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Tuesday, May 16, 2006

Rutabaga Fries


What do you do with a rutabaga? That was the question that inspired me to post my first food blog comment and later inspired a post for Rutabaga & Leek Soup. I love rutabagas mashed like potatoes with plenty of salt, pepper, and butter, but, with the warmer weather, I was looking for a new way to use up the three rutabagas that have been camped out in my crisper for longer than I'd care to remember.

I found my answer in Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone: rutabaga fries. Easy to prepare and a great side for the vegetarian Boca burgers I had in mind for dinner.

They didn't come out quite as I expected, but they were delicious and there were no leftovers. I thought they would crisp up more, but they seemed to go from moist to charred and skipped the crisp part, although I liked them in both the moist and charred state. I found I used too much vegetable oil, as they released quite a bit of moisture in the baking process, and I had to drain them on paper towels at the end (but that's almost always a good idea).

I'd definitely try these again and see if I can crisp them up more. The recipe does call for them to be baked "until golden and tender", so there is no promise of crisp in the recipe.

Rutabaga Fries (from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone):

Preheat the oven to 400. Peel rutabagas and cut into French fries. Soak in cold water for 30 minutes. Mix with vegetable oil and salt and bake 30-40 minutes. Toss with rosemary, salt, and pepper.

6 Comments:

Blogger Alanna Kellogg said...

Works great with parsnips too -- esp w malt vinegar on the side.

9:36 AM  
Blogger Cyndi said...

I wonder if actually frying them would crisp them? I've seen quite a few recipes that recommend the two-stage method of cooking in hot oil briefly, draining, cooling, and then re-cooking in very hot oil until browned. Maybe that would work? No matter what, rutabaga fries sounds interesting. Quite a change from just mashed.

8:20 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Gorgeous picture, Catherine.

I must try this!

6:15 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I made these a while ago. I liked the taste but was not too crazy about the texture. At the time I wondered if a light dusting of flour or chickpea flour at the start would absorb that moisture and crisp them up, but I haven't gotten around to trying that yet.

11:52 AM  
Blogger Catherine said...

Hi Alanna - a combo might be nice!

Cyndi - probably frying would crisp these.

Thanks Ivonne

Hi Lynn - I like the chickpea flour idea as it would add a little protein. Thanks for the suggestion!

12:36 PM  
Blogger Catherine said...

VK - go for it and invite me over!

7:36 PM  

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