Radish greens weren’t on my radar of potential edibility before this summer. But since growing several rows of radishes this year, and so having an excess of the greens post-harvest, my “no-waste” urges made me eat them – I’m glad that I did! To my astonishment, when sautéed in olive oil, radish greens become silky and have a spicy and pleasantly bitter flavor. Pair ’em with some other peppery green like arugula, creamy avocado slices, as well as a thick and tart cherry vinaigrette, and the radishes truly shine in this weird bowl that you simply have to try, if you have or can find some fresh radish greens.
How To Grow Your Own Radish Greens
This is going to depend on your climate, of course. But as far as homegrown vegetables go, radishes are pretty forgiving, tend to be quite easy to grow, and grown relatively quickly in the prime conditions (you could have a full row of radishes in just a 2 – 3 weeks).
Here’s a great article about how to grow radishes, if you’re interested in learning more and planting some yourself. I would highly recommend it – homegrown radishes are spicier and more flavorful than anything you could buy at the store.
I’ve found that you really don’t need to be too finicky about how deep you sow the seeds, or what amount of sun exposure the radishes need. Really, just sow them in decent soil, water when the dirt is dry, and thin the radishes so that you have decent-sized bulbs and greens.
Alternatively, if you can’t wait a couple weeks for your radishes to grow, see if they have organically-grown radishes with the radish greens at a nearby farmer’s market. The smaller radish greens are better than bigger; bolted (overgrown) greens will likely taste more bitter and be more tough.
How To Cook Radish Greens
Don’t be put off by the radish greens appearance or texture raw – they’ll be fuzzy, somewhat spiky, and rather leathery fresh out of the ground. All of this changes, however, when you add heat to cook them. They transform into soft, smooth and flavorful greens that are nutritious and delicious. Here’s a brief article about the nutritional property of the greens, if you’re curious.
Here’s how to cook radish greens to perfection.
1. Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat with about 1/2 tablespoon olive oil.
2. After washing and pat-drying the radish greens, drop them in the cast-iron skillet and sauté for about 3 minutes, until lightly wilted and soft.
There you go.. That’s it. You don’t need to cook radish greens for very long at all to ensure they’re delectably edible.
How To Make A Quick Cherry Vinaigrette
This is one of those super easy-to-make dressings that works with nearly any fruit. Find another one similar to it in this Blueberry-Miso Beet Green Salad!
1. Start with an onion, shallot or garlic (or all three?!) base sautéing in a cast-iron pan over medium heat with some olive oil.
2. Then, once browned, add a frozen or fresh fruit and a little vinegar. In this case, I added some dark cherries and red wine vinegar; the acidic, tart and mildly sweet flavors are a welcome foil to the spicy flavors of the radish and arugula greens.
3. Reduce down the cherries until they have formed a thick sauce, but no so much that all the chunks are gone. You can expedite this process up by mashing some of the cherries with a fork – this releases their moisture and so helps them reduce faster.
4. Once reduced, add more vinegar and the zippy tang of dijon mustard, stir to incorporate, and then you have yourself a dynamic cherry vinaigrette to dollop atop the radish greens.
Which kind of radish is best?
The kind of radish that I used for this radish green bowl is called the cherry belle – it’s one of the most common types of radish, and it’s super easy to grow where I live. Here’s a place online from which you can order seeds, or most stores/nurseries should have them for cheap, too.
However, don’t be afraid to change it up a little if you want to try and grow a different type of radish than the cherry belle, or if you think that another type of radish would do better in your particular climate.
Radish greens from any variety should be edible and delicious. Even so, double check before you plant or buy your radishes to make 100% sure that’s the case.
Here are some other common types of radish that could also work in this bowl.
- White icicle radish
- Sparkler radish
- Daikon radish
- Fire and Ice radish
The list goes on.. but those are some of the most accessible kinds of radish you should be able to find via seed or in the stores/farmer’s markets.
More unusual bowls of vegan deliciousness here!
– Chimichurri Roasted Beet Bowl
– Honey Mustard Cruciform Bowl with Baked Yams
– Roasted Radish Bowl with Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette & Polenta
Enjoy this wilted radish green bowl with cherry vinaigrette? Then consider leaving me a comment or recipe rating (clicking on the stars) before you go!
Wilted Radish Green Bowl with Cherry Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 1 bunch radishes, about 15 radishes, trimmed and thinly sliced
- 2 – 3 cups radish greens, thoroughly washed
- 3 – 4 cups arugula, thoroughly washed
- 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 medium shallot, finely chopped
- 1 cup frozen cherries
- 1 ½ tablespoons red wine vinegar, divided
- ½ tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon smooth dijon mustard
- 1 large avocado, cut into thin slices
Instructions
- Trim one bunch of radishes. Cut the radish roots into very thin circles, and save the greens, washing them thoroughly in the meanwhile. Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium with ½ tablespoon olive oil, and then add the radish greens. Cook them until they're all wilted, about 3 minutes or so. Transfer them to a large bowl, and then cook the arugula (also over medium with ½ tablespoon olive oil) until similarly wilted (also about 3 minutes or so). Add the arugula to the same bowl as the radish greens, and mix them together well.
- In the same skillet, also over medium heat with the last ½ tablespoon olive oil, sauté the shallot until it's starting to turn translucent and slightly brown. Add the 1 cup of frozen cherries, 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar, and the maple syrup. Reduce down the cherries until they've release all their moisture and form a thicker sauce. You can press the cherries with a fork to expedite this process (should take anywhere from 3 – 5 minutes). After that, add an additional ½ tablespoon red wine vinegar and a teaspoon dijon mustard to the vinaigrette, stir to incorporate completely and heat through, and then remove the vinaigrette from the heat.
- Assemble the bowl by laying down the wilted greens, then the warm cherry vinaigrette, and lastly slices of both fresh radish circles and avocado.
Nutrition
May you have good food in good company,
That Vegan Nephew
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