Kohlrabi Recipes: How To Cook The Tricky Vegetable In Your CSA (PHOTOS)

Welcome to the inaugural installment of "WTF, CSA?" Each week this CSA season, we'll help you make use of your overflowing CSA baskets. You ask, we answer. That's how this works. Or rather, you shouted, "WTF?" into your CSA box and now we're going to tell what on earth to do with all that kohlrabi.

It's easy to see how kohlrabi could throw you off your game the first time you see it. It looks like someone teleported a vegetable from Mars right into your kitchen. But in truth, kohlrabi is incredibly versatile. Kohlrabi, cabbage, Brussels sprouts and kale are all cousins, so you can expect that any flavor that goes nicely with one, will be lovely with the other.

After asking a formerly vegetarian friend what she likes to do with kohlrabi best, she said, "Honestly, just peel it, slice it, sprinkle it with salt and eat it raw." We love her style and hope you follow suit. You can basically treat kohlrabi, both the green and purple varieties, like a sweet, overgrown radish. Do be sure to remove all of the peel (which is really tough), unless you plan to cook it until it's soft.

Kohlrabi is a crispy, crunchy alien vegetable that you can prepare in more ways than we were able to catalogue. Here are some of our favorites:

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• Pickled Kohlrabi

  <strong>Get the <a href="http://beckyintherootcellar.com/2011/05/24/fridge-pickled-kohlrabi-and-carrots/" target="_hplink">Fridge Pickled Kohlrabi and Carrots</a> recipe from The Root Cellar's Garden </strong><br><br> Full disclosure, we will probably find a recipe for you to pickle every single thing in your CSA box. That said, kohlrabi's crunchiness stands up to the pickling process particularly well, especially when they are cold from the fridge.

• Kohlrabi Fritters With Herbs

  <strong>Get the <a href="Kohlrabi Fritters with Herbs" target="_hplink">Kohlrabi Fritters</a> recipe from My Conscious Eating </strong><br><br>It is really hard to not love a fritter. It gives you the double benefit of eating something fried (duh, yum), but also gives you the flavor of crispy caramelized bits of whatever your main ingredient is. The sugars in kohlrabi make these extra crunchy and delicious.

• Fresh Mozzarella And Roasted Kohlrabi Crostini With Crispy Lemons And Shallots

  <strong>Get the <a href="http://www.food52.com/recipes/5129_fresh_mozzarella_and_roasted_kohlrabi_crostini_with_crispy_lemons_and_shallots" target="_hplink">Fresh Mozzarella and Roasted Kohlrabi Crostini with Crispy Lemons and Shallots</a> recipe from Food52 </strong><br><br> Want to fancy your kohlrabi up for an elegant dinner party? Don't put it in a dress, put it on a crostini!

• 'Carpaccio' of Kohlrabi With Radishes And Blue Cheese

  <strong>Get the <a href="http://whatsforsupper-juno.blogspot.com/2009/05/carpaccio-of-kohlrabi-with-radishes-and.html" target="_hplink">'Carpaccio' of Kohlrabi with Radishes and Blue Cheese</a> recipe from Scrumptious </strong><br><br> When we hear the word carpaccio, we usually think of very rare beef, but we love to use vegetables like kohlrabi in its place for a quick, different spin on salad.

• Kohlrabi, Radish And Carrot 'Ceviche'

  <strong>Get the <a href="https://veghotpot.wordpress.com/2012/05/12/kohlrabi-ceviche-virtual-vegan-potluck/" target="_hplink">Kohlrabi, Radish and Carrot 'Ceviche'</a> recipe from VegHotPot </strong><br><br> Again, ceviche is usually fish or shellfish, cooked with only the acidity of the other ingredients involved. We love the idea of softening crispy kohlrabi in the same way. As an added bonus, you now have a ceviche in your repertoire that you can serve your vegan friends.

• Butter-Braised Kohlrabi

  <strong>Get the <a href="http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Saveur-100-2011-Butter-Braised-Kohlrabi" target="_hplink">Butter-Braised Kohlrabi</a> recipe from Saveur </strong><br><br> Because you cook the skin down in the butter braise, you can skip a prepping step and leave the peel on for this cozy dish.

• Kohlrabi Rose

  Or get fancy and <a href="http://vimeo.com/15308900" target="_hplink">carve some kohlrabi roses</a>. Just make sure you eat them afterward -- we'd hate for these delicious little aliens to go to waste.

• Shaved Kohlrabi Salad With Chioggia Beets & Nectarines

  <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/JaymeeSireCSN"></a><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/JaymeeSireCSN">JaymeeSireCSN</a>:<br />Try eating kohlrabi raw in <a href="http://eisforeat.blogspot.com/2012/06/k-is-for-kohlrabi-salad-shaved-with.html" target="_hplink">this gorgeous salad</a>!

Comments

[Kathy Lovorn Dube]

01:14 PM on 03/23/2013

I recently purchased Kohlrabi at our local Austin, TX Farmer's Market. Check out a crunchy and delicious salad using Kale and Kohlrabi: http://www.shoalcreekcook.com/kale-salad-with-cabbage-kohlrabi-and-cucumber/

[Lisa Lenskold]

04:45 PM on 10/16/2012

This is my daughter's favorite. She's now started growing her own Kohlrabi, since they're difficult to find in the market.
http://shinycooking.com/kohlrabi-and-apple-salad-honey-yogurt-dressing

[kwolinsky]

06:37 PM on 09/17/2012

I haven't come across lots of Kohlrabi yet but I have plenty of recipes to share for other popular CSA fare. Check it out: http://zucchiniexplosionproject.blogspot.com/

[Loucinda]

12:49 PM on 09/16/2012

We will be getting kohlrabi in our Colorado CSA veggie share for the first time this week. Looking forward to trying them! I haven't met a veggie I didn't love...yet. :-))

[wildwildwest]

02:11 PM on 06/19/2012

Last week I made Roasted Kohlrabi with Parmesan cheese. Very easy to make and absolute deliciousness.

Recipe:

4 kohlrabi bulbs, peeled
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat an oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
Cut the kohlrabi into 1/4 inch thick slices, then cut each of the slices in half. Combine olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Toss kohlrabi slices in the olive oil mixture to coat. Spread kohlrabi in a single layer on a baking sheet.
Bake in the preheated oven until browned, 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally in order to brown evenly. Remove from oven and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Return to the oven to allow the Parmesan cheese to brown, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.

[Montana 123]

06:49 PM on 06/27/2012

Thank you! I got several of these guys in my basket today. I was like I know what they are but what do I do with them?

[wildwildwest]

07:13 PM on 06/27/2012

And, only 36 calories per serving. Compared to potatoes' 278! (8 grams of carbs, again compared to potatoes 63 grams of carbs)

[Melhindes]

09:21 AM on 06/28/2012

I must belong to the same coop as you - I had no idea what they were.
I will try this receipe tonight

[lovetostitch]

10:57 PM on 06/27/2012

Thanks for the recipe! I printed it and plan to try it when I find some kohlrabi locally.

[Cupik]

06:00 PM on 06/18/2012

Here's a recipe from Alaska - cube kohlrabi into half inch pieces, halve cherry tomatoes, herring eggs (it's an Alaskan thing), bacon bits and chopped savoy cabbage - sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce and .......yum

I luvvvvv me some kohlrabi

[Rebecca Orchant]

12:30 PM on 06/22/2012

I love this idea! We have to know more about herring eggs!

[Cupik]

01:18 PM on 06/22/2012

When the herring congregate for spawning, hemlock tree branches are left in the water. The herring leave their eggs on the tree branches. Alaska Native indigenous food delicacy. They are crunchy like flying fish roe that you see on typical California Rolls and they are beige in color. They are crunchier than flying fish eggs and more abundant so you're getting your protein, there is no fat and I used to have it with ranch dressing, thawed frozen peas and bacon.

Another delicacy I will walk a mile for is Tlingit dried black seaweed. My mouth is watering, this must stop. Dried black seaweed, seal oil and air dried halibut. Drip, there goes my keyboard.

Adding the lovely young cubed Kohlrabi adds more crunch (and water).

[massagebearnj]

12:26 PM on 06/18/2012

cut them like french fries and boil them in salted water. Make a Bechamel sauce with some of the boiling water, milk and heavy cream. Add a dash of Nutmeg. Salt to taste. Mix the veggie with the sauce. It's delicious. You can use the same sauce for cauliflower. Serve with boiled potatoes, or mashed. Its the BEST

[Barry Peterson]

01:55 PM on 06/18/2012

Just like my mother used to make! Mmmmm!

[futty weet]

11:48 PM on 06/17/2012

I love this stuff. l agree young ones are best or they are woody.

[puzzled500]

11:14 PM on 06/16/2012

Kohlrabi is disgusting.

[Rebecca Carey]

01:05 AM on 06/16/2012

I put them into the compost pile.
We have gotten them in our farm box deliveries for the past four weeks.

[Rachel Crockett]

04:23 PM on 06/15/2012

While the other ways are good, my favorite is still just thinly sliced with olive oil, salt, and pepper. But has to be a young bulb. Old ones are too woody.