Unconventional Greens
/More time at home has led many into the kitchen. With people cooking now more than ever your broccoli and asparagus might be getting boring. Here are some different vegetables to try. Some you may have heard of some maybe not!
For nutrition facts and recipes click on the titles below.
1. Bok choy
Bok Choy, also known as Chinese cabbage, is a versatile vegetable with tender leaves and a crisp stalk. It goes well with almost any Asian style dish and can be enjoyed sauteed, grilled, or roasted. Roasting the vegetable will bring out a slightly nuttier taste. Pairs well with garlic, ginger and soy sauce.
Lacinato Kale, Tuscan kale, or Dino Kale is the heirloom variety of this trendy vegetable. It’s dark greenish, bluish, blackish, bumpy, crinkly leaves are reminiscent of Jurassic Park. You would think with their large leaves that they would make the perfect sized kale chip but the thick stems and dense foliage can prove challenging dry out enough moisture to crisp up. I prefer them sauteed or used as a wrap.
3. Broccolini
Broccolini, or baby broccoli, actually isn’t broccoli but a cross-breed of broccoli and a Chinese variety called gai lan. This hybrid version is softer and milder than its cruciferous cousin and pairs well with just about anything.
4. Swiss chard
Looking for an Instagram worthy plate? Look no further than swiss chard. Long praised by gardeners for its ease to grow and resiliency, the bright hues of red contrasted with forest green leaves is enough to glam up any dish. Not quite as soft as spinach but not quite as hearty as kale, the approach to cooking swiss chard might call in some creativity. The stems (or ribs) are often called to be separated from the leaf and chopped smaller to hasten cooking. Account for this vegetable’s bitter flavor by pairing with an acid like a lemon.
5. Kohlrabi
Also known as German turnip, this alien looking vegetable comes in a variety of colors. It’s taste and texture resemble broccoli stems. It is recommended that its rough skin should be peeled to reveal the sweeter meat inside. It’s delicious when chopped and thrown into a salad or slaw raw but can also be enjoyed roasted.
Don’t limit yourself to the familiar. Pick up that weird looking vegetable (I dare you to try kohlrabi) and google a new recipe. There is a whole new world at your chopping block.