As we move towards the final week of summer and the formal start of autumn, radishes are out in the markets here in southeastern Michigan in great abundance. This easy-to-make recipe is a really great way to bring them to the table in a way that makes them the star rather than just one more ingredient in a salad. I’m convinced that the radish—along with celery—is one of the more underappreciated pieces of produce in America. Rather than leaving radishes as an afterthought, we can actually start seeking them out because they’re so special.
A few months back, I shared a wonderful appetizer with thick slices of fresh radishes, a generous bit of cultured butter, and a sprinkling of fleur de sel (the most delicate sea salt, the first salt to form at the top of the salt ponds), all laid on top of slices of the Bakehouse’s Country Miche bread. In the U.S., this is largely how most radishes were eaten up until a century ago, and they were mostly eaten for breakfast! It is a lovely way to start the day!
The increase in the number of farms growing heirloom varieties in the U.S. has made far more interesting types of radishes available to us than what we would have had when I was a kid. Really, though, this is just a return to what once was. Culinary historian David Shields describes what the radish world was like back in the 19th-century day:
Glass house gardeners surrounding American cities cultivated several kinds of radish in the early nineteenth century. A list from “The Kitchen Gardener’s Instructor of 1847” gives a sense of the varieties: Long Scarlet, Long Purple, Scarlet Pear-Shaped, Scarlet Turnip, White Turnip-rooted, Long White Naples, Purple Turnip, Yellow Turnip, White Spanish, Black Spanish. Back in that era, all butter would have still been the old-school cultured butter of the sort we’re getting from the kind crew at Vermont Creamery! Speaking of which, this is about another wonderful way to put radishes and butter together—I learned it from longtime friend Molly Stevens’ recipe for Butter Glazed Radishes and Salt in her beautiful book, All About Braising.
Rather than the sharp, spicy vibrancy of just-cut radishes, this dish of braised radishes delivers soft succulence. Trim a couple bunches of fresh radishes, if they’re big, cut ’em in half. Add a good bit of butter, some water (or stock if you like), and a bit of sea salt. Bring to a boil, then cover, reduce the heat, and simmer for about 25 minutes or so, till the radishes are tender. Take the lid off and keep cooking for another five to ten minutes so the liquid evaporates, and the radishes are left coated with a lovely bit of butter. It’s so easy and so good! The gentle spice of the braised radish and the richness of the butter meld beautifully into one delicious dish! If you want to do the braised radishes as a main course, consider serving it on a bed of sautéed spinach and maybe crumble a bit of feta on top. Or make it for breakfast with some soft scrambled eggs alongside.
