# tell me about turnips



## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

so I decided to plant some turnips back near the end of july. never planted them before, never even ate them, but for some reason had seeds, so what the heck. So I planted them and the pretty green leaves got big. Well, the other day, I thought, oh yeah, turnips. so I looked and wow! big balls of purple. so what do I do with them now? I looked up storage in stocking up and it said its best to use them in a few weeks. What? A root vegetable? I thought these things would be storable like potatoes. So whats the best way to store and how do we eat them? (Don't say with your mouth. I got that part :hammer


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## SquashNut (Sep 25, 2005)

I haven't found a way to store them yet and when I canned them they turned grey. I did get awy with a few chunks in canned veggie stew though,
Dh likes them french fried.
i put a few in my fridge in the bottom drawer and they molded up pretty fast.


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## susieneddy (Sep 2, 2011)

We cut them into slices and froze them. The reason we sliced them was so we could make a turnip/potato au gratin.
The other night we made some mashed turnip and potatoes. 

Eddy


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## susieneddy (Sep 2, 2011)

Here is one of our favorite recipes that makes great use of the fall veggies, including turnips.

Susie

*Mashed Roots*
Prep: 30 Minutes
Cook: 30 Minutes

Least well-known of the root vegetables, the rutabaga has twice the potassium of its better-known cousin, the turnip, and has a respectable amount of calcium for a vegetable (41 mg per Â½ cup).

2 cloves of garlic, peeled
Â½ pound carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped (1 Â¼ cups)
Â½ pound parsnips, peeled and coarsely chopped (1 Â¼ cups)
Â½ pound turnips, peeled and coarsely chopped (2 cups)
Â½ pound rutabagas, peeled and coarsely chopped (2 cups)
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons milk, warmed
Â½ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 Tablespoon snipped fresh chives

Place garlic, carrots, parsnips, turnips and rutabagas in a 4-quart pot. Add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 30 to 35 minutes or until vegetables are fork tender; drain. Return vegetables to hot pan.

Mash vegetables slightly with a potato masher. Mash in olive oil, milk, salt and pepper. Vegetables should be slightly chunky. Transfer to a serving bowl; sprinkle with chives. Makes 5 to 6 servings.

Nutrition Facts per serving: 123 calories, 6 grams total fat, 1 gram saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 298 mg sodium, 17 grams carbohydrate, 5 grams dietary fiber, 2 grams protein.


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## MoonShine (Mar 17, 2003)

Slice them up and fry them in a skillet like you would fry potatoes. I put a lid on them so they get steamy and not browned but that's a personal preference. They are so good, easily one of my favorite foods. I can't wait until mine are ready


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## kentuckyhippie (May 29, 2004)

I like to peel them, grate them and mix with my favorite cole slaw dressing and have them for a salad. also freeze them in slices and have them fried later, also good boiled with some hot peppers and a few onion slices added.


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## GrannyG (Mar 26, 2005)

I love candied turnips...slice them thin like you do potatoes, fry the slices in butter, get them nice and brown on both sides....when you have a nice pile of them done, put them back into the skillet, sprinkle brown sugar over the top, put on a lid, and let them crystalize some...YUMMY !

Also make turnip slaw....


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

Ok, I will give these a try, but what about storage? I can only eat so many in the next few weeks. Do I have to freeze them? or will they store like a regular root vege?


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## po boy (Jul 12, 2010)

Sounds like those are purple top turnips. You can can them with the greens.

Chop the turnip and greens up, bring to a boil and follow ball canning book.

or you can do the above and then freeze.


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## Vickie44 (Jul 27, 2010)

I use the greens in soups and stews , I wilted some and froze them. The cows eat the turnips.


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## mekasmom (Jan 19, 2010)

lonelyfarmgirl said:


> so I decided to plant some turnips back near the end of july. never planted them before, never even ate them, but for some reason had seeds, so what the heck. So I planted them and the pretty green leaves got big. Well, the other day, I thought, oh yeah, turnips. so I looked and wow! big balls of purple. so what do I do with them now? I looked up storage in stocking up and it said its best to use them in a few weeks. What? A root vegetable? I thought these things would be storable like potatoes. So whats the best way to store and how do we eat them? (Don't say with your mouth. I got that part :hammer


You use them like potatoes. You can can them too, just like potatoes. But they will keep in a cool place for a couple of months. Just cut off the shrivled part and use the rest. I keep them until around Thanksgiving each year. I just cut off the tops, and stick the bulbs in laundry baskets on the back porch each fall.
My favorite ways to use turnips are either au gratin (yum) or fried. My husband only likes them raw or au gratin. The kids stick their noses up and just say YUCK!!! Turnips are an aquired taste for a sophisticated palate. 
I do stick them in veggie soup, and the kids never know they aren't potatoes.


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## marytx (Dec 4, 2002)

Here in the south we plant turnips in the fall. Are you cool enough where you are that root crops are not bitter this time of year?

Last time I had a big turnip harvest, I canned some and froze some. The ones I canned turned dark, just like the book said they would, but I still like them, and add them to my soups. I liked the ones I cut up and froze better because they stayed a pretty white. I also added those to stews.

But, I like turnips just plain, boiled. You can also eat the leaves. They are best young and tender, but if they are bigger, you can pull out the veins. Boil them up with a few cut up turnips, and eat with cornbread. Yum.


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## prairiegirl (Nov 2, 2004)

How soon do the canned turnips turn dark? I canned some a month ago and they are still a potato-like color.


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## marytx (Dec 4, 2002)

I'm pretty sure mine were dark coming out of the canner.


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## kenworth (Feb 12, 2011)

Yep, mine turned dark right out of the canner, too. I called it turnip soup cuz it had other veg with it, but no potatoes.


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## MoonShine (Mar 17, 2003)

One fall I had so many turnips, I left a bunch of them in the ground. I dug them and ate them well into the winter and they were fine. I can't remember what I mulched them with, but it worked that winter. Not sure how severe the winters are where you live.

If you want, store them like potatoes. Dig them, let them dry a bit, and put them into crates in a basement, cellar, or somewhere else that's cool and dry.


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

pretty severe compared to you. winter low average is zero to ten, but 20 below happens. 2-5 feet of snow at any given time. usually by christmas you cant get to anything still in the ground. its buried by then.


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## PlicketyCat (Jul 14, 2010)

If it doesn't get horribly cold there, you can actually keep turnips right in the ground all winter and just dig them up when you want them. If you have some cold, you can put mulch or straw over them to keep them a little warmer. If you have winters like we do, the ground freezes solid and you can't dig anymore, but they store just fine in buried barrel or in a crate in a cool place in loose layers (I use burlap rather than sawdust). Just cut off the greens 2-3" from the bulb and they should keep a few months.


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## secretcreek (Jan 24, 2010)

I was just given a 20lb bag of whole turnips/ "neeps"... I was thinking about slicing them and dehydrating them for casseroles and soups later. I hate preserving via freezer if I can help it, as we lose our power often in the winter due to ice storms.

-scrt crk


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## prairiegirl (Nov 2, 2004)

My sweet GS helped me pull the remaining turnips this morning. I can't wait to try some friend and the agratin sound yummy, too.


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## Just Little Me (Aug 9, 2007)

I chop mine up and freeze or can them all together. Nothing better than a big pot of greens in the middle of the winter.


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