Much Ado about Daikon

What to do with Daikon Radishes? I've been pleasantly surprised by how versatile they can be. But before I get ahead of myself... what are they? Well, they look kinda like an albino carrot. I was worried by the name "radish" since radishes are not my favorite. In my boxes I've had some that are long and thin, very carrot like. And some that are a bit bigger, a bit more rounded and fatter. In my experience, the carrot-like ones have tasted very mild and almost like a carrot, with almost no radishness to them. The bigger, fatter ones had a familiar mild radish flavor. However, the flavor was slight without the heat of their red globe-like cousins. I had no "bleh" factor when eating them.

*TIP* Try 'em before you cook 'em! Try them raw before you decide how to use them. Peel them, cut off the ends, and sample a bit. Peeling them is especially good to avoid some spicy and bitter notes in the radish. If they are very mild steaming is a great way to go. If they're spicier (and you don't like spicy) baking can be a great way to draw out the sweetness and minimize spiciness.

So what to do with these guys? For our 11 month old, I choose the milder flavored daikons, diced them and steamed them until very tender. I actually snack on them like this too. I enjoy them plain, without seasoning. The mild flavor goes down easy. I imagine for the rest of the family, the mild daikons would be super yummy tossed with a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar. But really, they're tasty as-is. 

For the slightly spicy ones, they are hidden wonderfully in oatbars. The combo of baking them and adding ingredients with mild and sweet flavors work well. For my picky preschooler, I add beets to make these "pink" oatmeal bars. (What 3 1/2 year-old princess-loving girl would deny a pink treat?!)

Sneaky Pinky Oat Bars (With Daikon Radish & Beets)

Ingredients:

2 cups rolled oats , uncooked

1 cup flour (we use whole wheat) 

1 cup orange juice

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup peeled grated mild daikon radish

1 beet (finely julienned, grated, or pureed)

Butter, oil, or cooking spray for greasing pan

(Optional, honey or agave to trickle over bars)

*For the newer eater, you may want to finely grate or puree ingredients.

*Keep in mind that the beet juice can stain!

Directions:

1 Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2 Generously grease a 9 x 13 inch pan, or two 8 inch by 8 inch pans. I like to use butter.

3 Combine all ingredients in bowl and mix well.

4 The mixture should be moist enough to form a ball, without extra liquid. If too dry add a bit of water or orange juice

5 Put mixture in prepared pans and spread evenly.

       (Optional - drizzle with honey or agave for extra sweetness)

6 Bake for 30 minutes.

7 Remove from oven and cut into squares while still hot.

8 Wait until the bars cool before trying to remove them from the pan.

*Try these slightly warmed with almond or peanut butter, yuuuum!

Steamed Daikon Radish & Sweet Potato

First, taste test your daikon radish to test for peppery flavor. The long-thin ones are often very mild tasting with no peppery zing familiar to radishes.

First prepare the radishes, by gently washing and peeling. Trim off both ends of the radish. Cut into small bite-size chunks. Steam until very tender (in my Baby Brezza, this takes about 15 mins). Test a piece by seeing if it will mash easily with a fork. While these are good all by themselves, I like to serve them along with sweet potato or apple.