Crunchy Kohlarbi Salad

Back in May I was walking around the Penn Quarter Farmers Market, and spotted kohlrabi!

I took a quick picture and sent it to my mom.  I remember eating this during my childhood, but could not remember how my mom prepared it.  Sam had never heard of it- so it was fun introducing a new vegetable to him!

What’s a kohlrabi?

Kohlrabi is part of the cabbage family.  It is not a root vegetable, rather it grows just above the ground.  The peak season is spring and early summer, but it can be found year-round.  Small and young kohlrabi are the best.  The bigger ones have a woody, fibrous outer layer that is inedible.  Kohlrabi is very nutritious- low in calories, high in fiber and potassium.

What to do with it when you come home?

1. Remove the steps, cutting or pulling them off from the base.  The leaves can be eaten, added into salads just like lettuce.  Although once the leaves have turned colors (light brown, yellow) the kohlrabi is not fresh.

2. Cut off the bottom base (opposite from where the stems were).

3. Peel off the outer layer- especially if it’s a larger/older kohlrabi.

4. Slice, dice or shred the inside.  Add it to your fresh veggie plate with dips or toss into a salad.

We added our shredded kohlrabi to a salad, which was perfect on a hot day!

Crunchy Kohlrabi Salad
A Fifth Floor Kitchen Original

1-2 kohlrabi, peeled & shredded
1/2 red cabbage, chopped
5 radishes, chopped
1/2 tbsp olive oil
juice of 1 lemon

Toss all of the ingredients together to make a crunch side salad.

Other ideas for kohlrabi dishes:
Kohlrabi Salad with Apple & Cilantro
Kohlrabi Home Fries
Kohlrabi & Celery Root Purée
Kohlrabi Risotto

Colorful Slaw

Whenever I think of coleslaw, the images of lots of mayonnaise pop into my head.  I recently bought Jamie Oliver’s book, Jamie’s America, and was flipping through the recipes.  This slaw caught my eye- especially since it did not use any mayonnaise.

With the weather warming up, we’ve been eating our dinner upstairs on the rooftop.  This salad was perfect for a fast and easy dinner.  We accompanied this dish with some cheese (from Cowgirl Creamery)  and fresh bread, making it a perfect low-key dinner.

Jamie recommends this salad as a side with some chicken or pork chop.  He notes that you can change up the salad with different flavors.  Leave the onion, cilantro and white cabbage as a base, but feel free to add asparagus or fennel to further enhance the taste of this salad.

Colorful Slaw
Adapted from: Jamie’s America Cookbook

1/2 head of cabbage
1/2 head of red cabbage
20 radishes; trimmed & thinly sliced
4 carrots, peeled
1 bunch of cilantro, finely chopped
2 jalapeños, chopped finely
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1/4 cup olive oil
juice of 3 limes
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)

The quickest way to make this is to use a food processor.  The mandolin attachment shreds the cabbages and carrots into tiny pieces.  If you do not have one, a grater will do the job as well.

In a large bowl, combine the shredded cabbage (white not red) with the radishes, carrots,  cilantro, jalapeños and onions.  Mix everything well.  In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, lime juice, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.  Once the ingredients are integrated, pour over the slaw.  Once again, toss together.

Finally, fold in the red cabbage right before serving.  If you add it at the beginning, the red cabbage can stain all the other ingredients.