# Forgotten Veg



## Chef_Jen (Jul 28, 2006)

Well those who know me know i love threads like this! it makes you think of things that you wouldnt have thought of before..

So my question today... What do you think is an underused Veg. I mean we all go out to eat and we see Carrot Broc. Peas Etc..

So lets list of some other veggies that will maybe make us think the next time we go to make something!

For me its the 
Turnip
Parsnip
Cerleric


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## Chef_Jen (Jul 28, 2006)

edit to add: Lets also state the over used veggies I think ive listed a few

Oh Something else i miss silver skin onions *sigh*


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## GB (Jul 28, 2006)

As I was reading this thread I had one in mind, but you mentioned it already Jen. It is Celery Root. Man I love that stuff, but most non-foodie types have no idea what it is.


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## Chef_Jen (Jul 28, 2006)

i love it mashed buttered raw mmmmm


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## GB (Jul 28, 2006)

I like it just about any way you can think of. A favorite of mine is roasted with other root veggies like parsnip, sweet potato, and others. Sprinkle some herbs in there with some olive oil and salt. Oh and don't forget the garlic. I am getting hungry.


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## FryBoy (Jul 28, 2006)

How about broccolini (a.k.a. Aspiration), a cross between broccoli and Chinese kale.

I like eggplant, especially the Japanese variety, marinated and grilled.


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## Corinne (Jul 28, 2006)

Over Used? Squash of any sort.


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## karadekoolaid (Jul 28, 2006)

Chef_Jen said:
			
		

> What do you think is an underused Veg. I mean we all go out to eat and we see Carrot Broc. Peas Etc..


 
Well who else to ask but me??? 

Salsify. 
Kohlrabi.
Mooli radish.
Artichokes.
Snap peas or mangetouts. 
Beetroot.
Marrow/pumpkin/squash...

*Salsify* is definitely a strange thingie. So subtle, so elusive - and hardly even known. 
*Kohlrabi* I discovered about a year ago when one of the wise guys in the Farmers Market said " OI! Professer! Get a load o this!" 
and put a kilo of kohlrabi in my bag. 
*Mooli radish*. Those huge, long, white radishes so popular in Oriental food, yet frequently overlooked as a peppery alternative for salad dishes.
*Artichokes*. I think they might actually be my favourite vegetable at the moment. The more Italian recipes I see, the more I like them. 
*Snap peas*. Two seconds stirfried in some real Chinese peanut oil, a little sea salt, oh glory...
*Beetroot.* Unfortunately, a much maligned source of colour and sweetness! Peel and zap one in the blender with a dose of fresh orange juice. MMMM! Make some spicy curry with tomatoes and tamarind. All I ever seem to see is pickled beetroot and Borscht.
*Marrow/Pumpkin/Squash.* I feel we've got into a rut with these. Pumpkin Pie, Baked Marrow, Roasted Squash - - time for some wild and wonderful thoughts! How about Marrow and Ginger Ice cream, anyone? Mix some pumpkin with earthy spices and lentils.Make some Squash Balls ( HA!) with chickpea flour and yoghurt - gently fry and serve with a yoghurt/dill sauce.


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## FryBoy (Jul 28, 2006)

How about Brussels sprouts? They're actually good if cooked right. I like to steam them until just fork tender, then devil them with butter and Dijon mustard.


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## SharonT (Jul 29, 2006)

daikon radish !
jicama
fennel root


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## daisy (Jul 29, 2006)

Hardly anyone eats Choko any more, more's the pity! Americans might know it as Chayote. It's a fairly bland vegetable, not unlike a patty-pan squash in flavour and texture, but it's far more versatile when used as a substitute for other things, like apples, or pears! It goes wonderfully well in pickles, too. I like it boiled, then served with lashings of butter, and a sprinkle of pepper, but it's nice with a white sauce, too.

Parsnips are definitely under-rated, too. I love them baked, but they can also be used in sweet dishes.

Arrowroot. Not many people have tried this one, but it's not unlike potato, except that it takes on the flavour of anything it's cooked with. A good padder-outer, but nice baked like a potato. 

Squash. NOT pumpkin, but pattypan squash, marrows, spaghetti squash etc. These days you only see the pattypans, but there are much larger varieties. In my long-past childhood, we often had these stuffed and baked. 

Hardly ever mentioned in cooking forums are the Chinese veges - bok choy, pak choy, tatsoi, choy sum, Chinese broccoli, kangkong and many more. Here in Australia they are widely popular and readily available, and I grow some of them for use in stews, stirfries, or raw in salads etc. 

Beetroot - doesn't anybody else use them as a baked vege, or just boiled as an ordinary vege? Or does everybody have to have them pickled? They are SO nice when served with a white sauce. 

Pumpkin is one vegetable that ought to be banned from the planet. Turnip is another.


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## Chef_Jen (Jul 29, 2006)

OJHHHHH i love beet root roasted and I live golden beets

I also Like collard greens and turnip tops!

Im tired of seeing Zuchinni


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## Lynan (Jul 29, 2006)

Daisy...ban pumpkin??? I had the most wonderful pumpkin soup tonight, with a little curry added with the onion, finished with coconut milk and sprinkled with coriander. I adore baked spiced pumpkin with a roast of beef, and muffins made from the leftovers next day. Roast pumpkin provides the sweetness ( along with kumara) in my roasted vegetable and blue cheese tarts. Plus one of my pooches goes crazy for it!! lolol

How many of you use Jerusalem Artichokes these days? And what is Swede called in other countries...that round yellowish/purple root vege. Lovely mashed with heaps of pepper and butter.


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## buckytom (Jul 29, 2006)

another one on the beet (beetroot) wagon.

i love them just boiled and peeled and sliced, or grated with fresh horseradish.

they are great for kids because the juice is practically like ink, and can color everything from mashed potatoes to pasta to hard boiled eggs, to your lips and tongue, shirt, and the dining room walls and carpet...


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## thumpershere2 (Jul 29, 2006)

Rutabaga, diced and boiled and then smothered in butter.
Spinich, steamed and smothered in butter


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## Robo410 (Jul 29, 2006)

I,m a fan of the root veggies, roasted, mashed, hashed, gratined etc.   THings like parsnips surround a roast, pich up the juices, add sweetness, mellow out...so good!  and the dark leafy greens...chard, collards, turnip greens...outrageously wonderful, braised, sauteeded, used in soups, etc!  yum


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## BreezyCooking (Jul 29, 2006)

Kohlrabi & Kale.

Unless I grow it myself, the only market that seems to carry Kohlrabi around here is "Whole Foods" - & the closest ones in either direction are a good hour+ away.  I like this vegetable both raw sliced as a dipper, cubed & cooked in a cream or cheese sauce, curry, or soup, or cooked & mashed with a little butter.

And Kale - well, talk about "good & good for you"!!  I use it in soups, mixed cooked greens, pasta dishes, etc.  If grown myself, the very young baby leaves are also great in salads.  Here in Virginia I'm always surprised to see folks bagging up greens mixtures of collards, turnip greens, & mustard greens, but leaving poor old Kale alone.  I guess it's not really considered a "southern" green since it really likes the cold weather.


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## Ishbel (Jul 31, 2006)

In the winter, the Scottish diet used to rely heavily on root vegetables, as they were the only ones to survive our cold, wet winters.  Brussel sprouts, cabbages were also OK...  Every Scottish housewife uses leeks, onions, carrots swede turnip (close to rutabaga), parsnips.

Rumbledethumps
Scotch Broth
Lentil Soup
Stews and casseroles
Neeps n tatties

YUM


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## urmaniac13 (Jul 31, 2006)

Radicchio!!

I had never even heard of this wonderful vegetable until I came to Italy, and it was like a revelation when Cristiano made me a Risotto al radicchio for the first time. Now I mastered the art of this risotto recipe myself, but I found so many delicious uses for them... most recently we even made a jam with it, it is wonderful paired with some piquant cheeses!!


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## SharonT (Jul 31, 2006)

cliveb said:
			
		

> Salsify.
> Kohlrabi.
> Mooli radish.
> Artichokes.
> ...


Great list!  I had to look up "Salsify" -- does the root really taste like an oyster when cooked??!
"Mooli radish" is known as daikon around here - I like to marinate daikon and carrots sticks in rice vinegar, sugar, pinch of salt.

I don't think anyone has mentioned *broccoli rabe *- a.k.a*. *rape.  I think it's better than spinach, collard greens, mustard greens, kale... and I like all of those.  
snow peas


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## Ishbel (Jul 31, 2006)

My husband adores salsify.  BUT it has only a very, very short season here in the UK.  We've picked it on beaches in Cornwall and cooked it up with just a couple of freshly laid eggs from a local farm which have been poached until just set.


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (Jul 31, 2006)

For forgotton leafy veggies, cowslips, fiddlehead ferns, cattails, dandylion, nasturtium (extra yummy in tossed salads, tried for the first time this year), rose petals, pumpkin and squash blossoms, to name a few.  And they are all yummy and nutritious, and normaly unavailable unless you find them wild, or grow them.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North


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## BreezyCooking (Jul 31, 2006)

Actually, I'm lucky around here, as several markets carry Fiddleheads while they're in season in early spring.  Ramps & Dandelion leaves too.  Farmers markets around here carry squash blossoms (pumpkin is a squash too), & I've harvested my own rose petals for salads & making rose petal jam.  And of course, Nasturtiums are easy to grow & make a lovely addition to salads; the flowers are also lovely & tasty stuffed with creamy herbed cheese mixtures.

Cowslips are not only not very appetizing, in my opinion (too bitter), but these days are considered more of a medicinal herb than a soup/salad ingredient, & there are many differing opinions about it.


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## lulu (Jul 31, 2006)

Chard. Rainbow or ruby chard is so beautiful, and although it tastes unrelentingly of "green vegetable" sometimes tht is so fresh and wholesome that its needed.

I think we are also getting very lazy about the "other bits" of veg.  Field next to me is full of broad beans and we have had "bean tops" those tender green leaves, most hot meals this summer.  

I love celeriac...my favourite use is mashed, with chickpeas over spiced lamb mince to make a sort of middle eastern interpretation of shepards pie.  But grated for slaed too.  Raw beets are delicious, I adore beetroot.  Thats why I am amazed that soup leaves me cold.  I made it through winter and my husband (who had never had such quantities of beets) did not expect the after effects and went to A & E thinking he was very ill, LOL


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## TATTRAT (Jul 31, 2006)

lemongrass
bok choy
napa cabbage
ruhbarb
ruddabaga(sp?)
Lotus root
mhung beans
fava beans
lima beans
micro greens
patty pans
sunburst squash...


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## BreezyCooking (Jul 31, 2006)

I LOVE Swiss Chard, & use it quite a bit.  I like the Rainbow or "Bright Lights" types the best, as I find the stalks much more tender & quicker cooking than the regular white & ruby-stalked types.

Pre-blanched & then sauteed in extra-virgin olive oil, chopped garlic, & a dash of crushed red pepper flakes, chard makes an excellent accompaniment or "bed" for sauteed or grilled chicken or fish.  It's a really nice change from my more common favorite - spinach.


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## goodgiver (Jul 31, 2006)

*forgotten veggis*



			
				SharonT said:
			
		

> daikon radish !
> jicama
> fennel root


 
Way to go Sharon all are my top favorites.  All very cool and refreshing on a hot day.   Also very good for you.


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## kimbaby (Aug 1, 2006)

*not used enough:*
*eggplant*

*used to much:*
*tomatoes*


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## rdcast (Aug 1, 2006)

Sweet potato cheescake, oh sorry. Let's see, hummmm. uno...WAIT!!! I know!!! 

Black eyed peas and hominy with lots of pepper oh and hot peppers(considered aphrodisiacs)

On the other end of the spectrum would be okra, ew, ew, triple ew


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## jpmcgrew (Aug 1, 2006)

I adore swiss chard and kale very good for you to,


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## rdcast (Aug 1, 2006)

I adore the word adore but I especially adore butternut squash and black walnuts, is that a veggie ? It's vegetable matter at least.

Curly kale ??? My oldest sister Karen loves the stuff.


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