TURNIPS	VEGETABLES - KNOW YOUR VEG

Turnips have a subtle peppery flavour and a purple or green tinged creamy white skin. Baby turnips have particularly tender flesh with a sweetish, delicate flavour. Choose turnips that have smooth, unbruised skins and feel heavy for their size.

How To Use Turnips

Turnip can be served as an accompanying vegetable or included in stews. They can also be made into soup, mashed or puréed. Mini turnips are served raw or cooked. Grate raw mini turnips and include in salads or slice thinly and drizzle with French dressing or mayonnaise.

How To Prepare Turnips

Peel and wash turnips and cut into even-sized pieces. Mini turnips do not need peeling before cooking, simply wash and trim the tops if cooking whole. Alternatively, cut into even-sized pieces before cooking.

How To Cook Turnips

Turnip can be boiled or steamed. To boil or steam, cook for 15 - 20 minutes or until tender. Mini turnips can be boiled whole or chopped and steamed or roasted. To boil, bring a pan of water to the boil and cook whole mini turnips for 20 - 30 minutes or until tender. Coat in melted butter or cheese sauce to serve. To roast chopped turnip, preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Par-boil prepared turnip chunks for 5 minutes in boiling salted water. Add 150 ml olive oil to a roasting tin and preheat in the oven for 5 minutes. Add the drained turnip to the tin and coat in the oil. Roast for 30 - 45 minutes, basting occasionally with the oil, until crunchy and golden brown.

How To Store Turnips

Keep in a cool, dry, dark place for up to 1 week.

The information and images for this article have come from www.thinkvegetables.co.uk. It provides full information on all the main vegetables available on the UK market including nutritional information and delicious recipes. The site is a service provided by Mack Vegetables, one of the largest and most successful suppliers of fresh vegetables in the UK, serving a wide range of customers from caterers to major multiples. You can find out more about Mack by visiting the website at www.mwmack.co.uk