I've recieved several kohlrabi from my CSA, and I have no idea what to do with them. I found a recipe for a curry using kohlrabi, but it wasn't great.
Does anyone have suggestions on how to get the best out of it? Any favorite recipes?
10 Answers
(Storage note: do not wash the bulbs before storing them; place in plastic bag in the refrigerator. Wash just before using.)
Young kohlrabi is great raw. Peel first, then
- add to salads (sliced or grated)
- serve as part of a veggie platter w/ dip
- grate it and add to slaw (but after grating it, put some salt on it & let it sit, then squeeze the water out of it)
- puree it - here's someone who really loves it pureed: http://foodiefarmgirl.blogspot.com/2007/11/recipe-what-to-do-with-kohlrabi-puree.html
Cooked kohlrabi can be steamed or boiled. Remove the skin after cooking.
You can eat the leaves, if they are still firm and green; use them within a couple of days. Wash the leaves & remove the tough stem parts (ribs). Blanch in boiling water for a couple of minutes, drain, chop, and serve with a bit of butter, salt, and pepper. A little vinegar or lemon juice is good on them, too.
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Raw is great. Peel and slice, A few grains of salt and then eat. Real simple, real tasty. Commented Jul 17, 2010 at 21:05
I used to eat them like apples when I was a child, I still like the raw kohlrabi in salads. Basically, it's a sweet'ish/spicy turnip/cabbage/raddish so you can do with it, more or less anything you can do with those three vegetables.
As I said. it's great in salads, it can be steamed or added to stews, deep fried etc. The leaves are also excellent in salads and can also be cooked like spinach.
It's a very versatile and tasty vegetable.
I found one recipe that called for it to be cubed, salt to taste, and drizzled with olive oil and baked until tender. That's the only way I've prepared it and I thought it was great. Go to the recipes section of Doe Run Farm (the CSA we get our veggie box from), and you'll find the Kohl Rabi recipe.
Most people don't realize that Kohlrabi and Broccoli are in fact different cultivars of the same species of plant (along with cabbage, cauliflower, kale and a bunch of other plants). So it's not just like a broccoli stem - it is a broccoli stem :)
I have two favorite uses for Kohlrabi - sliced thinly and used in asian-style wok dishes in a creme soup - just sautee some garlic and leek in butter and olive oil, add chopped Kohlrabi, some white wine, 1 liter of stock and cook until tender, then puree.
You can peel it and slice it, add some lemon and salt and eat it raw as a fresh salad. It goes very well with fresh green apple, lettuce and a cold potato salad. It's highly recommended to eat fresh and not cooked. You need to make sure you peel it properly first though.
We sliced it into about 1 inch square pieces (like a french fry but bigger) and then just lightly browned them in a bit of olive oil over high heat.
I grow kohlrabi and beets, use the kohlrabi instead of cabbage in borsht, yum. Also eat it raw a lot.
Besides the allready mentioned possibility of eating it raw, I like to make a Kohlrabi sauce to go along with pasta.
Peel and slice the Kohlrabi into slivers. Saute it with a little oil. Spice with salt and pepper. Add fresh small cut dill. Finish off with cream.
Aside from the other excellent answers (basically, use it like broccoli stems :)), it's excellent braised.
:-)