What to do with Kohlrabi

Kohlrabi's always been one of those vegetables that I've not been sure about. It looks kind of exotic, with its purple and white stripes, but it's a pretty basic root vegetable, as likely to be used to feed livestock as end up on your plate in its own right. We used to wander past the ranks of them displayed at the market, not quite sure if it would just end up sitting in the fridge too long and ending up in the compost. Happily, it's very simple to use - just grate it or slice it very thinly and it makes a great addition to a sandwich or a salad. This works best with smaller specimens like the ones that are available at the moment - when they get bigger later in the year the best place for them is in a nice stew or casserole.

A great combination is thickly sliced ham, grated kohlrabi and English mustard. The kohlrabi has a nice crunch and a delicious peppery flavour. Especially nice on sourdough or a light rye loaf.