Mashed Turnips

Mashed turnips are the perfect low-carb option; you can enjoy alternatives to traditional mashed potatoes. With a sweet, slightly nutty, smooth, and delicious side dish you can enjoy on weekends or holidays. 

 

In my opinion, turnips are the underrated root vegetable that usually gets less recognition and credits. Turnips don’t have the exact starch level of potatoes; that is why you don’t need to worry about over-mashing them to make them smooth and gluey. 

 

However, they do not have the same fluffy texture as traditional mashed potatoes, but they offer a pleasant, creamy texture which makes an excellent dish besides any roasted vegetables. 

Also check out, Vegan Mashed Sweet Potatoes, Mashed Taro, and Mashed Plantain.

Why Is This Recipe the Best? 

 

This mashed turnip recipe is a popular healthy alternative to mashed potatoes. It is becoming a popular side dish on weekend nights or holiday tables. 

 

• Mashed turnips are an excellent way to enjoy root vegetables like turnips on a holiday night. 
• They taste amazing, creamy, nutty, and savory, which pairs well with any variety of main dishes. 
• You can easily prepare this dish a couple of days ahead of time and reheat it in the microwave or oven before serving. 
• Lower carb vegetables such as turnips, cauliflower, and parsnips are cost-effective, available, and so versatile.   
• A delicious addition to your next dinner meal. It’s full of hearty texture, low in carbs, and all the flavors to keep your hunger at bay and health in line. 

Turnip Health Benefits

 

Vegetable turnips have a creamy white color with a purple top. Turnips are very tasty and nutritious, and they have low calories. Turnip is a very popular root vegetable that European people use alongside any staple food. Many people are not well-informed about turnips, and they mistake it as rutabaga. 

Are Turnips Good For You?

Because of its low calories, you can add it to any diet list. It has very important health benefits resulting from its nutrients. Here are some of the must-know turnip health benefits:

Relieves Intestinal Issues

People who follow a high fiber diet have a low risk of intestinal problems like diverticulitis. Turnips are rich in fiber, making them viable to include any diet. Any high-fiber food can prevent intestinal issues, but turnips are more efficient than most other fiber sources.

Decreases Blood Pressure

 

Turnips and other collard greens have dietary nitrates, providing multiple health benefits. One of the noticeable health benefits of dietary nitrates is decreasing blood pressure. Also, potassium present in turnips can help with reducing blood pressure. 

Lowers The Risk of Cancer

Any cruciferous vegetables such as cauliflower, turnips, and cabbage are known to have a lower risk of cancer. Turnips have protective effects against several cancers. The sulforaphane from turnips plays an essential part in cancer treatment.

Helps with Weight Loss and Digestion

 

High fiber compounds of turnips can increase the feeling of fullness. Additionally, they have low calories, making them an excellent choice for any diet. 

Improves Bone Health

 

Most of us know how important it is to maintain good bone health. Calcium from turnips can easily keep your bones healthy and ready for any task. Also, turnips will prevent bone-weakening diseases like osteoporosis.

Sleep and Mood

 

Turnip green contains choline, an essential nutrient that helps with sleep, muscle movement, learning, and memory. It can also build the structure of cellular membranes, help the transmission of nerve impulses, assist in the absorption of fat, and lower chronic inflammation. 

Do Turnips Make Me Gassy?

 

However, turnips can cause bloating and gas in your stomach. Turnips contain a non-digestible carbohydrate (trisaccharide) named raffinose which helps to prevent gas build-up in our intestines. It helps our body to free up trapped gas and lowers vegetable-related bloating, which is good for our health. Also, see

1. Turnip And Potato Soup
2. Turnip Greens

How to Select and Prepare Turnips? 

 

When purchasing turnips from the grocery shop, look for hard ones and avoid wrinkly bulbs. The skins need to be firm, and the top of the turnip bulb where the green was cut needs to be fresh, not discolored. 

 

We all know that turnips are root vegetables, and they are fibrous and woody. Avoid bigger turnips as the bigger ones are tough, woody, and bitter. Get the smaller size turnips. 

 

Turnips need to be peeled before you start cooking. Grab a vegetable peeler and trim from the top of the stem to the bottom of the root. Give it a peel and reveal the white flesh under the skin. 

Which Mashing Process Can Smooth Out the Mashed Turnips? 

 

You can easily process the prepared turnips with a hand masher or mixer. But I found a way to get the best and smoothest result: a food processor or blender. The turnips can turn into a smooth yummy mashed dish in a minute. But if you prefer a more rustic or smashed texture, you can always go with a hand masher.  

Ingredients

 

• Turnips, peeled, and chopped
• Vegan butter
• Coconut milk
• Salt to taste
• Scroll Down To The Recipe Card For The Full Ingredient List. 

 

How To Prepare Mashed Turnips?

 

• Bring turnip chunks to boil in a large pot of water. Cook until tender or until you can pierce them with a fork, about 15 minutes. 
• Drain turnips, place them into a large bowl, add vegan butter, coconut milk, and salt to taste, and mash using a potato masher or a handheld blender. 
• Blend to your desired consistency and serve immediately! 

Additional Notes and Recipe Variations

 

• If you don’t have a blender or immersion blender, you can mash the turnips by hand using a potato masher. 
• When using a blender, you may need to scrape down the sides once or twice until everything is incorporated. 
• Use a sharp knife or a fork to check the tenderness of turnips. If you insert the blade without any resistance, the turnips are perfectly cooked. 
• If you are not on a sugar-free diet, you can use a tablespoon of sugar to bring out the natural sweetness from the turnips. 
• If you come up with the greens with turnip, don’t throw them away. Clean and finely chop them into pieces and add them while mashing, or you can prepare other recipes. 
• If you want to enjoy creamer and slightly tangy mashed turnips, you can add a tablespoon of sour cream or plain greek yogurt with the vegan butter. 

 

What Does Mashed Turnip Taste Like?

Turnips are known for their bitter taste, and the large turnips have the most bitter taste. So if you want to enjoy a milder taste, you should have smaller turnips. 

 

Potatoes tend to have a bland texture, and cauliflower is also pretty tasteless. However, turnips have more flavors and slight bites, along with a tangy or sweet taste similar to celery. 

 

To see if you like them, you should give them a taste. It is the only way you will like to have them. I love to add them with my soups and stews because they don’t taste much different than potatoes.    

What to Serve with Mashed Turnips?

 

Anything with sauce and gravy will go well with the mashed turnip recipe. You can also have roasted vegetables and other vegan steaks recipes like, Smothered Cabbage, Tofu Steaks With Avocado Chimichurri will pair well beside mashed turnips. 

 

Is Turnip a Keto?

 

Turnips are known for their low net in carbs, fats, and it’s a whole food that is excellent for keto. If you compare mashed turnips with mashed potatoes, turnips will be your number one choice for keto. As potatoes are too high in carbs which are not even close to keto. 

 

Low in Net Carbs

 

• The net carbs of turnips are 3.06g of net carbs per 100g serving. 
• It is essential to have net carbs at least 20g to 30g per day to stay in ketosis.

Low in Fats

• Turnips are low in fats, so make sure you enjoy them with food that is enriched with healthy fats. 
• Your body needs healthy fat as energy, so it’s essential to have healthy fat sources in your daily diet. 
• You can prepare your mashed turnips with virgin olive oil, grass-fed butter, or vegan butter. 

Whole Food

 

• Whole foods are fully enriched with nutrients, and it’s a staple of a healthy keto diet. 
• If you eat whole food like turnips, you can get yourself out of the risk of heart disease, cancer, and type 2 diabetes. 
• You can easily lose weight and improve your healthy by eating whole food like a turnip on a keto diet. 

Minimally Processed 

 

• Turnips are minimally processed and free from any kinds of harmful ingredients like non-keto sweeteners, highly refined oils, and food additives. 

Risks for Having Turnips  

 

• People who are taking blood thinners like Coumadin or warfarin should restrain themselves from eating smaller or greater amounts of food that contains vitamin K because it might be harmful to their bodies. 
• Anyone who is suffering or at risk of cardiovascular disease should consult with their health physician before continuing with the high nitrate diet. 
• Improper turnip storage can accumulate bacteria that can transfer nitrate to nitrite, a potential risky substance that can contaminate the juice. 

Is Cooked Turnip Hard to Digest?

 

You can digest root vegetables like turnips, beetroot, sweet potatoes, carrots, and radishes in an hour.  

How to Remove Bitterness Out of Turnips? 

 

Sometimes you may taste a bit of bitterness from the turnips. First of all, you should choose smaller turnips and peel the skins. If you feel the mashed turnips taste bitter, try to add ghee. Ghee is clarified butter which means all the milk fat is removed from the butter. 

 

If you don’t have ghee with you, you can always substitute it with healthy fat to cut the bitterness. You can use vegan butter, vegetable shortening, or coconut oil to keep the creamy texture of mashed turnips. 

How to Thicken Mashed Turnips?

While turnips are root vegetables, they are not similar to potatoes in terms of consistency. Potatoes have 80% of water, while turnips contain 94% water, so it’s not common for mashed turnips to be lighter than mashed potatoes.  

 

It’s the nature of root vegetables, so don’t think it will act like a potato. To get rid of the watery consistency, 

 

• Let the prepared mashed turnips sit for a bit. The water will rise to the top and start to separate from mashed turnips. Drain the excess water to reduce the watery consistency, which will make the turnips a bit thicker. 
• Add some starch or flour to make mashed turnips thick up a bit. First, a tablespoon, then give it a minute to soak up the moisture before you jump to add more. You can use cassava flour, coconut flour, tapioca starch, or arrowroot powder. Remember always to add small portions first because you can always add more, but you cannot take it down.  

How to Store and Freeze Mashed Turnips?

 

Want to save up leftover mashed turnips for later? You can always freeze them for later. Let the mashed turnips cool completely, then pack them into a freezer container or airtight container, leaving 1 to 2 inch headspace, or else you can seal them in freezer bags. Label the container, including the exact storage date, and freeze them for no more than 3 months. 

 

You can also store leftover mashed turnips in the refrigerator in an airtight container, about 4 days max. 

 

Tip: When you are using zip-top bags, it is essential to take out all the air from the bag. You can vacuum seal them or insert a straw to suck out the air, then quickly seal the bag. 

 

Tips to Freeze Turnips for Later

 

Apart from roasting, mashing, or serving them raw with salad, you can always prepare and freeze them to use in later recipes. Chop the peeled turnips into small pieces. Boil them in hot water for at least 2 minutes, then put the turnips in the ice water to cool. Drain and pat dry with paper towels to remove the excessive moisture. 

 

If you have room for freezing turnips, place the prepared turnips in one layer for a couple of hours to avoid them sticking together in an airtight or freezer bag. Then transfer the turnips to a resealable freezer bag or airtight container and freeze for up to 10 months.    

Other Turnip Recipes To Prepare

1. Turnip Curry
2. Turnip Fries
3. Roasted Turnips And Garlic
4. Air Fryer Turnips

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