A Kohlrabi Dinner
I first fell in love with Kohlrabi last summer at the St. Paul Farmer's Market. It is such an inviting vegetable with its pale green screen and goofy looking tentacles. It actually reminded me of an organic-y spaceship. Fortunately, one of the vendors was offering samples, so I was able to try it without any risk. She recommend sprinkly it with some salt, but I really enjoyed it just plain and fresh. This summer I actually planted some Kohlrabi and it seems to be doing well. First a little background.
Kohlrabi is a relative of the cabbage, but is really just much more fun to eat than a bland, tough, leaf. It has a very clean flavor and the texture of a crisp apple. I picked up a few at the market last weekend and decided to try something new with it.
In my bible, I mean The Joy Of Cooking, I found a recipe for Kohlrabi with Parmesan Cheese. It was fairly basic. Just chop the Kohlrabi into matchsticks, boil until tender, drain and mix in a tablespoon or two of butter and four ounces of parmesan cheese. No problem.
When I was reading the information about the little green spaceships, I stumbled across direction to the cook the leaves. It read, "If you are lucky enough to find kohlrabi wtih the leaves still attached, they can be cooked like mustard greens, page 388. I quickly turned to page 388 and added another dish to the dinner menu.
Mustard Greens with Chickpeas and Curry quickly became Kohlrabi Greens with Chickpeas and Curry. And it was almost as easy as the first recipe. Sweat a couple onions and four garlic gloves in some butter (or ghee), wilt the greens, then add a can of diced tomatoes (organic, of course) and a can of chickpeas along with the essential spices, including ginger, cumin, red pepper, coriander and curry powder. Add some stock and simmer away. The dish was flavorful with a double kick from the curry and the red pepper. Throw a chicken breast on the grill and dinner was served.
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