the friday feed: kohlrabi

A descendant of wild European cabbage, kohlrabi is an old German word that combines cabbage (“kohl”) with turnip (“rabi/rube”). It’s not an iconic, popular or even recognized American vegetable but kohlrabi has always been more of a home gardener’s secret darling, It’s unusual-looking but fun and easy to grow, tasty and nutritious. It’s never been a supermarket staple in the U.S., and ten years ago you’d be hard pressed to find it even at a farmers market, but now kohlrabi has exploded from home gardens into markets across the country.As the community supported agriculture (CSA) and farmers market movements expand, more and more folks are being exposed to kohlrabi. It’s even becoming something of a cult vegetable in haute cuisine.

Kohlrabi is a truly versatile vegetable. Its “bulb” (technically not a bulb or a root but rather a swollen stem) is equally good raw or cooked, and its greens are tasty and ultra-nutritious. Raw kohlrabi has a nice crunch and an earthy, sweet flavor with just a hint of turnip-y bite. It’s nice on a crudité platter, as a veggie “cracker,” grated or thinly sliced on salads and in coleslaws, and pickled. Cooked, it has the sweetness and versatility of a potato without the starch. The greens can be used anywhere collards, kale or turnip greens would be.

Move over, veggies - kohlrabi is here to steal the spotlight!

                    A cabbage cousin,

                    sprinkled with sea salt crystals

                    is when it tastes best.