RADISH
Radish (Raphanus sativus) is a root vegetable that can be quite easily grown in your own garden, as long as your soil is rich and fertile. Radish has its best season in the spring and in the fall, while the hot summers are not very good for the growth and taste of this vegetable. Radish is eaten raw, and can be easily incorporated into salads, sandwiches or some dishes that need some extra pungency with a refreshing flavor. Radish gives a lot of vitamin C and folic acid, but it is also quite rich in other minerals and vitamins. Obviously it is not a very calory dense vegetable, and it is good for all people who are on diet. Radish is closely related to turnip.
There are some different types of radishes, and they differ in color and shape, and also in growth time. The typical radish is about 2 cm/1 inch in diameter, round and colored red and white. However there also exist black, white, and even more colorful radishes, some of them reaching sizes of 10 cm/4 in.
If you want to grow radishes in your garden, make sure to do it in sunny places with cool soil. Spring and fall in temperate climates are therefore perfect for this purpose. Hot summers will just make the radishes woody and awful. The easy variety to grow is the one called Champion - red, not too big, round, and just a very good choice. Just purchase the seeds from your vendor and plant them in soil at a depth of about 15 cm/6 in. Make sure the soil is rich, and free from stones or other obstacles. It is good to prepare the soil with some of your fertilizers before you actually seed the radish seeds. Once the radishes are mature pick them up directly and consume - they will not get better waiting there in the soil. It is better to make frequent seedings from time to time to ensure a constant supply of radishes.
The history of radishes is pretty simple. They were cultivated in the ancient Greece and Rome already 2,000 years ago, but their real origin is doubtful. Since they belong to the family of other pungent plants, it is possible that it came to life in the areas where these species also initially grew, probably in West Asia.
When buying radish, choose the ones that are firm, fresh, and have unwilted green stems. Avoid any radishes with blemishes, strange spots or mold. Before you eat them it is good to rinse them with water. That's about it - then you can eat them whole or cut them into slices.
The good food pairings for this pungent vegetable are quite simple and straightforward: some salt will contrast and smooth out the pungency, and some acidic vinegar will add another dimension to the flavor. To complement radishes with some other ingredients you can add lemon, parsley, chives, or some salad. Radish is good with many dishes, especially the ones that need that extra peppery and fresh topping. If you don't want too much of this typical pungent taste you can peel the skin (this is the place where a special enzyme converts some molecules into the peppery mustard oil). You can also cook them for that matter, something that will make some extra sweetness emerge in the radishes.