November’s Root Veg Round Up

There’s a whole lot of root veg in season right now, from the run of the mill to the lesser-known varieties. We’re rooting for roots in this essential round up so you can make the most of what’s on offer.

When it comes to versatile root veg, you can’t beat beets. Roasted or pickled, hot or cold, fry them in fritters or bake them in a cake. That’s one useful root. Pass up the salad and try them sweet and sour with chargrilled mackerel for a change.

Celeriac

This knobbly round root tastes a bit like nutty celery and, once peeled, can be served raw in salads, mashed, or chopped and added to slow-cooked dishes. It also makes an interesting alternative to pasta – try celeriac ribbons with puttanesca sauce, an easy one-pan meal.

We’ve been using horseradish’s peppery roots as the perfect beef partner for years. While it’s in season, make your own sauce from scratch then dollop it on this sensational Reuben sandwich.

Jerusalem artichoke

Not an artichoke and not from Jerusalem, no wonder this veg causes some confusion. Pale brown and knobbly, it could easily be mistaken for ginger (link to ginger blog). It taste sweet and nutty and is absolutely cracking in this roast chicken dish.

Hands up if roasted parsnips are your favourite bit of Sunday lunch? Right now, these sweet and moreish veg are extra tasty so pile your plate high with these ultimate honey flavoured parsnips.

Salsify

Salsi-what now? It’s also known as the oyster plant as it tastes a little like them when cooked. Discover this parsnip-shaped, beige-skinned root veggie by peeling then boiling or mashing them, or use them in soups and stews. This recipe serves them up with braised beef short ribs and a couple of other seasonal roots from this round up.

Swede (neeps if you’re in Scotland, rutabaga if you’re in the US) has a sweet and earthy flavour that’s most often enjoyed as mash. But we’re not here to teach you to make mash, we’re here to wow you with new ways to savour this cheap ‘n cheerful veggie, like this taste bud-tingling roots manoeuvre curry.

We have a fully loaded blog on this super root veg here, (which includes loads of yummy recipes and ideas). But because they’re so darn delicious, we’ll just share these easy sweet potato wedges with you now.

Winter turnips (as opposed to baby turnips which are around in June and July) are a peppery treat packed with vitamin C. They’re perfect for mash, stews, soups and pickles, but this blue cheese gratin recipe is a real turnip for the books.

So now we’ve got to the root of what’s in season this November, it’s time for you to dig in…