Roasted Turnips Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Do you have to peel turnips before you roast them? ›

It's not essential to peel turnips before cooking. If this skin appears to be thin enough you can leave it on and cook as is. However if the skin feels thick and leathery, you can peel it off with a sharp knife or vegetable peeler. Both the roots and leaves, also known as turnip greens, are safe to eat.

Roasting brings out their natural sweetness. Another secret is how you peel them. Bitter notes lie just under the surface of the skin, but you can eliminate this if you go a little deeper when peeling them. I use a paring knife instead of vegetable peeler to remove the thick outer later.

Roasted Turnips are a simple, healthy, and nutritious vegetable side dish that pairs well with almost any weeknight meal. This potato alternative dish is low-calorie, paleo-friendly, vegan, whole30 approved, and ready in just under an hour!

Turnips can be enjoyed raw, pickled, boiled, roasted, mashed, stewed, puréed, added to soups, or prepared almost any way you'd make potatoes. Turnips are a healthy alternative to potatoes; they're lower in calories and have fewer carbs.

Like any root vegetable, turnips should be given a good rinse to remove dirt or grit; a soft brush is an excellent aid.

One turnip website from the United Kingdom notes that if you boil them, add a little sugar to tame the scent and add baking soda to reduce bitterness.

Try adding fresh herbs (rosemary is particularly delicious with the spicy bite of turnips) or spices, or combine the turnips with other root vegetables as you like. You'll find some variations at the end of the recipe. They're tasty all on their own but can certainly benefit from a bit of extra love.

Add the turnips and potatoes to a large stockpot and fill the pot with water, enough to cover the vegetables. Heat over medium-high heat and bring to a boil, then simmer until the turnips are tender (they may take longer to cook than the potatoes), about 15 minutes.

Turnips have glucosinolates -- plant-based chemicals that may help prevent all kinds of cancer, from breast to prostate. Eye health. Turnips are rich in the antioxidant lutein. This keeps your eyes healthy and wards off problems like macular degeneration and cataracts.

What are the best conditions for turnips? ›

Turnips like a sunny spot and grow best in cool conditions, in fertile, moisture-retentive soil. You can also grow them in large containers, for harvesting as mini-veg. Sow in small batches every few weeks from spring to late summer for regular harvests without any gluts.

Good for Your Gut

Like all plant-based whole foods, turnips contain dietary fiber. Fiber is a non-digestible carbohydrate that serves important functions in the body, including maintaining healthy blood sugar and cholesterol levels, promoting regular bowel movements, and supporting weight management, among others.

Turnips come from the Brassicaceae family, which also includes cabbage and mustard greens. They have a much more round, squatty shape and a pinkish-purple crown. In terms of flavor, turnips have a more bitter, spicy flavor as opposed to the sweetness of parsnips.

You'll also consume about 4.6 grams of naturally-occurring sugar and a small amount of starch. Turnips are believed to have a glycemic index of 62. The glycemic load of cooked turnips is estimated to be 2. A glycemic index of 62 is considered to be moderate, while a glycemic load of 2 is considered to be low.

Add the turnips and potatoes to a large stockpot and fill the pot with water, enough to cover the vegetables. Heat over medium-high heat and bring to a boil, then simmer until the turnips are tender (they may take longer to cook than the potatoes), about 15 minutes.

Taste: With a sweet and nutty taste resembling candy, parsnips are sweeter than turnips. Conversely, turnips are spicier and more bitter than parsnips, leading certain harvesters to pick them earlier in the season because smaller turnips have a milder flavor profile.