Turnip Fries
Turnip Fries is a super simple recipe that’s great as a side dish or as a snack. These fried turnips are a sumptuous new way to eat healthier and lose weight. Make them at home with my step-by-step instructions.
Hey, there fellow foodies! Let me tell you a little story about one of my favorite side dishes — Turnip Fries.
One day, I was craving fries and started to look around the kitchen for something fun and tasty. Low and behold, out popped the turnips! I knew immediately that I had to make fries with them, so I did.
They were so good that I decided to share the recipe with the world. Now all of us can enjoy the fabulousness that is Turnip Fries!
Turnip fries are appetizing and healthy! Just like my Jicama Fries and Zucchini Fries, these turnip fries are low-calorie and delicious. You get to enjoy your treat without the guilt.
The beauty is that turnips are plenty here in Florida this time of the year. I usually purchase turnip greens including the roots from the local market, use the leafy greens to make my Southern-Style Mixed Greens recipe, then use the roots to make this amazing turnip fries recipe.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Simplicity: This recipe is incredibly easy to make with just a few simple ingredients, making it a convenient choice for any cook.
- A Healthy and Flavorful Alternative: Turnip fries are a fantastic replacement for traditional French fries when you want to add some excitement to your meals. They provide a unique twist while also letting you incorporate seasonal vegetables into your diet.
- Perfect for Special Diets: These baked turnip fries serve as a delicious side dish that complements low-carb, Paleo, and Whole30 meal plans, as they are lower in calories and carbohydrates compared to regular potato fries.
- Customizable Flavors: You can tailor the taste of these turnip fries to your liking by experimenting with different spices and seasonings.
Scroll down for the detailed recipe, but I suggest reading the complete article for useful tips and suggestions if you want to make a perfect recipe every time.
Turnip Nutritional Profile And Health Benefits
The nutritional profile of turnips is outstanding. They’re low in calories but high in vitamins and minerals, just like other cruciferous vegetables. Turnips are also a great source of antioxidants and fiber.
Turnips have a variety of health-promoting properties due to their high nutritional composition.
- Turnips include glucosinolates, which are plant-based compounds that may assist prevent cancer of all types, including breast and prostate cancer.
- Turnip glucosinolates breakdown into isothiocyanates, a class of compounds that suppress microbial and bacterial development.
- Turnips are an excellent source of the antioxidant lutein. This helps to maintain your eyes healthy and prevents macular degeneration and cataract.
- Turnips are high in calcium, which is beneficial to your heart, nerves, and muscles.
- For someone trying to lower their carbohydrate intake, lose weight or improve their health, these keto-friendly fries are perfect.
Ingredients Needed
- Turnips: These are the star of the show, providing a healthy and low-carb base for your fries.
- Olive Oil: The oil helps in crisping up the turnip fries in the oven, giving them that delightful, golden crunch.
- Spices including paprika, garlic powder, and thyme bring flavor to your fries and can be adjusted to your taste preferences.
- Salt and Pepper: These essential seasonings enhance the overall taste, adding a savory touch to your turnip fries.
- Optional Dipping Sauce: This is where your creativity can shine. Choose your favorite dip to complement the fries, whether it’s ketchup, mayonnaise, or a special homemade sauce.
How To Make Turnip Fries
- For these baked turnip fries, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Peel turnips and cut them into ¼ inch matchsticks.
- Place turnip into a large bowl and toss with oil then the remaining seasonings
- Place in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
Expert Tips
Here are a few more pointers I learned while preparing these fries and I would like to share them with you so that you can get the best results:
- Turnips are different from potatoes so don’t expect the same crispy texture as potatoes. They have a delicious flavor and are a great low-carb substitute.
- If you’re afraid about the turnip fries sticking, line the baking sheet with parchment paper (as I did).
- It may also take a little longer to cook depending on how the turnips are cut. The fries should be crisp on the outside but tender on the inside.
- Make sure that the fries are laid out in a single layer, without being overlapped. This ensures that they crisp up well and don’t steam.
- Make your home-cooked veggie fries crispy by coating them in cornstarch or arrowroot powder. If necessary, potato starch can be substituted.
- If your turnip fries aren’t crisping up, it’s probably because your baking tray is too full. Transfer half of the fries to a separate baking sheet and re-bake for approximately 5 minutes.
- You can also substitute olive oil with any other of your favorite or available oil like avocado oil, canola oil, etc.
- You can also deep fry these turnip fries. However, I’ve shared the baking method here. Because baking the fries instead of deep-frying them is always a healthier option.
- If you like you can air fry these turnip fries.
Air Fryer Directions:
Preheat your air fryer to 400°F. Working in modest single-layer batches is recommended. Cook for 10 minutes on each batch, shaking the basket after 5 minutes.
Storage Tips
The best time to enjoy these fries is right after they’ve been cooked. However, if you have any leftovers, you can also refrigerate them in a resealable bag for around 4-5 days.
And, if you want to freeze these turnip fries just make sure to cool them completely before storing them in any freezer-safe container/bag after cooking. These should not be thawed. Simply remove from the freezer and reheat.
To reheat them, I recommend heating them in the air fryer or oven — do not microwave them as they will become mushy.
Serving Suggestions
As with many fantastic fry recipes, they may be seasoned in an infinite number of ways to produce endless flavor combinations. Here are a few of my personal favorites:
- BBQ Sauce and Blue Cheese: Drizzle BBQ Sauce over the finished fries and top with blue cheese dressing! They’re fantastic.
- Parmesan cheese: Season the fries as directed in the recipe, but then top them with Parmesan cheese. For Paleo/Whole30, nutritional yeast can be used to achieve a similar flavor.
- Season with salt: I know a lot of folks who are obsessed with seasoned salt on their french fries. If you’re following a low-carb/Paleo/Whole30 diet, double-check the contents because many popular seasoned salt brands contain sugar.
- Spicy: Add a sprinkle of chili flakes or chili powder to the turnip fries for spicy turnip fries.
This light, spicy, crispy, and sweet snack is delicious when paired with crunchy nuts or any other protein. Serve these homemade fries alongside a crispy Beyond Meat Burger, Black Bean Burger, or Beet Burger for a delicious meal!
Serve these oven-baked turnip fries with:
Recipe FAQs
Turnip flavors differ owing to a number of reasons. Young turnips are crisp, sweet, and have a carrot-like flavor. Turnips that are older and more mature have a taste similar to potatoes. When eaten raw, they have a bitter flavor, but when cooked properly, they have a sweet aroma and taste.
Turnips can be used in place of potatoes in soups, stews, and pretty much any other dish that calls for a potato. When roasted, this vegetable mashes easily and retains its shape. One medium potato gives you about 30 grams of carbohydrates versus 1 medium turnip gives you only 8 grams of carbohydrates.
Depending on their size and development, they can have a mild sweetness (younger turnips) or a mild bitterness (mature turnips). Younger ones can be consumed raw, while older ones must be cooked. When they’re cooked, the bitterness fades and they absorb the flavor of whatever you’re seasoning them with.
To some extent. Turnip fries have fewer carbohydrates than potato fries. While they are not ketogenic on their own, according to the macros, if you couple them with a rich fatty dipping sauce and portion out your fries, then yeah, they’re keto!
For turnip fries, you have two cooking options: oven or air fryer. Convection heat in the oven yields uniform crispiness. An air fryer uses less oil, producing similarly crispy results, potentially even crispier. Air frying requires smaller batches, so cooking takes a bit longer in total, unless serving just 1-2 people. Try both to see your preference!
Rutabaga often termed yellow turnip, is a terrific alternative for these fries because it is somewhat sweeter and has a less bitter flavor. Rutabaga is technically a cross in between turnip and a cabbage, and like turnips, it makes an excellent low-carb substitute for potatoes. If you don’t like turnips, you might prefer rutabagas, which have a milder flavor. Additionally, rutabagas get sweeter when cooked.
More Low Carb Snack Recipes
- Best Low Carb Snacks
- BBQ Cauliflower Wings
- Gluten-Free Vegan Cauliflower Hash Browns
- Air Fried Cauliflower
- Brown Rice Crackers
- Roasted Edamame
- Air Fryer Zucchini Chips
- Jicama Chips
If you like and try it out, let me know how it turned out by leaving a comment in the comment section below!
Want to Save This Recipe?
Enter your email & I’ll send it to your inbox. Plus, get great new recipes from me every week!
By submitting this form, you consent to receive emails from Healthier Steps.
Turnip Fries
Ingredients
- 2 medium turnips
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon nutritional yeast flakes
- 1/4 teaspoon ground paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- Pinch Cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 2 tablespoon vegan Parmesan (optional) *link to recipe
Instructions
- Preheat oven 425 degrees F.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, spray with oil and set aside. Peel turnip, cut into 1/4 inch matchsticks and place in a medium bowl.
- Toss turnip with olive oil, and add the remaining seasonings. Transfer the seasoned turnips on a baking sheet in a single layer and bake for 30 minutes or until they are done, turning halfway. Serve immediately.
- Turnips are different from potatoes so don’t expect the same crispy texture as potatoes. They have a delicious flavor and a great low carb substitute.
I’ve never hard turnips. I’ll have to give them a try and see if I like them especially these turnip fries.