We went to the Green City Market last week with you in mind, Fellow FoodBeest. Our intention was to find something we knew nothing about or had never seen before and then figuring out what to do with it and share it with you.

I’m not saying we didn’t buy a couple of bunches of last of this season’s asparagus. Or baby zucchinis, some with blossoms still attached. Or a nice variety of mushrooms. Or the sweetest, loveliest, most fragrant strawberries that would never have found their way into a grocery store. Because we did.

But wandering among the stands we walked into a stall featuring root vegetables: turnips and radishes. Sitting on the table was this long carrot-shaped bunch of vegetables, still with stems and leaves. The body of the vegetable was white and about a foot long, with predominant reddish-purple shoulders and stems. The leaves were dark green with red veining. They have an earthy smell and a vague exoticism to them. These were not on my mother’s dinner table.

“What is this?” we asked, picking up the bunch.

“Oh, that’s a Japanese Hinona Kabu turnip.”

“Huh! What do you do with it?”

“It is usually pickled in Japan.”

I’m already hooked. And I am no particular fan of turnips.

But then a man shopping in the same stall overhearing our conversation steps in and says, “Do you know how to make a caramel?”

“Sure,” I said, “butter and sugar.”

“Exactly. Make that, but instead of adding cream at the end, you add soy sauce. Just pour it over the turnip. If you have a mandolin, you can slice them thin before you pour the sauce on top. No need to really cook them. You’ll like it.”

And then he was gone. No name. Not even a silver bullet left behind like the Lone Ranger.

So I decided to try making those turnips three ways:
1) Pickled
2) In the caramel style outlined by the vanishing chef/advisor (it’s a teriyaki!)
3) European style.

What You Need to Make Japanese Pickled Turnips
Turnips (Hinona Kabu or other variety)
1 tsp sea salt
7 fl oz rice vinegar
5 oz sugar

How To Make Japanese Pickled Turnips

Slice the turnips into disks with a knife or mandolin. Also slice the stems and leaves. Put the turnip disks, stems and leaves in a bowl, sprinkle with the salt and lightly rub in. place a small plate, smaller than the bowl, directly on top of the radishes.
Put a weight on the plate to press the radishes lightly and leave for 30 minutes.
Heat the rice vinegar with the sugar stirring just until the sugar dissolves.
Drain the liquid that will have run from the radishes, then pour the vinegar mixture over them. Put the whole thing into a canning jar and leave to marinate at least overnight in the fridge. It will keep about two weeks.

These are good alongside a variety of Asian stir-fry dishes, but wasn’t my favorite preparation

What you Need to Make Teriyaki Turnips
Turnips (Hinona Kabu or other variety)
1 C sugar
6 T butter
½ C soy sauce

How to Make Teriyaki Turnips
Cautions: Have everything you need for the sauce ready to go. Making caramel is a fast process that cannot wait for hunting around for ingredients. If you don’t work fast, the sugar will burn. Make sure there are no children under foot. You may want to wear oven mitts; the caramelized sugar will be much hotter than boiling water.

Slice the turnips either very thin on a mandolin or make angled cross-cuts so they are chunky and triangular. Put them in a heat-proof bowl.

Heat sugar on moderately high heat in a pretty big heavy-bottomed (2-3 quart) saucepan. It will miraculously turn brown and begins to melt so stir vigorously with a whisk or wooden spoon. As soon as the sugar comes to a boil, stop stirring. You can swirl the pan a bit if you want, from this point on.

As soon as all of the sugar crystals have melted (the liquid sugar should be dark amber in color), immediately add the butter to the pan. Whisk until the butter has melted.

Take the pan off the heat. Count to three, then slowly add the soy sauce to the pan and continue to whisk to incorporate. When you add the butter and the cream, the mixture will foam up. This is why you must use such a big pan.

Whisk until sauce is smooth. Let get down to room temperature in the bowl for about a half-hour, then pour into a glass mason jar. You can store them in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. The earthiness of the turnips is balanced with the sweetness of the sauce. Really good on rice or just nibbling.

What You Need To Make Japanese Turnips, European Style
Turnips (Hinona Kabu or other variety)
1 minced shallot
1 large minced garlic clove,
1 T olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground pepper

How to Make Japanese Turnips in the European Style

Slice the turnips into discs with a knife or mandolin. Chop the stems into ½-inch pieces and slice the leaves. Set aside. Sauté the shallot and garlic clove just until translucent. Don’t let the garlic burn. Add the turnip discs and the chopped stems, stir a bit, then add the leaves last. Season with salt and pepper.

This is a really good side dish for chicken or meat or whatever else you like. I loved it the next day folded into an omelet.

Fellow, FoodBeest, it’s your turn now. Have you have cooked or eaten something really outside your realm of comfort and familiarity? What was it like? Did you eat it? Did you like it? Did you hate it? Please feel free to share here. It’s our favorite part.

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