Chinese Radish

This mildly flavoured and quite distinct radish is common found in East Asian dishes such a soups and stews.  They can be found in various colors ranging from white to dark green and everything in between.  They are usually 8-14 inches in length and vary on size as well.  

For soups, these are amazing!  They bring a distinct sweet taste to the soup, especially when combined with carrots and corn (which are their common partners in crime!).  They soften very nicely in soups and are often eaten as part of the meal.  They are considered cooling ingredients and often used in soups to help cool the body and relieve heatiness, most often found in summer and autumn soups.  Due to their flavours, they are also amazing for vegetarian soup!

How do I prepare it?

To check freshness of green radishes, check firmness.  They should be relatively hard and firm to touch as you squeeze them.  This is a sign of fresh green radish.  They do have really good storage life in the fridge though, storing quite well for up to a few weeks, but check firmness before you buy or use.

To prepare them, I’ll usually wash and then peel the skin (as they can be quite hard to eat and don’t soften during boiling).  Cut into the size that you wish.  I tend to have quartered 1-inch slices for medium to long boil soups and then cubed for quicker boils, just to ensure that they are completely soft in the soup.

These legumes are amazing because they don’t disintegrate, holding the same consistency as carrots, which make them great partners in soups!

Any precautions?

• As they are cooling, be sure to balance this with the right conditions of your body and season, you can throw in a few slices of ginger to increase the yang in the soup