Overview
Kohlrabi, also called German turnip, is a bi-yearly
vegetable. It is a low-slung, stout cultivar of wild cabbage immensely popular in
Northern and Eastern European countries like Germany and Hungary. It originated
in South Asia and south-east Asia. And since it originated in South Asia and
south-east Asia, it is of course also popular in Vietnam and eastern India. In
the later part of the 16th century, kohlrabi spread to North Europe. It was
being cultivated in Austria, England, Germany, Italy, Spain, Tripoli, and the
better parts of the eastern Mediterranean. Kohlrabi is a slightly sweet and
healthy cruciferous plant needed in your natural life.
What is Kohlrabi?
This funny-looking vegetable is part of the same family as
the broccoli and cabbage family. It can be eaten raw or cooked in a variety of
dishes. Kohlrabi is hardly new to the vegetable world. This unusual-looking
vegetable made its way into the U.S in the early part of the 1800s. It was not
until five hundred years that it was discovered in Northern Europe. This plant grows as
a bulb with leaves shooting up from its sides. It can be white, green, or
purple with a bit of difference in flavor. It has a mild taste that has made it
popular in dishes from salads to soups. Moreover, this vegetable is packed with health benefits.
Cooking with Kohlrabi
Cooking preparations are done with both the stem and the leaves. Peeling and chopping or slicing is the only preparation required. There is no need to worry about wasted parts. Cooking with Kohlrabi provides cooks with the ultimate ingenuity when it comes to kohlrabi concoctions. Kohlrabi is a versatile veggie that can be cooked in a range of ways. Cube, dice, or slice the bulb and steam, sauté, or roast. Bulb, stems, and leaves of kohlrabi are all edible, but you will have to peel them first. The thin skin is bitter and nasty, but it can be easily removed with a peeler or paring knife. The stems and leaves should be cooked immediately as they wither very quickly. When cooking trims down the brown end and separates the leaves from the bulb for best results.
So, what dishes kohlrabi work best? An array of recipes is
many, but most are like cabbage dishes. It could be just a straightforward side
dish or a crunch to punch up the main dish. Kohlrabi works terrific as a raw snack
along with vegetable dip, as a crunch in homemade veggie burgers, or as the
cabbage option in a coleslaw. Green salads and roasted vegetables are other
tasty kohlrabi options.
And the even healthier vegetable alternative? Kohlrabi
fries.
