# Kohlrabi? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 27, 2015, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863 "2015-10-27T11:50:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/1 "2015-10-27T11:50:26Z")
A farming friend mentioned that she grew kohlrabi this year. I mentioned that I’d never had it and _poof_ some showed up later that day on our porch. Anyone know anything about this weird veggie? ---
**Author:** ![Norm66](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/53a042/32.png) [@Norm66](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Norm66)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/2 "2015-10-27T12:24:28Z")
When I had my garden I used to grow it every year. Both a regular and a purple variety. Mostly I liked to slice them up and eat them raw with some celery salt on them, but I also fried them with potatoes & onions similar to turnips. But the best use really was to let a few of them get really, really big and use a Sharpie to make jack-o-lanterns out of them. The weird leaves sticking out all over with funny faces were a big hit with the kids in the neighborhood. ---
**Author:** ![mistymage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mistymage/32/459_2.png) [@mistymage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mistymage)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/3 "2015-10-27T12:50:37Z")
It tastes kind of like a cross between a turnip and cabbage. It’s in the same family as turnips, cabbages, broccoli, brussel sprouts and mustard. They were all purposely bred from wild mustard … concentrating on different parts of the plant to make… all the others. We eat them raw with just salt sprinkled on them… just the ball part… not the leaves. The leaves are probably edible if they are small enough… most leaves on all of the Brassicas are edible and even palatable as long as they are small or tender (don’t eat the “ribs”). ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/4 "2015-10-27T13:07:21Z")
I have potatoes and onions on hand and can buy whatever else I need. I sometimes make “mashed potatoes” using potatoes and rutabagas and/or turnips. Hmmmmm. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/5 "2015-10-27T13:08:53Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > A farming friend mentioned that she grew kohlrabi this year. I mentioned that I’d never had it and _poof_ some showed up later that day on our porch. > > Anyone know anything about this weird veggie? Peel, cut it into medium thick slices, raw, sprinkle with salt, and eat on a piece of buttered pumpernickel bread. Yum, yum, yum. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/6 "2015-10-27T13:48:34Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > Peel, cut it into medium thick slices, raw, sprinkle with salt, and eat on a piece of buttered pumpernickel bread. Ooooo, I LIKE the sandwich idea! I’ve seen Hungarian and other central European recipes for kohlrabi soup, but never tried it. Like everyone says: peel, slice, salt, eat as a snack or appetizer, like radishes. Dipping in hummus is good, too. ---
**Author:** ![araminty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5e925/32.png) [@araminty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/araminty)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/7 "2015-10-27T15:07:47Z")
I like it roasted hot, and/or blended up for soup. It tastes a bit like the stalks of broccoli. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/8 "2015-10-27T15:11:19Z")
I’ll peel and cut up the round bit and use like broccoli in things like stir fry or as a cooked side dish. I’ve eaten the leaves, too - remove stems and ribs and treat like turnip/collard/etc. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/9 "2015-10-27T15:11:36Z")
Haven’t had it in years, but grew it in our family garden as a kid. As I recall, we usually peeled, sliced or chunked it and steamed or roasted it. I’d say, “treat it like a weird looking turnip,” but I find most people these days don’t know what to do with a turnip, either! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Raygun99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Raygun99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raygun99)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/10 "2015-10-27T16:02:05Z")
It’s good as coleslaw, or in a salad raw as a radish substitute. ---
**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/11 "2015-10-27T17:01:27Z")
Kohlrabi was a minor curse of my childhood. Dad grew it in the garden so my mom cooked it. I did not like it very much. ---
**Author:** ![Sandwood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee59a6/32.png) [@Sandwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sandwood)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/12 "2015-10-27T23:18:56Z")
Baked kohlrabi fries (with ketchup or other dip of your choice) are surprisingly good! It’s a rather versatile vegetables because it can be eaten raw, boiled, fried or baked. All parts of the plant are edible. The kohlrabi skin is usually removed because it’s sort of tough and rubbery. I’ve successfully used the skin of smaller kohlrabis (when it’s still tender enough to easily cut into matchsticks with a knife) along with the leaf ribs to make [kinpira](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinpira), though you may need to boil that for a little longer than other vegetables. As was mentioned by others, the leaves are perfectly edible too, though they don’t have a lot of flavour - just somewhat cabbage-y - and may need a bit of boiling too. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/13 "2015-10-27T23:49:26Z")
My mom would peel them, cut them up and serve them to us to eat raw. They were great. Not a lot of flavor but the crunch was nice. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2015, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/14 "2015-10-27T23:52:15Z")
Well, I have two of them. Tonight I sliced “chips” and made humus. I’ll serve that with a turkey-ham loaf that’s in the oven now. Our African Grey had a few pieces and loved it! Tomorrow I’m either making baked “French fries” or maybe mashed kohlrabi/potatoes. I have peeled/cored apples in the crockpot now, so I’ll be serving applesauce as a side tomorrow. ETA: to give the meal a bit of color I sliced up a red bell pepper to go with the humus also. Thanks to everyone!! ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2015, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/15 "2015-10-28T06:18:40Z")
From a thread a few years ago, **Colibri** fights our ignorance about the species of these things: > [@Educate me on one of the finer points of botany, please (Brussels sprouts)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-on-one-of-the-finer-points-of-botany-please-brussels-sprouts/658289/4): > > The cabbage _Brassica oleracea_ has a very large number of distinct cultivars. Cabbage, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, kale, collard greens, cauliflower, and kohlrabi all belong to the same botanical species. Numerous subsequent posters in that thread expressed surprise to learn that these are all just cultivars of one species. > [@Educate me on one of the finer points of botany, please (Brussels sprouts)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-on-one-of-the-finer-points-of-botany-please-brussels-sprouts/658289/5): > > I always thought Kohlrabi was a medieval-era Jewish Talmudic scholar/philosopher. ---
**Author:** ![Uniqueorn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uniqueorn/32/2807_2.png) [@Uniqueorn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uniqueorn)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2015, 8:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/16 "2015-10-28T08:27:25Z")
Interesting. My partner and I were just discussing what kohlrabi is called in English and were given the term “turnip cabbage” by a website. Anyway, raw is the only way either of us would be willing to eat it, as cooked kohlrabi should only be used to punish children. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2015, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/17 "2015-10-28T13:14:44Z")
> [@Uniqueorn](#): > > Interesting. My partner and I were just discussing what kohlrabi is called in English and were given the term “turnip cabbage” by a website. Anyway, raw is the only way either of us would be willing to eat it, as cooked kohlrabi should only be used to punish children. It’s called “kohlrabi” in English. Has been since the early 19th century when we stole it from the Italians by way of German. In Italian, it’s “cavoli rape”. ---
**Author:** ![araminty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5e925/32.png) [@araminty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/araminty)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2015, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/18 "2015-10-28T17:05:39Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Well, I have two of them. Tonight I sliced “chips” and made humus. I’ll serve that with a turkey-ham loaf that’s in the oven now. You threw it in the compost pile? 🙂 > **[Humus vs. hummus](https://grammarist.com/spelling/humus-hummus/)** > > Hummus: a creamy, chickpea-based dip. Humus: fully decomposed organic matter used in gardening. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2015, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/19 "2015-10-28T17:39:03Z")
> [@araminty](#): > > You threw it in the compost pile? 🙂 > > [Humus vs. hummus](http://grammarist.com/spelling/humus-hummus/) Arrrgh! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2015, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kohlrabi/735863/20 "2015-10-28T21:34:58Z")
I first heard it in an episode of _Fraggle Rock_ back in the 80s (the one where Red discovers the Murkels). For years I had no idea it was a real plant, it just sounded like a Henson-esque made-up word…