6337 Contact cookbook@mcc.org regarding the content of this page. Contact fdy@mcc.org regarding technical difficulties with this page.