The Daily Balance » how to cook a turnip http://www.thedailybalance.com Helping others find balance...one day at a time Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:21:35 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Try it – How to cook a turnip http://www.thedailybalance.com/2010/03/30/try-it-how-to-cook-a-turnip/ http://www.thedailybalance.com/2010/03/30/try-it-how-to-cook-a-turnip/#comments Tue, 30 Mar 2010 13:42:52 +0000 thedailybalance http://www.thedailybalance.com/?p=4774 Have you ever tried a turnip? Me neither! Doesn’t it just sound funny? TUR-NIP? HA! Anyway, I’ve never met a vegetable I didn’t like, so I figured it was about time I gave ‘ol turnip a try (if you follow me on twitter, you may already know some of this). In truth, I was really craving potatoes. But after hearing that turnips (also a “starch” vegetable) contain only one third the amount of calories as potatoes, I figured it was worth testing. It turns out these root vegetables pack quite a nutritious punch, as well! Turnips provide an excellent source of vitamin C, fiber, folic acid, manganese, pantothenic acid, and copper. They also offer a very good source of thiamine, potassium, niacin, and magnesium. In addition, they are a good source of vitamin B6 and E, folic acid, and riboflavin.

Not having cooked a turnip before, I did a bit of research and learned that you can cook them very similar to a potato. Knowing this, I came up with the following recipe.

Easy Turnip Saute

You’ll need:

  • 3 turnips, chopped
  • 1 sweet onion, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons butter (I used Smart Balance)
  • 1 teaspoon rosemary

Add chopped onions and 1 tablespoon butter to a medium-heat saute pan. Cook until browned. Add turnips and another tablespoon of butter. Cook about 5 minutes. Add rosemary and stir. Cover and cook about 10-15 minutes. Remove lid and cook until turnips are browned and soft.

Season with salt and pepper, plate and enjoy!

This was great! I thought they tasted A LOT like potatoes. Definitely had the same consistency. But the turnip had more of a distinct flavor, though. I can’t really describe it other than… turnipy — how’s that for descriptive?! Anyway, I really enjoyed this dish and love how easy it would be to customize with your favorite spices and flavors. Get creative!

Have you tried turnips? What did you think? How have you had them prepared? I have a feeling I’ll be on quite the turnip kick, so I could use some ideas!

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