Fennel and Kohlrabi Salad with Lemon Caper Dressing

I was looking for something to do with my kohlrabi and I found this recipe on the internet. I couldn't believe that it had 3 ingredients that I had in my box. Also, I was surprised that you can just eat kohlrabi raw. It didn't seem possible. But, it is possible and kohlrabi is good raw and thinly sliced.

This salad is easy to prepare. The kohlrabi and and fennel are thinly sliced (a mandolin would work well) and put in cold water with a bit of lemon juice.

Then you add the arugula and lemon caper dressing and that is it.

So, for those of you who still have some kohlrabi, fennel and arugula left in your CSA box from this week or for anyone looking for a new salad idea I would highly recommend this recipe.

This salad looks good and tastes good. It a special occasion salad but easy enough to make any night of the week. Enjoy!

Fennel and Kohlrabi Salad with Lemon Caper Dressing

Food Stories Blog

Ingredients

1 medium kohlrabi

1 medium fennel bulb

1 bunch of arugula

1 large handful of capers

The juice of 1 large lemon plus more for crisping the fennel

Black pepper

Sea salt

1 heaped teaspoon of wholegrain mustard

Extra virgin olive oil

1. Slice the fennel as thinly as you can and add to a bowl of cold water and lemon juice. Slice the kohlrabi and then pare strips off each slice with a vegetable peeler. Add to the bowl with the fennel.

2. In another small bowl, crush the garlic with a generous pinch of sea salt in a pestle and mortar. Or, just crush with the back of a large knife. Add some black pepper and a heaped teaspoon of whole grain mustard. Stir together. Add the juice of 1 lemon, the capers and twice the amount of olive oil. Whisk to emulsify.

3. Drain the water from the fennel and kohlrabi and place with the arugula in a bowl. Add the dressing to lightly coat. You may have some extra dressing. This can be kept in the refrigerator covered for a few days.

Purple Kohlrabi Chips

If there is life on Mars, I could definitely see Martian farmers harvesting kohlrabi. This vegetable is very sci fi. It also brings fear into the hearts of many potential CSA-joiners or to people who have joined a CSA. My god, they think to themselves, what is that thing in my box? Can I eat this weird creature?

CSA girl rule #1: When in doubt make chips. If you have a nice hearty root vegetable in your box and you're not sure what to do make chips. Get out the mandolin, slice thinly, sprinkle with olive oil and salt, and bake on high heat for awhile. This formula has not failed me yet. If you have a bunch of random root vegetables (beets, kohlrabi, potatoes, turnips, etc.) mix it up. It will look great and taste even better.

Equipment Note: I am not an advocate of buying a bunch of kitchen gadgets; but, a mandolin is a great investment. It doesn't take up much space in your kitchen and you can buy a good mandolin for a reasonable price. I use the Benriner Japanese mandolin.

Kohlrabi Chips

Ingredients:

Kohlrabi, peeled and thinly sliced

Olive Oil

Salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Toss kohlrabi with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place on a cooking sheet and do not overlap. Cook for 8 minutes until crisp and brown around the edges. If not done in 8 minutes, put in oven and check every 2-3 minutes to see if done. Add a bit more salt after taking chips out of the oven.