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WHAT'S NEW
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Andrew's ingredient of the month -- Radishes
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One of the first crops of the Canadian vegetable garden, radishes are abundant this time of year. Learn various ways to prepare one of the world's oldest cultivated foods.
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By Andrew Chase, Homemakers Magazine Food editor
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Braised, stewed radishes
In Switzerland, I have enjoyed a dish of braised sweetbreads to which radish slices were added at the end of braising, a delightful combination. Cooked radishes lose their heat and are sweet and mild. Asian cooks make the simplest soups tasty with the addition of radish. Try adding some daikon or halved red radishes to a clear stock and cooking them until tender. Large chunks of daikon are also often added to braised meat dishes; try them in your next stew instead of potatoes.
At this time of year, you will be able to buy bunched radishes with fresh green tops. Don't throw the tops out; they're good for soups like Radish Greens Soup and other uses.
Chinese Radish Green Relish
For a Chinese Radish Green Relish: Toss the greens liberally with salt, then let stand until wilted. Squeeze out the salty water, then chop them finely. In sesame oil, over low heat, fry the greens with a little minced garlic and finely chopped red hot pepper very slowly, adding water every now and then to help soften them, until tender, about 15 minutes. Let cool and use as a topping for soft tofu or cold poached chicken or pork.
Koreans are particularly fond of radish green kimchee, which is usually prepared in the autumn with a kind of radish grown exclusively for the leaves, but regular daikon radish, icicle radish or Korean ponytail radish leaves can be used.
How to cook radishes
Radish seeds can be grown as sprouts for salads and sandwiches. Red radish sprouts can be found in many grocery stores and look for daikon radish sprouts in Japanese and other Asian markets, as well as health food stores. They have the bite of the radish with a nice green vegetable flavour. Larger daikon radish sprouts can be quickly stir-fried as a side vegetable.
Radish seed pods
Finally, if you grow radishes in your garden, you know that they have a tendency to bolt with the coming of hot weather. Don't pull them all out. Leave some to make their pretty little pink flowers and then let them grow seed pods. When young and tender, these seed pods are a crispy and piquant vegetable that is good for salads and stir-fries. Cook them as you would snow peas.
While you're at it, try some of Andrew's other favourite ingredients, like Dandelion.
Andrew Chase is Homemakers Magazine's food editor, the author of The Asian Bistro Cookbook (Robert Rose, 1997), The Blender Bible (Robert Rose, 2005) and co-author of 400 Blender Cocktails: Sensational Alcoholic And Non-alcoholic Cocktail Recipes (Robert Rose, 2006). Subscribe to Homemakers Magazine and don't miss any of Andrew's recipes and menus.
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