JOANNA'S FOOD: family cooking, from scratch, every day


Tuesday, June 05, 2007

Kohl slaw

Well, we ate the kohlrabi last night. After a week of slightly dreading it, I can't now think what all the fuss was about: the taste is utterly familiar - like a cross between white cabbage and the stem of broccoli. Quite nice, really. It just looks as if it would taste disgusting.

I decided to keep it simple, partly because there were some middle-aged carrots which needed eating up besides the slightly-past-its-best kohlrabi. So kohl slaw. I wanted to keep the texture of the kohlrabi, so I cut it into matchsticks, then mixed it with fine chunks of carrot grated on the largest blade (more k than c).


















I made a breakthrough with coleslaws some years ago when I realised you don't have to dress them with mayonnaise. They taste much much better with some kind of vinaigrette - it's not just a heart-health thing. The dressing I made yesterday had lemon juice (and a little of the finely grated zest, too), grainy mustard, a speck of salt and a smaller speck of honey, all mixed up with some olive oil.

Next time there's a kohlrabi in the veg box, I'm going to make a gratin. I'd be happy to see one in the box, but, I have to say, I wouldn't go out of my way to buy one. And I probably wouldn't buy one in a shop if there was some other member of the cabbage family nearby. Do you think the reason they always turn up in a veg box is because they are easy to grow? I'm not sure I want to know the answer to that question!


PS Thank you Holler, Shauna, The Cottage Smallholder, Ian, Amanda, Freya and Paul for all your suggestions about what to do with the cabbage monster!

6 comments:

MyKitchenInHalfCups said...

This sounds like really excellent slaw.

Rob said...

Have to admit that I am one of those people who will go out of their way to buy Kohlrabi - the nearest place that sells it is an hour away from here but I make the trek once a month and stock up (they keep for ages).

I have only ever eaten them fresh - cut up into matchsticks and enjoyed on their own. So I think this Kohl Slaw is a fantastic idea! I will definitely be giving it a go.

Katie Zeller said...

And I have to admit that I have never eaten one. I see them at the markets and have never had a clue what to do with it. I'll try one. I add sunchokes to the larder last winter - next: kohlrabi!
I agree about the cole slaw dressing; I prefer a honey vinaigrette also.

Anonymous said...

Joanna - I'm with you on the dressing -v- mayo point and use a similar dressing for new potatoes -3parts olive oil, 1part vinegar, little bit of honey, grain mustard to taste and shreded fresh mint from the garden. Sometimes I'll add a bit of garlic or chive to rev it up a bit.

mai + kevin said...

What a great idea to use kohlrabi! I'll think about eating it like this next time i get one. Thanks

Jeanne said...

Middle-aged carrots - LOL! I though it was only me that ran a care home for ageing vegetables in my crisper drawer ;-)

Recipe looks great - I must give it a try!