I don't understand the mystery about turnips.

[grumpyoldman]

i think its a regional thing, but it still catches me off guard how turnips aren't very well known is many parts of the country ,or world for that matter
more than once while we are standing at the checkout in the market , someone will point and ask " whats that "while pointing at the turnips, we always tell them what they are and how to cook them . they have never seen or tasted them
since living here in the west , we have served them to many many people at our house and about 50% love them and about 50% don't like them, and thats fine
many of the people that have heard of them think only of the roots that grow in the ground and have only heard of steaming them , i guess they throw away what we consider the best part ( the greens )
but where i grew up everyone had them on their table

 

[pictonguy]

I'm in the camp that likes them, I also like rutabaga's similar but more yellow flesh and it's a hybrid of turnip and cabbage. Both are lovely.

Try microwaving a turnip, takes a while but the taste far surpassed any other method and covering it is best.

EDITED TO ADD: Oh, and I mean microwaved whole, not cut up.

 

[HeyItsSara]

Maybe I ate a turnip once.

 

[grumpyoldman]

pictonguy@ thanks i will try that

turnip, mustard and collards are all close relatives that why i don't understand the mystery about them
in the 70s they were all called soul food

 

[Andy M.]

Never had turnip greens. Never liked the other part. Same for rutabaga. Oh, parsnips too.

 

[blissful]

We don't eat many turnips in the north, in general, they aren't available at restaurants, family dinners never had them.
I garden and I like vegetables and I try new things, new to us in the north.
A couple years ago I planted a garden bed that I dug deep and planted carrots, rutabaga, turnips, and parsnips. The turnips were the first to grow and the easiest. I enjoy the greens steamed, they are tender and delicious. I harvested the turnips when they were about small baseball size, tender, delicious. I didn't have much luck with the rest of that garden.
When I am buying greens at the grocery, I usually have a choice of kale, and a few others. If the turnip greens look good, I'll get those instead of the more boring kale, collard, or mustard.
I might grow a short row of them this next summer, we'll see.

 

[Gone Hiking]

I've never had turnips, mustard greens, collard greens, nor parsnips or rutabaga. I had rhubarb (pie) exactly once, which was once too many. I boiled okra one time, which transformed into elephant snot. That cured me of further exploration. For the longest time I was like Joe Pesci in My Cousin Vinnie... "What's a grit?"

 

[CharlieD]

well, turnip is definitely something you have to either grew up with or really like that kind of taste. I am a very eater and would not touch it .

 

[dragnlaw]

I like both turnip and rutabaga but rarely have them. Same with Celeriac which I never knew about until maybe 15 years ago.
My mom loved greens, beet, turnip, dandelion, but not for me.

 

[pacanis]

I honestly couldn't tell you if I put turnips or parsnips in a root vegetable beef stew I made a year ago, but it was good. Maybe I even used both. My sister even liked it (of course I didn't tell her what was in it).

I'm sure whatever it was, I bought just what I needed in the produce aisle and not the canned vegetables aisle. It never occurred to me to compare prices. Even though I had no intention of using the greens. And the canned veggies might have been already processed and saved me time or whatever. Thus an expected higher cost.

Some things are better buying fresh, some canned. Depending on their use.
But generally you always pay more for convenience.

I'm curious now if some people use fresh beets in pickled eggs instead of canned because of the price...
Too involved for me. I'll stick to canned.

 

[dragnlaw]

Aside from buying tons of beets for pickling there are occasions I buy fresh beets tfor the table. But certainly not often! Especially in recent years there are now beets in the produce section that are cooked and vacuum packed and are very tasty! I especially enjoy them sliced/slivered/diced in a salad!
All play and no work, make this little dragn happy and, oh well, ... chubby.

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

Will Rogers said, "An onion can make people cry, but there's never been a vegetable that can make them laugh." But I've always found that rutabaga can get a snicker out of me!

 

[taxlady]

I thought everyone was familiar with turnip roots. When I see turnips in the store, it's almost always just the roots. The few times I have seen them with the greens in a supermarket, they were very expensive. I buy them with the greens from Lufa Farms, my produce basket place. Definitely more expensive than just the roots. Yes, they also sell bags of just roots. It never occurred to me to cook them at the same time. I usually sautée the greens in bacon fat with a some crushed garlic and a bit of pepper flakes. The roots mostly get roasted with other root veggies. I like rutabuggers too, but have never seen those with the greens left on.

The greens need to be used with a day or three. The roots are good in the fridge for months.

I think my favourite green is beet greens. I have never cooked those at the same time as the beets either. Like @dragnlaw, I have started buying the already cooked and peeled beets from the produce section. In my opinion, they taste better than the canned beets, but those are pretty good too.I usually pickle beets. One of my favourite ways to serve beets is boiled, peeled, sliced and tossed with butter and lemon juice. I have converted several beet haters with that dish.

 

[Rocklobster]

I'll have them few times a year. They are a staple on the Thanksgiving table and usually Christmas also. Mashed, and loaded with butter and a bit of brown sugar

 

[caseydog]

I've never had turnips, mustard greens, collard greens, nor parsnips or rutabaga. I had rhubarb (pie) exactly once, which was once too many. I boiled okra one time, which transformed into elephant snot. That cured me of further exploration. For the longest time I was like Joe Pesci in My Cousin Vinnie... "What's a grit?"

I only eat okra breaded and fried, or in gumbo. In gumbo, simmered long enough that "snot" disperses and becomes a thickener.

Set me up with a plate of chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes and fried okra, with plenty of peppered white gravy, and I'm a happy man.

As for turnips, back as a kid in the sixties, they were always on restaurant salads in raw, slice form. I picked them aside. I've never had them cooked. The only cooked greens I've eaten are spinach and collard greens. They are okay with me, but not something I ever crave.


CD

 

[grumpyoldman]

here in the U.S. there is a restaurant chain called "Cracker Barrel " that serves turnips greens with diced ham in them , they are really good and i eat them every time we go there

today we put 10 bunches of greens in the freezer with roots , we will be serving part of them on Dec 20th when our friends are coming for dinner
the way we cook and season them is like this , just add them to boiling water , add salt , onion and garlic powder and cook them until the roots are tender . many of our friends had never tasted a turnip until they came to our house and now some of them ask us to cook them when they come, so while some people won't like them , you might be surprised how many will

the grocery stores have gotten smart about the way they sell turnips nowadays , like Taxlady said they sell the greens and roots separately

 

[Linda0818]

i think its a regional thing, but it still catches me off guard how turnips aren't very well known is many parts of the country ,or world for that matter
more than once while we are standing at the checkout in the market , someone will point and ask " whats that "while pointing at the turnips, we always tell them what they are and how to cook them . they have never seen or tasted them
since living here in the west , we have served them to many many people at our house and about 50% love them and about 50% don't like them, and thats fine
many of the people that have heard of them think only of the roots that grow in the ground and have only heard of steaming them , i guess they throw away what we consider the best part ( the greens )
but where i grew up everyone had them on their table

That reminds me of the time I was buying a couple of turnips and even the cashier picked one of them up and said "What is this???"

As for consuming them, I like them added to roasts. The turnips have to be baked/roasted until very soft before I will eat them.

I've never eaten a parsnip, to my knowledge. I wonder if it tastes the same as turnips?

 

[pictonguy]

That reminds me of the time I was buying a couple of turnips and even the cashier picked one of them up and said "What is this???"

As for consuming them, I like them added to roasts. The turnips have to be baked/roasted until very soft before I will eat them.

I've never eaten a parsnip, to my knowledge. I wonder if it tastes the same as turnips?

Yeah, they need to be overcooked by most standards and parsnip puree is heavenly.

 

[grumpyoldman]

i think turnips are under rated , many people love them , they are very easy to grow and they used to be cheap

i knew a cattle rancher once that moved his herd to another pasture took his tractor and plowed up a 40 acre field and planted turnips , then later in the year when the cows had eaten most of the grass , he brought them back to the "turnip field ". after they had eaten all the turnip greens , he said the cows would use their hoofs to dig up the roots and eat them in the dead of winter

 

[Linda0818]

Yeah, they need to be overcooked by most standards and parsnip puree is heavenly.

I've seen dishes that were prepared with parsnip puree (usually fish). I'll have to try that sometime, if I can find a good recipe.