How can turnips be made to taste less bitter?

[Teaching3bears]

I roast turnips with other vegetables and sometimes put them in stews but I only use a little at a time and chop them somewhat small because I find they taste pretty bad.  What can be done to make them taste better?  Is there something magic that can be done to turnips?

[Liz CA]

Perhaps try what I do with eggplant. Peel and slice and put salt on the slices. Then rinse salt off after about 15 min and proceed as planned.

 

ETA: Just remembered: Someone I know boils them very soft and mashes them like potatoes and seasons them liberally. May be worth a try.

Edited January 22, 2019 by Liz CA

[itsheresomewhere]

I like mixing them with mashed sweet potatoes or regular potatoes.  Cook both your preferred why and mash together.  

 

[1GirlTwinBoys]

Sprinkle a little sugar and mix in.  My mom made them this way when I was growing up and they were delicious!

[MercyA]

This thread reminds me of the picture book Down, Down the Mountain. It made turnips sound so good! :) Does anyone else remember it?

p.s. Hope things are going better for you this week, Teaching3bears. Hugs to you.

Edited January 22, 2019 by MercyA

[Chris in VA]

My mom used to mash carrots and rutabaga together with butter and a little milk. I found it disgusting, but we had it every Thanksgiving. Rutas are a little sweeter than turnips (or so I'm told) but you could probably combine turnips with carrots this way. 

[Lizzie in Ma]

We mash them with carrots.

[Scarlett]

I roast them and we love them.  So I am no help. 

[marbel]

8 minutes ago, Scarlett said:

I roast them and we love them.  So I am no help. 

Same here. I am reading this thinking, they're bitter?  People add sugar?  I do think some people like bitter or sharp tastes more than others do. 

[KungFuPanda]

I tend to supertaste some bitter flavors to the point where coffee and beer are completely unpalatable. Brussels sprouts are too. Turnips don’t even hit the edge for me. I don’t think of them as a bitter food. However, if you’re not a picky eater, there’s no harm in eliminating an occasional offensive food from your diet. 

My other answer is butter and salt.😬

[Tanaqui]

Are you eating very large, old turnips? You mind find smaller ones more palatable.

[mathnerd]

I agree with tanaqui. Make sure that you buy young, smaller, fresher turnips. One test is to see how easy it is to slice them. If they give in easily while slicing, they are not bitter. I roast them like I roast potatoes.

[J-rap]

I like them, but generally don't eat them alone.  I'll mix them with potatoes or parsnips or carrots or all three...  Together it's great!  Roasted or in a stew, or sometimes all mashed together.

[Lecka]

Getting smaller ones will help.  I didn’t know this and I cooked a larger turnip once, and it was really not good.  I think it was all thrown away.  

I think that if the greens are attached then that is a really good sign, but I don’t often see them that way.  My mom will get them with greens attached anytime she sees them for a reasonable price.  

[Storygirl]

I don't eat turnips. I never had them growing up, and so it's not a vegetable that I cook with. Is there a reason you must eat them? If you don't like them, why not just eat other veggies instead?