Give Those Roots a Buzz Cut
And no, I’m not suggesting you shave ?uestlove…
What You’ll Need:
- Some plastic ziplock bags, a sealable tupperware, or some of those green bags they sell on TV
- Some paper or cloth towels.
- A knife or kitchen shears
- Radishes, Beets, Turnips, Carrots, etc… with their greens still intact
Directions
I know, I know: it is so satisfying to receive vegetables that still have their lovely greens intact. It sits somewhere on the emotional spectrum between feeling like Bugs Bunny and Julia Child, BUT storing them that way in your fridge will only lead to heartache and ruin. The greens of root vegetables, which are good eatin’ on their own, pull moisture away from the roots, leaving you with shriveled little nasty roots and rubbery, floppy greens. Double Fail.
So here’s what to do:
Cut the greens off the top off your veggies either entirely or leaving 1/2-1” of stem at the top. (This is especially helpful for beets if you’re going to roast and peel them later and need a handle.) Preserve the greens like other salad greens: by wrapping them in a paper or cloth towel and placing them in a sealable ziplock bag in your fridge.
The roots themselves can also be stored in a ziplock bag with paper towels. They should last about 1 week that way.
OR if they start looking shrivelly, try restoring them by placing them in a jar of cold water in the fridge.
OR if you wanna be all Alton Brown Overachiever about it, you can start a makeshift root cellar drawer full of sand in your crisper bin for these and all future root veggies.
AND if you have not yet eaten garden fresh radishes sliced on bread and butter… well then you simply have not lived, Sir.
Prospect Park CSA 