Curry Turnip Noodle Soup

Turnips are abundant this time of year, and I have been pickling them and making them into curries.  I first got inspired to make curried turnips a few years ago when my mom made a sambhar with turnips.  At first I did not appreciate the sharp nasal tang of the turnips with the sambhar, but the taste stuck with me, and this fall, I experimented with making my own curried turnips.  So good!  Gently braising the turnips brings out their sweetness, and so the final product is sharp and sweet and spicy and salty.  I love curry noodle soups, so I thought this was a chance to see if it would all work together. 

It did!  This is a fusion recipe that brings together East Asian, Indian, and turnip tastes into a hot bowl of yum.

Curry Turnip Noodle Soup

Makes 2 big bowls of soup

Takes 30 minutes

1 bunch turnips, quartered (stems and leaves cleaned and saved)

1 tsp. curry powder (I use sambhar powder)

1 small onion, sliced

1 clove garlic, sliced

pepper

salt

spaghetti (I had some opened already!  any noodles you like will be fine - rice noodles, soba, udon, etc)

Start a pot of salted water for the noodles.

In another pot, saute onion and garlic on medium high heat.  When they've softened, add turnips and brown, taking care to ensure they don't burn.  Then add sambhar powder and pepper, and saute until the sambhar powder is very fragrant, about 2 minutes.

Add 1/2 cup of water, turn the heat down, cover and simmer for 25 minutes or until turnips are soft, but still maintaining their shape.

Meanwhile, cook noodles in pot of already started salted water according to package directions.  For the last minute of cooking add the cleaned turnip greens.  When finished, drain, reserving 2 cups of the pasta water.  Equally divide the noodles and greens between two bowls.

When the turnips are soft, add the pasta water and check for salt.  Add more sambhar powder if necessary.  Simmer for 5 minutes.  When you are happy with the taste, pour the turnips and their broth over the noodles and greens in the bowls.  Happy slurping!

Turnip kimchi

I was very excited to get the September Food & Wine, which highlighted recipes by and features about chefs in the South.  One of the chefs made Korean-inspired dishes in Raleigh, and had a couple of recipes for veggie-friendly little pickles.

At the farmers market they've had garlic scrapes and those red onions that come with fat stems.  There's also turnips!  I've been loving turnips lately, so I decided to try the kimchi.  I love every variety of pickled and fermented thing, and this kimchi was salty and and had that great nose feeling that turnips give.  It wasn't spicy enough though--the next time I make it, I'm going for two serranos!

Turnip Kimchi

adapted from a recipe by Andrea Reusing in Food & Wine

Takes 2 days, but only 30 minutes of work

Makes 1 liter jar of turnips

Day 1

1 bunch turnips, trimmed and halved

1 Tbsp + 1/2 tsp kosher salt

4 cups water

Day 2

1 Tbsp + 1/2 tsp kosher salt

4 cups water

3 garlic scrapes

2 small onions, quartered (the kind that still have their stems are great for this--throw the stems in too)

1/4 inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced

1 serrano chile, halved lengthwise

In a large jar, dissolve 1 Tbsp + 1/2 tsp of salt in 4 cups of water (stir a lot).  When completely dissolved, add turnips.  Cover and let sit overnight.

Drain and rinse the turnips and wash out the jar.  Dissolve the rest of the salt (1 Tbsp. + 1/2 tsp salt) in 4 cups of water in a large bowl.  Place the turnips, the garlic scrapes, the onions, ginger and chile in the jar.  Arrange artistically if you must.  Cover with the brine and  let sit 24 hours.  Enjoy!

Will keep for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.