Trying turnip greens

 

I’m searching for the tastiest way to prepare turnip greens. I didn’t know that pulling those roots about a week and a half ago from the community garden plot would turn into an experiment. But it has. I’ve tried them raw and steamed, neither to satisfaction. In the raw state, it feels like grainy paper on the tongue. They were bitter and tasted like pepper and mustard. Steamed, the leaves turned a deep green and the stalks remained crunchy. The flavor here was less appealing than the raw greens. They were more bitter and peppery. A dose of maple syrup would have done good. As it was, I used olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Kosher salt, ground black pepper, and added dried cranberries and walnuts.

I haven’t blanched them or added the greens to cream yet. Perhaps blanching would rid the greens of some bitterness. There’s only one way to find out.  I’ll keep you posted.

Have any of you found a way to make turnip greens taste good? Please tell. Thank you.

Oh, please help me find a way to make these things taste good. I tried boiling them with half a leek in some lightly salted water for about 22 minutes. Boiling removed all bitterness, along with pepper and mustard flavors. The result was dismal. These greens had no flavor. Last night I tried mixing some powdered Parmesan into them, but it didn’t help. They needed salt and some sprucing up. I can see why you would want to saute the greens in some bacon fat or boil them with a ham hock. But is there another way besides pork fat to make these stubborn greens taste good?

Well, there’s progress on the turnip greens front. As a side dish to leftover black bean, salsa and goat cheese pizza, I plucked some turnip greens from the garden and lightly dressed them (raw) with olive oil, lime juice and…maple syrup. Kosher salt and ground black pepper went in, too. But the maple syrup’s sweetness played the key contrast to the green’s pepper taste. The combination of maple and lime is intriguing – a bright hint of acidity to go with smooth, comforting sweetness. The combination might be especially appealing with sweet potatoes. I’m still searching for a cooking method and ingredients that will make greens taste good. For now, thank you maple syrup.