Vincent Bronson

Turnips Variety Guide for Novice Vincent Bronson

Turnips (Brassica rapa) are vegetables grown in cool conditions. Most turnip plants have roundish or conical lower stems and grow partly underground. The turnip typically has white skin, but top parts exposed to the sun can turn purplish, red, or green. Most have entirely white flesh, but they can be pale yellow or streaked with red. First called napus by early Greeks and Romans, the name became nepe; some English and Scottish people still call turnips neeps. Laster, when paired with "turn" (for round), they gradually became called turnips. In England they are known as swedes, from "Swedish turnip" - the common name that also refers to the larger rutabaga (Brassica napobrassica), a cross between turnips and cabbage that is thought to have originated in Scandinavia. Ancient Greeks and Romans valued turnips highly for their fast, easy production and ability to be left in the ground for long periods, which helped guard against famine. Turnips were the most staple cool-weather crop before being replaced by potatoes, and were taken to America by English settlers in the 1620s. The swollen, zesty-flavored, low-calorie root of a turnip is very high in fiber, Vitamins A and C, and the same cancer-fighting compounds found in cabbage and broccoli. They are eaten raw, stewed, roasted, boiled, and mashed, often with other root crops. Turnip leaves or greens are highin vitamins A, B, C, and K, folate, iron, calcium, and thiamine, and are cooked and eaten like spinach or kale. The somewhat pungent, radish-like flavor of turnips turns mild during cooking. However, like Brussels sprouts they contain an acrid-tasting substance (cyanoglucoside) which makes them unpalatable to people who are genetically more sensitive to bitter flavors; no amount of cooking or butter will make them edible to some people. Standard turnip varieties include Purple Top, Just Right, Royal Globe, Tokyo Express, Market Express, Shogoin, and Hakurei. Alltop, Topper, and Seven Top are grown mostly for their tops.