Variety is the Spice of Life

It’s no coincidence that the above aphorism is food related. Think of the veggies we were ignorant of growing up but now know by heart. Arugula, Bok Choy, Napa Cabbage, Escarole, Treviso, Purslane, Dandelion, Bibb. Now, we often don’t blink an eye at the appearance of these items on a menu or at a farmers market. They have become standards. We are better off for it. But it tickles me that whenever a new food makes an appearance, people revert to old tropes and behaviors. We won’t try it, we think it looks funny or tastes weird. It’s amazing how close minded we’ve all become. I don’t mean to take pot shots here. I am just as guilty as someone else. How many times have I walked away from a farmers market table filled with rutabagas or turnips, not cause they didn’t look good, but because I’d never cooked them before.

Human nature abhors change. Not because of what that change means, but just because its change, its different. Going out into the unknown can be so frightening. Change means we’ll have to add new words, definitions and names into our internal matrix. We’ll have to stretch our minds just a bit further. I don’t know about you, but I’m not always in the mood to stretch my world any further.

For me, Kohlrabi is one of these things. I have yet to buy it. Don’t even know what it is. So lets crank up the knowledge engine and learn together. Via Wiki

Kohlrabi (German Turnip) (Brassica oleracea Gongylodes Group) is a low, stout cultivar of the cabbage that will grow almost anywhere. It has been selected for its swollen, nearly spherical, Sputnik-like shape. The name comes from the German Kohl (“cabbage”) plus Rübe ~ Rabi (Swiss German variant) (“turnip“), because the swollen stem resembles the latter. However, the actual “Kohlrübe” exists too and corresponds to the rutabaga in English, which is distinct from the kohlrabi. Kohlrabi has been created byartificial selection for lateral meristem growth; its origin in nature is the same as that of cabbage, broccoli,cauliflower, kale, collard greens, and brussels sprouts: They are all bred from, and are the same species as, the wild cabbage plant (Brassica oleracea).

The taste and texture of kohlrabi are similar to those of a broccoli stem or cabbage heart, but milder and sweeter, with a higher ratio of flesh to skin. The young stem in particular can be as crisp and juicy as an apple, although much less sweet. Except for the Gigante cultivar, spring-grown kohlrabi much over 5 cm in size tend to be woody, as do fall-grown kohlrabi much over perhaps 10 cm in size; the Gigante cultivar can achieve great size while remaining of good eating quality.

Kohlrabi can be eaten raw as well as cooked.

Here’s the larger point though. We’re going to have to rediscover veggies. It’s just that plain and simple. We’ve been spoiled, and for far too long. We’ve been enabled to have whatever we want, when we want it. If the only veggie you ever liked was asparagus, then our food system enabled you to have it. You could get a pound a week, for not a lot of money and BAM! Asparagus was your vegetable. Even in months when it wasn’t in season. So good for you for eating your asparagus. Pity the poor brocolli, cauliflower, turnips, radishes that couldn’t even get the time of day from you.

But what are you missing by not eating a greater variety of foods? I had a lot of friends growing up who were notorious “chicken eaters,” they pecked at their food. Now admittedly, it may have been a problem I wanted, considering I later had to deal with obesity. But I never understood why these friends never seemed to come out of their comfort zone with food. Chicken fingers with french fries. I mean, how many kids subsist on that crap, day in day out. It’s ok, i did, but subsistence is really all it was. That’s not living, that’s surviving.

Kohlrabi is currently in season. I was turned on to this fact by Lee Zukor, of the Simple, Good and Tasty blog, where he’s been updating his blog weekly with each share of his CSA haul. That beautiful pic of Kolhrabi up there? It’s his. BTW: Kohlrabi is really good for you.

This food is very low in Saturated Fat and Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Thiamin, Folate, Magnesium and Phosphorus, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, Potassium, Copper and Manganese.

Want some ideas on how to cook some kohlrabi? et voila

Sweet and mildly flavored, kohlrabi can be braised, boiled, stuffed, sliced, scalloped, steamed, julienned, roasted, and sautéed. You can grate it into slaw, toss it into salads, slip it into soups and stews, snack on it raw with dip, and stir-fry it. You can even wrap it in foil and grill it. I’ve seen recipes where kohlrabi was covered in cream, sautéed with anchovies, stuffed into empanadas, fried into cakes, served with hollandaise sauce, and turned into a cinnamon brunch bake. This vegetable is versatile.