I just bought my first rutabaga.

[sl8]

Now awaiting accolades.

They all said there would be accolades.

[handmade34]

1. even gets better

when you cook it...

[Sanity Claws]

3. That is one option

You could also go bowling with it.

[sl8]

6. Actually planned to try it raw.

I read somewhere recently that raw rutabaga strips made good snacks.

Cooking will be my fallback position, though.

Darn thing is big enough to try both ways, I guess.

[handmade34]

18. ...

[img][/img]

[sl8]

23. Nice!

Mine won't look that nice, but that's encouraging. And I do have apples and walnuts ...

Thanks.

[leftieNanner]

2. Accolade Number One!

I love rutabagas! I use them in my beef stew, in soups, and in a wonderful winter vegetable cobbler with parsnips, carrots, and celery root. I love the "ugly" veggies. Except maybe for turnips - they're not my favorite.

You will really enjoy them.

YUM!

[sl8]

9. Thank you, thank you.

[PufPuf23]

31. My Mom used to make venison rutabaga stew,

basically beef stew only with venison and rutabagas instead of potatoes. Sometimes she would add wild matsutake or morel mushrooms. Yum. It was a favorite of maternal grandfather and Dad.

I decided did not like to hunt age 17.

Several years ago a friend had some elk and I made elk rutabaga, parsnip, and carrot (plus garlic, onion, various spices, sherry) stew in slow cooker. Yum.

[leftieNanner]

32. That sounds delicious!

I'm not a hunter either, but I live in Southern Oregon where there are a lot of them. There's a small local meat market where you can purchase game meats. Got some excellent duck last Christmas.

[PufPuf23]

41. We are near neighbors in that I live on the lower Klamath River.

My maternal grandparents had a hunting and fishing lodge on the Klamath from 1921 to 1958, both sides of my family came locally in the 1850s to 1870s during the gold rush. When my parents were born the only access was by mule (most), horse, or foot; not even a wagon road except local to villages or mines because of the terrain. My grandmother would serve wild game at the resort (where rutabaga venison stew originated). When I was a child, there was always duck from Tule Lake plus quail and blue grouse (and chickens and the occasional turkey plus had cows, pigs, and horses and a mule for awhile). We grew the root crops (and canned and dried and gathered or grew a multitude of foods). Very old school. I have not lived that way as an adult and lived elsewhere during most of adult life.

I lived / worked in Portland and then Corvallis from 1987 to 1998.

[leftieNanner]

43. We considered Klamath Falls when we moved here ten years ago

It's so beautiful! But my husband needed better access to an airport for his work so we chose Ashland. The funny thing is about the Medford airport, in the winter months it is constantly socked in by dense fog. One year, when my older daughter was in college, she played on the basketball team and needed to be back to school by a certain date. Medford was expected to be socked in for at least a week. So (earning serious Mom points), I drove her to Eugene where she was able to fly out and get back to Boston in time.

I grew up in San Francisco, so Southern Oregon has been a delight for our later years.

[Lady Freedom Returns]

4. ....

🌈🎂🍭🎆🎊

[sl8]

11. Thank you, thank you.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

5. It will probably be your last.

[sl8]

8. Aww. Wait -- last rutabaga or last accolade?

Aww.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

10. Last rutabaga. I'm sure you will receive many accolades.

[sl8]

13. Whew!

Although, one day in the not to distant future, the accolades will cease, as well.

I don't know about the rutabaga itself, but this rutabaga talk is a little depressing.

[Wellstone ruled]

7. Living in the Southwest,

good Beggies are darn hard to find. Usually have a Relative ship some from Minny or Wiscony.

[sl8]

14. I don't have any idea if I got a good one.

How do you tell?

I must say, it is one of the more homely vegetables I've seen.

[Wellstone ruled]

15. Color,smell,size,firmness.

Here in Vegas,the Beggies we get are about the size of a baker potato,generally Cali Grown with a ton of Irrigation and flavorless. And they charge double what we pay in the Midwest. Best flavored Beggies come from north Central Wisconsin because of the soils and natural growing conditions.

[sl8]

17. Thanks!

Mine is from Canada and is between the size of a softball and a cantalope. No smell, but I haven't cut it yet.

[Wellstone ruled]

21. Should be darn good.

Cold Climate Root Veggies are the best. BTW,Rutabaga Capital of the World is Cumberland Wisconsin.

[FiveGoodMen]

19. Eat Hootersville Rutabagas!

[Doc_Technical]

22. You beat me to it, FiveGoodMen.

Not everyone has a sophisticated sense of humor
like we do.

[FiveGoodMen]

25. I don't even think I've watched that re-run in decades, but the scene just stuck with me

[sl8]

33. Ha! I wasn't expecting this cultural enlightenment.

Thanks!

[sdfernando]

12. I had a rutabaga once

Thing was a piece of shit...drove worse than a Yugo and not nearly as nice!

[sl8]

16. And those little foreign jobs don't have much rear seat legume.

[sdfernando]

24. LOL!

HAHAHAHAHA!!!!

[dameatball]

28. Ha! You win the Escalade..oh wait...I meant accolade. Those are free.

[msongs]

20. it should give you years of service. did u get the extended warranty? nt

[sl8]

38. No, but I'm sure it's covered by the lemon law, right?

[90-percent]

26. well what do you know?

Frank Zappa wrote a song about that.

-90% Jimmy

[sl8]

34. Wow. Green Acres? Frank Zappa?

It's starting to sound like I'm late to the rutabaga party.

Thanks.

[Clash City Rocker]

51. Oh no! If this keeps up, someone will post

Hey, how’d that get there?

[sl8]

63. Well, that takes the cake.

Nice one, thanks.

[dameatball]

27. We are all "rooting" for you.

[sl8]

39. Well, don't that "beet" all!

[lastlib]

47. I don't carrot all what the rest think--

I like vegetables. Give peas a chance. Lettuce be kind to our vegan brethren. (I just hope this doesn't get any cornier.....)

[sl8]

62. OK, I give, I give. :) n/t

[MuseRider]

29. MMMM

They are tasty! My goats love them too!

[sl8]

35. Well, if I had known that the goats loved them, maybe I would have bought one sooner.

[llmart]

30. I actually like them.

But then I was brought up by parents who made us eat healthy foods. This was in the 50's when most of my childhood cohorts were eating Twinkies and Hostess cupcakes and Wonder Bread. When I was a child I hated so much of what my mother made, but we had no choice in the matter, so if you didn't eat it, you'd go hungry. Many of the things I hated as a child I grew to like as an adult. In thinking about this, I have to believe that there really is some truth in starting your children out with good eating habits when they're young and introducing them to healthy foods.

I remember buying a rutabaga a couple years ago and the cashier didn't know what it was. When I told her she asked how I used it and I told her sometimes in soup. She said she thought she'd give it a try.

[sl8]

48. Your parents sound a lot like mine.

And I think you're right that a lot of that early conditioning(?) stays with us for a very long time.

Thanks for the input.

[smirkymonkey]

36. I consider myself a pretty adventurous eater, but I don't ever think I have had rutabega.

However I love all vegetables, so I would like to try it sometime. What does it taste like? How do you prepare it? It's just not something I grew up with so I am unfamiliar with it.

[sl8]

49. I, too, am pretty unfamiliar with it.

I read somewhere that raw rutabaga strips made for a good, healthy snacks, so decided to give it a go.

I'm not much for cooking in general, so I don't know if I'll ever get around to cooking rutabagas, but there are some pretty appealing sounding ideas from other posters in this thread.



Here's something a bit more infomative:

Why You Should Give Rutabaga a Chance

by FAITH DURAND
PUBLISHED: JAN 31, 2013

Turnips, kohlrabi, celery root, rutabaga. Root vegetables all, and often left for last in the CSA box by otherwise enterprising cooks who are flummoxed by their ugly looks and famine-food reputations. Among these intimidating vegetables, rutabaga looms large — both because of its size, and because it is simply my favorite one of all to eat. I want to cajole you into giving rutabaga a chance. Here’s why it deserves a place of honor right beside your potatoes and sweet potatoes.

First, the facts. Rutabaga (also called swede) is in the Brassica family, that of turnips and cabbage, and when you cut one open you get a very definite whiff of the cruciferous. Technically, rutabaga is actually a direct cross between cabbage and turnips, and it shares turnips’ slightly bitter flavor. Raw rutabaga tastes milder than turnips though, almost like a carrot without sweetness. It’s crisp, juicy, and just a tiny bit piquant.

In cooked dishes, though, that’s where rutabagas shine. The rutabaga has a more mellow, golden appearance than turnips or potatoes, and when cooked it turns sweet yet savory — like the richest golden potato you can imagine. It’s less starchy, but still very satisfying.

[...]

[smirkymonkey]

54. Sounds good! I will have to give it a try.

Thanks!

[jpak]

37. I root root root for mutherfuggin rutabagas!!!!!!!111111

[sl8]

50. You, sir or madam, really know how to accolade!

I haven't had an accolade like that in, well, I can't remember.

I can only imagine your reaction when I announce a cure for cancer.

Thank you!



p.s. Don't you just hate it when people change nouns into verbs and vice-versa? I did it only seconds ago, but am already feel the self-loathing gestating.

[LeftInTX]

40. They taste kinda like a radish or is that kohlrabi???

[sl8]

53. Not sure -- haven't tried the rutabaga or kohlrabi yet.

I will try the rutabaga soon. I do own one, you know.



I hope it doesn't tast like a radish. I like radishes, in moderation, but there's no way I could consume a radish this big.

[LeftInTX]

66. I think it tastes best cooked

[Grammy23]

42. We grew them one year when we had a backyard garden.

We trimmed the leaves with scissors as they got big enough. Then cooked them like collard, turnip or mustard greens. They are delicious! So tender. And the leaves continued to grow to be cut again and again!

[sl8]

55. Hey, I have a garden!

Or, I had a garden, until the gales of November came slashin'.

I've recently become a fan of garden-grown greens, so thus might be right up my alley.

Thank you.

[Grammy23]

60. As I recall (the garden was many years ago -- in the 1980s)

we actually grew them for their greens, not the actual root. The greens, unlike the root, are actually very mild tasting. The typical southern way to cook the rutabaga roots includes a fairly generous sprinkling of sugar to offset the strong bitter taste. The roots are pretty tasty if you can tamp down the bitter taste, but we have cut way down on sugar so would avoid eating the roots today. Many southerners, especially if they grow up eating rutabagas, really like the strong tasting root. I have a brother-in-law that mentions occasionally craving the ones served at a local restaurant in his town.

[Leith]

44. I grew up eating rutabegas

My mom mashed them, like potatoes. I haven't had them since I was 12, but they were good with butter and salt (well, what isn't?).

[sl8]

56. Your title line sounds like it could be from 'Oliver Twist'.

I'm no cook, but I I do have a certain facility with mashing things, sometimes even when it's not called for.

If I do try cooking rutabaga, this sounds like something I can handle.

Thanks!

[Leith]

67. LOL!

We weren't that well off, but definitely not as bad as poor orphaned Oliver.

Let's keep mum about my youthful life of crime, okay?

[Harker]

45. Maybe they all said, "an apple flayed"

and you heard wrong.

[sl8]

57. What you say makes sense, but what I'm hearing is, "No accolades from me".

"Flayed apples", huh? I'm not sure if that sounds more appetizing or disturbing. Might not be an either/or case, though.

[Harker]

69. Seriously... please accept

my heartfelt congratulations upon your bold foray into the cold, hard reality of root vegetables.

Soft and warm, of course, when roasted.

[sl8]

73. Ah -- finally!

Thank you, thank you..

[lastlib]

46. Um, I would check it closely if I were you........

If you find a brain in it, it's probly a republikan......

[sl8]

58. Close examination is not doing this thing any favors.

I will, however, proceed with caution.

[Kaleva]

52. My FIL gave me about 75 pounds of rutabagas not long ago.

I got sliced rutabaga in a pot filled with water in the fridge. A bunch more in the fridge in the basement and most have been wrapped in plastic and are over in the small house where the thermostat is set at 40 degrees.

[sl8]

59. Sounds like your FIL is fond of you.

Of course, if he knew you didn't like them, it would make for a sweet FIL burn.


40 ℉ ? Sounds almost like a root cellar.

Thanks for the storage advice.

[Kaleva]

65. The small house is unoccupied so we keep the temp low anyways

Above freezing and up to 40 degrees is a good temp to store spuds, carrots, rutabagas, onions and other root crops.

[yellowdogintexas]

61. essential for a good New England Boiled Dinner

Carrots, turnips, potatoes, parsnips, rutabaga cabbage yum

Cook the meat with lots of broth and the spices

cut up the veg and add them in the order of length of cooking time.

Cabbage goes last. I like to lay the leaves in layers on top of the stew so they steam.

Usually I take out the meat then put the cabbage leaves in slice the meat and return to the pot

My friend's mother let his wife and me help her make it; she made hers with a smoked shoulder instead of corned beef so that is how I make mine.

It's a couple or three days worth of really good food though

[sl8]

64. That sounds delicious.

Light-years beyond my abilities, but delicious nonetheless.

Thanks!

[yellowdogintexas]

70. Actually it is a very easy recipe.

Very much like a pot roast.
You just need a nice big pot

[sl8]

74. OK, I may try it someday when I feel brave.

I do have a large pot somewhere, but it probably needs a thorough scrubbing.I think that the last time I used it was to soak a small gas engine in solvent. I expect that "real" cooks have at least two large pots, so as to avoid this situation.



Thanks again.

[Phentex]

68. Mash em, roast em, or dice them up and fry em...

add them to soup. I mean, what's not to love?!

Congrats on your Rutabaga Purchase Number One!

[sl8]

71. Where have I been all my life?

Roasting sounds especially good. I may try that, if I end up buying more.

Thank you.

[hack89]

72. I hear they make excellent pets. Nt