Radish Greens Chimichurri

Do you have "radish greens remorse" every time you toss out delicious looking radish tops? Good news - it doesn't have to be this way! The green leafy tops of radishes and many other vegetables such as turnips, beets, and daikon are perfectly edible and delicious. You can use them as you would other green leafy vegetables, though radish greens in particular can be a little fuzzy and benefit from a bit of processing such as chopping, blending, sautéing, or the addition of an acid. 

Eating "root to leaves" with sliced radish, avocado, and radish greens chimichurri rye toast.

There are a lot of different words for somewhat similar green sauces: chimichurri, salsa verde, gremolata, chermoula... and at first I deliberated over what to call this particular green sauce. I settled on "chimichurri", as it has a similar combination of vinegar, garlic, and green that you find in traditional chimichurri, just with radish tops in place of parsley and oregano. This sauce can be made with pretty much any edible green that would otherwise be discarded, even wild greens such as dandelion or plantain! It can also be adapted in numerous ways - try adding cilantro or tarragon for more bright herbaceous notes or increase the garlic if that's your jam. The sauce works great on almost anything from grilled vegetables and meat to white beans or breakfast tacos. Really, every time I make it, I end up adding it to all my meals for a few days. You can also eat "root to leaves" by topping a sliced radish and avocado rye toast with a drizzle! Recipe makes 2/3 cup.

Don't toss those beautiful radish greens!

• 2-3 (loosely packed) cups chopped radish greens, washed

• 1 medium shallot bulb, chopped

• 1 clove garlic, chopped

• 3 tablespoons rice vinegar

• Pinch salt

• 2 teaspoons olive oil

1. Heat about 1/2 cup water in small saucepan until simmering. Add radish greens, toss to coat, and cook until softened and dark green (about 30 seconds).

2. Remove greens and squeeze out excess water. Using an immersion blender or food processor, blend greens with shallots, garlic, rice vinegar, salt, and olive oil until combined, but still coarse. Drain excess liquid if needed and keep chilled up to 4 days until use.

Homemade Kimchi

Spicy and effervescent, there are many ways to make this naughty cousin to sauerkraut. I looked at a wide variety of recipes, took bits and pieces from all of them, and then kind of abandoned ship to do my own thing. Below is my basic proportion of ingredients, but I ended up making more chili paste than was needed to coat the kimchi, which is nice because I’ll save it for something else. As long as you keep things clean, soak cabbage in salt/use salt or salty substance (like fish sauce) in paste, and don’t leave it at room temp for too long, you’ll make a safe kimchi. So taste as you go and have fun with it. I can’t wait to use mine in stir-fried rice, with greens and eggs, and to attempt a kimchi pancake!

• 1 head of napa cabbage, chopped into 1-2” pieces (depends on how coarse you like your kimchi

• 2 large carrots, grated

• 1/2 cup grated daikon or radish

• 1 bunch green onion, chopped (all but very coarse dark green ends)

• 1/4 cup fresh chopped ginger, about 3” piece

• 1 small head garlic, peeled and chopped

• 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon sea salt

• 3 tablespoons fish sauce

• 3 tablespoon chili powder (Korean preferred)

• 1 tablespoon cayenne

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh or about 7-11 small dried peppers/chilis, chopped (I had dried chinese peppers and used 9 of them)

• 1 tablespoons unrefined sugar

Put cabbage in large bowl and sprinkle with 1/4 cup salt. Cover with water, stir until dissolved and let sit 20 minutes. Remove and pat dry.

While cabbage is salting, blend all other ingredients but carrots, daikon, and green onion in food processor or blender until you form a paste.

Toss cabbage with carrots, daikon, green onion, and enough paste to coat (taste until of desired heat strength, recognizing that fermentation will bring out more complex flavors). 

Place into large glass or ceramic vessel. Press down with (CLEAN) hands to allow juices to escape and if water does not completely cover cabbage, then use a clean stone or plastic bag filled with water to ensure it stays until water.

Seal jar/vessel and let ferment for 2-3 days, depending on weather (hotter temps will make for faster fermentation) and desired strength.

Move to refrigerator and enjoy for up to 5 weeks.