Pan Roasted Kohlrabi with Radishes or Turnips
Caramelized and mellow, with a hint of smokey bacon, Pan Roasted Kohlrabi and Radishes is quick, easy, and won’t heat up the kitchen!
Ages ago, kohlrabi was the darling of the diet crowd. Peel it, slice it, and munch away your hunger.
The broccoli cousin, whose German-based name means “cabbage turnip”, came by its diet fame honestly. Per Mercola Food Facts, “Kohlrabi is rich in vitamins A, C and K, as well as B-vitamins. It also contains copper, manganese, iron, potassium, dietary fiber and calcium, and is rich in antioxidant compounds like phytochemicals and carotenes…” In fact a serving of raw kohlrabi has over 100% of you vitamin C for the day (cooking will degrade this some).
Cutting up kohlrabi
Happily, both of my CSAs went crazy with kohlrabi. Well maybe a little too crazy–how many kohlrabi sticks can one family eat!
Beyond Kohlrabi Sticks
The first excess arrivals were cut up into cubes for beef stew. When I make soup for the freezer, I like to substitute kohlrabi (or turnips) for potatoes because they freeze so much better.
But I clearly needed an additional, easier, solution. 
I have oven roasted the similarly crunchy radishes and salad turnips before. They mellow out and disappear fast among the golden carrots and caramelized cauliflower. So I decided to try this with kohlrabi, but this time by pan roasting.
‘Cause summer means never turning on the oven if you don’t have to.
Pan roast!
I decided to stack the deck even more by adding bacon. Everything’s better with bacon, right? Then I tossed in a few radishes for good measure. The extra color was pretty, and it meant another bag departed the veggie drawer.
Yup, only the end of July and I’m losing the CSA vegetable storage wars.
The pan roasting was quick and easy. And the pan roasted kohlrabi and radishes were delicious–beautifully caramelized with a hint of smoke from the bacon. Before long, they were history.
I guess it speaks to the value of always trying something new.
Because who’d have thought you’d get so much flavor from a crunchy diet food! 
Pan Roasted Kohlrabi with Radishes or Turnips
Ingredients
- 2 kohlrabi bulbs peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
- 6-12 radishes or salad turnips trimmed and cut in bite-sized pieces
- 4 slices bacon see note
- salt pepper to taste
- chopped parsley for garnish optional
Instructions
- Fry the bacon until crisp (see note). Remove the bacon and reserve. Pour off some of the bacon grease, leaving a couple tablespoons in the pan for the pan roasting.
Toss the vegetable pieces in the bacon fat until well coated. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place the pan on medium to medium high and cook, stirring occasionally until golden brown, about 15 minutes.
Remove vegetables to a serving bowl. Crumble the reserved bacon and sprinkle on top. Add chopped parsley if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
I made this today and it’s so easy and tasty! I will definitely make it again and recommend it to people!
Yes to this recipe, I’m a real vegetable girl and this is a new one to try.
I am so determined to do a good job finishing my CSA veggies this year Karen!
Two of our favorite root vegetables – and neither ever gets its due… Add bacon? Perfection!
Yes, truly underrated David! And bacon, well let’s just say those little convenience packages of pre-cooked bacon are amazing!
I was brought up with Kohlrabi in Germany and I love it. I am happy to add a new Kohlrabi recipe to the ones I already have. It looks delicious. If you are looking for different recipes check out my website.
Will do!