# Choosing  fresh horseradish?



## schnauzer (Dec 11, 2011)

Hi,  I am going to make some beetroot and horseradish relish for Christmas gifts and wondered how to choose fresh horseradish.   I tried out a recipe a few months ago and it tasted good but the horseradish was very dry and tough and I wondered if it was old.   Fresh horseradish is not widely available up here in Scotland but I noticed some yesterday in the new exotic veg section in my local Morrisons.   It was wrapped in cling film and some of it was quite green and other bits were more brown coloured also some of it was mouldy.   My question is which is freshest green or brown?   Also what could I add to the relish to give it a bit of a jelly consistency.   Any advice gratefully received.


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## Dawgluver (Dec 11, 2011)

Not sure.  My dad grew and processed his own horseradish for many years.  He used a hand grater, and mixed it with a bit of vinegar, then put it in jars.  It would burn off your eyebrows.

You should probably cut out the moldy/bad spots and peel it before grating.


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## GB (Dec 11, 2011)

I can not say for sure, but in general in the world of produce, green is fresher than brown.

My mom grates her own horseradish each year for Passover. Her stuff would make chuck Norris cry. When my daughter was just starting to eat solid food, during her first Passover, all she ate that night was moms horseradish. Grown men had tears running down their cheeks just from passing the horseradish to the person sitting next to them and there is my infant daughter shoveling the stuff in like it was ice cream.


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## Dawgluver (Dec 11, 2011)

GB said:
			
		

> I can not say for sure, but in general in the world of produce, green is fresher than brown.
> 
> My mom grates her own horseradish each year for Passover. Her stuff would make chuck Norris cry. When my daughter was just starting to eat solid food, during her first Passover, all she ate that night was moms horseradish. Grown men had tears running down their cheeks just from passing the horseradish to the person sitting next to them and there is my infant daughter shoveling the stuff in like it was ice cream.



Too funny, GB!


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## jennyema (Dec 11, 2011)

GB said:


> I can not say for sure, but in general in the world of produce, green is fresher than brown.
> 
> My mom grates her own horseradish each year for Passover. Her stuff would make chuck Norris cry. When my daughter was just starting to eat solid food, during her first Passover, all she ate that night was moms horseradish. Grown men had tears running down their cheeks just from passing the horseradish to the person sitting next to them and there is my infant daughter shoveling the stuff in like it was ice cream.



Hahahaha !!!



Look for heavy roots.  They lose weight over time.


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## Bolas De Fraile (Dec 12, 2011)

GB said:


> I can not say for sure, but in general in the world of produce, green is fresher than brown.
> 
> My mom grates her own horseradish each year for Passover. Her stuff would make chuck Norris cry. When my daughter was just starting to eat solid food, during her first Passover, all she ate that night was moms horseradish. Grown men had tears running down their cheeks just from passing the horseradish to the person sitting next to them and there is my infant daughter shoveling the stuff in like it was ice cream.


My Dad used to give us a spoonful when we had chest colds, by the age of 10 I could hit a spittoon at 20 feet using my right nostril


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## buckytom (Dec 12, 2011)

they should look like a thick, relatively straight root with a light brown skin on them much like ginger, but a little thicker (skinned). 

and like jenny said, they should be solid and somewhat heavy. the lighter and mushier they get, the older they are.

we like to grate our horseradish into beets using the finer side of a box grater. it should be a little juicy when doing so, almost as if grating a carrot.


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## Bolas De Fraile (Dec 12, 2011)

Schnauzer the chrien I buy  here has the outer colour of an old potato, ask the veg manager in Morrisons for some fresh h/radish


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## Caslon (Dec 12, 2011)

I really like a dab of horseradish on the plate when I make a roast beef dinner.  The store bought kind is good, but I didn't realize that horseradish doesn't last that long once opened. So I end up buying another small jar of it because I don't make a roast every week.


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## Timothy (Dec 12, 2011)

Bolas De Fraile said:


> My Dad used to give us a spoonful when we had chest colds, by the age of 10 I could hit a spittoon at 20 feet using my right nostril


 
Thanks Bolas, now, I'll never get that image back out of my mind!


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## Bolas De Fraile (Dec 12, 2011)

Timothy said:


> Thanks Bolas, now, I'll never get that image back out of my mind!


Thats okay Timothy, I was a very bronchitic child, my dad would hire me out to decorate organic christmas trees


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## CraigC (Dec 12, 2011)

GB said:


> I can not say for sure, but in general in the world of produce, green is fresher than brown.
> 
> My mom grates her own horseradish each year for Passover. Her stuff would make chuck Norris cry. When my daughter was just starting to eat solid food, during her first Passover, all she ate that night was moms horseradish. Grown men had tears running down their cheeks just from passing the horseradish to the person sitting next to them and there is my infant daughter shoveling the stuff in like it was ice cream.


 
I know it isn't horseradish, but we have a male, black pug that just loves wasabi.

As far as selecting horseradish, we always look for firm roots with no blemishes or soft spots and definately not shriveled nor wrapped in plastic. I work with a lot of hot chilis, but hand grating this stuff always starts a river flowing in my eyes.

Craig


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