Anyone who has ever been to France will have noticed that French people love small pink radishes. Except in the depths of winter they are piled high at the markets. French consumers describe them as cool, crunchy, thirst quenching and a bit spicy. They are very much a feature of spring salads here and liven up the palate after winter.
Organic radishes at les Jardins Vergers de la Petite Rabaudière last week.
They've been cultivated for at least 4000 years. Charlemagne was a big fan and recommended that one cultivate them in abundance. They are indeed very easy to grow, and very prolific. You can grow them almost year round, and they take about a month from sowing the seed to harvesting. The best are grown between March and June, and this year they are now in full swing at our local organic market garden, les Jardins Vergers de la Petite Rabaudière. The worker I spoke to said they are particularly good this year too.
Organic radishes being washed at Les Jardins Vergers de La Petite Rabaudière last week.
These little pink radishes come in a number of guises. They can be more or less spicy, spherical or long, pink all over or bicoloured pink and white. The larger ones grown in the summer and autumn are hotter, and they are prone to splitting or being hollow and fibrous. If they go soft it means they are not fresh. When you are buying, choose small, hard, vividly coloured radishes, with green leaves that are not showing any sign of wilting or rotting. And don't discard those leaves -- use them in soup!
The central and western Loire Valley, from Orléans to the Atlantic coast is where most French radishes are grown commercially. So living where I do I have access to the freshest and best. Shame I'm not really all that fond of round radishes. I prefer daikon, and only if it's pickled...
Organic radishes at Les Jardins Vergers de La Petite Rabaudière.
France produces nearly 50 thousand tonnes of pink radishes a year, second only to Germany in Europe. French people consume on average 1.5 kilograms each per year of pink radishes.
Pink radishes are mostly water, so they aren't very calorific. They are a good source of fibre, Vitamin C, folic acid (Vitamin B9), potassium and polyphenols (antioxydants).
Fabrice Lecomte with his radishes from Villandry at Loches market (photo from our archive).
Ideally, eat them the day you buy them or the next day, while they are as firm and crunchy as possible. They will keep in the fridge in a perforated plastic bag for a week maximum. If they turn out to be spicier than you would like, then pickle them.
To prepare them cut the leaves off so that a tuft of stems remains. Pinch off the hair root at the other end. Use a knife to scrape off any bits that look unappetising. Wash in cold water, scrub with a brush if necessary, drain and dry. Eat with gusto.
Mostly they are eaten with a pinch of salt, a dab of butter and some good bread, but they can be enjoyed in other simple dishes.
- chop finely and add to a creamy dressing for salad greens.
- chop roughly and add to potato salad.
- use instead of cucumber to make a different version of tzatziki.
- fry in butter with thyme and serve with chicken.
The black winter radish and the white daikon are also popular in France.
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