Everything Kohlrabi
Cooking apart, together.
“It seems to me that our three basic needs, for food and security and love, are so mixed and mingled and entwined that we cannot straightly think of one without the others.”
- M.F.K. Fisher, The Art of Eating
Happy Kohlrabi Friday.
We’re back, we’re here.
I needed to take the last two weeks off from writing, and frankly thinking about food too much. Clearly there have been other conversations to be having and important places to put our thoughts, efforts and time. And just like we need to continue to show up in all aspects of our life, feeding & nourishing our families still happens every day, over and over and over again. Also, it’s kohlrabi season!
Let’s start with a few many things I have to say about kohlrabi, the delightful peculiar vegetable namesake of this project.
Kohlrabi (kohl-rah-bee), from the brassica family, a wild cultivated cabbage turnip. With German roots, “kohl” meaning cabbage and ‘rabi’ “rübe” meaning turnip.
Kohlrabi is high in fiber, vitamin C, and potassium. It’s easy to store (lives well in the fridge for a long time) and easy, versatile to eat and cook. Yet, this uncommon, unusual-looking green, white or purple bulbous vegetable comes with a lot of questions.
What does it taste like? Like many of your favorite vegetables (and kid favorites?): cucumber, mild radish, a broccoli stalk. A little bitter, a little sweet, snappy & refreshing.
How do you eat it? Cook it? Honestly, my favorite and son’s favorite is raw. Crisp, cool slices or sticks. More inspired suggestions below.
When? Now. Late spring, summer, and fall. Younger, smaller bulbs are a little more sweet and crunchy (have snap) for snacking. Larger, older varieties can become a little woody and more root-vegetable like, better for sautéing and roasting.
Can you eat the greens? Yes! But they tend to be waxy and thick, so better to cook them (easier to digest too). Use in place of kale or collard greens.
Do you peel the bulb? Yes. And no difference in flavor between green, white, purple peels/varietals.
Why it’s a great vegetable for kids? Kohlrabi is very versatile and approachable, like common ‘kid vegetables’ carrot sticks or sliced cucumber. If you’re inclined to mention it to children, it also happens to look a lot like apple slices (!). My own love and interest in kohlrabi actually started around the same time I was introducing my son to new and various foods. Variety and new flavors, diversity have all been key to my feeding approach - peas, carrots, cucumber are wonderful, of course - but introducing a wide range of foods and flavors early on has many benefits for nutrients, establishing adventurous palates, and for a microbiome-friendly approach.
Also, it’s high in fiber. Easy, quick option for snacking - can be thoughtfully added to many dishes - travels great - very dippable - school lunches (if that’s ever a thing again) - and like I said, lives well in your fridge drawer. I’m not sure why it’s been more overlooked, but I’m glad it’s here now, and happy to introduce it as your new favorite vegetable too.
Here’s a few of my favorite ways to introduce kohlrabi to your table:
Summer:
Raw* - sliced, stick’d, coin’d, the whole (or half) kohlrabi
*Also great for teething and early eaters - raw or lightly steamed
Dippable - shaved or sliced alongside hummus or tahini, pea smash, beet muhammara, fava bean spread, etc.
Crisp salad or slaw - I love kohlrabi paired with late summer fennel, toasted nuts, and sharp parmesan or pecorino OR bitter greens/chicories and tangy vinaigrette or sauerkraut (below) OR straightforward slaw with cabbage and various crunch. Commonly paired with shaved apple or pear too, if sweeter is your preference. Personally, I like to keep it savory.
Cold noodles or pasta dishes - sliced or shaved with cold rice or soba noodles & peanut sauce (carrots, cabbage, fresh herbs, radish, etc.) or sautéed with greens & sausage with pasta (cheese, lemon, nuts, fresh herbs, etc)
Fritters - shredded with other summer vegetables & chopped herbs (eggs, batter, hot oil) or combined with flaky fish for added crunch to summer fish cakes. Even thinly matchstick’d and sautéed with onions and garlic as a quick hashbrown alternative, topped with fried egg.
Fall:
Roasted - cubed or sliced and roasted with garlic/onions/olive oil plain & simple or roasted with other roots
Soup - cooked and puréed with other fall vegetables (celery root, rutabaga, potato, leek, onions, garlic, etc.). Or a classic chicken soup and stock (added alongside carrots, celery. etc.)
Gratin - shaved and layered with leeks, fennel, cream & cheese & breadcrumbs. Weeknight casserole?
Chicories salad, Fall fennel salad, Fall slaw
And you can count on many of these kohlrabi recipes in the future.
Bon Appetit! Bonne Chance!
Kohlrabi Kraut Confetti Salad
As I mentioned in a previous post, this is my first summer with a home garden (or yard) since I was a child in Wisconsin. And the recent, adorable emergence of these bulbs in a designated ‘kohlrabi patch’ of the bed is my greatest garden joy (not everything is emerging so well, but nbd). And nevermind the weeds.
1-2 bulbs kohlrabi, peeled & shredded or shaved
bunch of bitter greens like dandelion, washed and thinly chopped (in the fall, I love radicchio or endive, escarole - summer greens like little gems work great too)
handful of cilantro, washed/picked & thinly chopped
~ 1 cup ruby kraut (lacto-fermented sauerkraut, any variety, I just love the color of ruby kraut), drained (reserved for dressing) and finely chopped
optional: toasted walnuts or hazelnuts, slivered almonds, sunflower or pumpkin seeds
dressing: olive oil & apple cider vinegar or lemon (+ drained/reserved kraut liquid), s & p, (optional: tiny spoonful mustard) - ratios dependent on how much ‘salad bulk’ you have from the above vegetables
This is a really quick summer salad. Mix all the above veg (kohlrabi, greens, cilantro) with chopped kraut, then lightly dress with a simple, tangy vinaigrette. Finish with more chopped cilantro and optional toasted nuts or seeds.
Truly I’ve just given you this salad ‘recipe’ and next week I’m planning to cover the issue of Kids Hate Salad. So if you’re laughing at me, thinking My child would never eat this salad, you are not alone. Two tricks: something we call “confetti salad” in our house, I chop my son’s salad to be very uniform and smaller bite-sizes which seems to invite him to eat/chew it better OR deconstruct the ingredients on the plate for little ones (even if it’s just kohlrabi slices and a dipping bowl of vinaigrette). More ideas on this next week. And per usual, when in doubt, turn this into a kraut kohlrabi quesadilla (!).
More recipe tips and photos on Instagram. Please follow along!
If you’re cooking this week: Please be sure to tag @thewholekohlrabi, or share the newsletter with old friends, new friends, colleagues, family, etc.