Ok... so daring sort that I am.. I purchased this odd looking long white thing at the local supermarket.. I had no idea what it was.. it wasn't a gourd.. or a squash.. It's about 15 inches long with a tufted top.. Later I found out it must be a Daikon radish. And I want to do something with it.. but what? Any ideas or recipes?
I never even heard of something like that personally. I think the best you can do is just a web search and find out how people are using it. It just sounds like something that may have very specific uses. It is just one of the ways that you could get the options you need. It is just one of the more interesting foods out there I guess.
I also have tried a similar thing that is called a Korean radish, which looks sort of like an elongated turnip. Apparently, both of these root vegetables can be eaten either raw or cooked, and cooking is recommended for large ones. When I added some of the Korean radish to soup, it actually tasted similar to a cooked turnip. So far, my favorite thing to do with it is to pickle it. I looked up the daikon radish, and it says that this one can also be pickled; so if you like making and eating fresh pickles, this might be an easy way to prepare it. The picture shows the radish shredded into strips and carrots added, which makes a nice looking pickle. I did a similar one with the korean radish; but I also added a few bits of red and green pepper for more color. There is a thread on here that I posted earlier about the korean radish, and you might want to check that radish out as well. You can probably find those at the same place that you found the daikon radish. They are about the size and shape of an eggplant, but are white and pale green in color. http://nhpr.org/post/what-do-daikon-radishes
I just found a recipe for roasting them with carrots and peppers.. Slice them in 1/4 inch discs and toss with salt and pepper, olive oil and shallots... then roast at 400 degrees for 25 minutes.. Then add some balsamic vinegar and roast for 5 more minutes. I'm going to try that one tonight
I can report that roasted Daikon radish is very good. It has a mild taste.. and holds its crunch .. very good.
Daikon is a root vegetable with lots of vitamin C, so it's healthy for you and is popular among Asians particularly Orientals. This big type can be pickled sweet or pickled salty. Now that sodium is not too good for our health maybe it's best to put in soups or stews. Daikon when put in soups will cook up tender if you boil it long enough, so prepare it to taste. You can eat daikon raw, so no problem. Daikon like potato will retain the dish taste. Like any root you carve out any black spots like you do for a potato for it's supposed to be all white. The tops can be eaten too, which we pickle with apple cider vinegar to taste after you soak it with sprinkle salt and massage it and let the water drain out after about a half hour-rinse off salt-cut to bite size then sprinkle with apple cider vinegar and let marinate over night in plastic container. No cooking just eat raw after marinating. Since it's the first time go easy on the cider vinegar marinate until you know just how much to put for your family's tastes. You can always add more cider vinegar for marinating later. Health benefits of daikon article.
I have been using and enjoying the daikon radishes for almost a year now, and I love how versatile they are. When you cook them, they are mild tasting, and can be substituted for potatoes in stews and soups. They are low-carb and not an inflammatory food like regular potatoes are; so I have been finding more and more ways that I can use them. I tried making kimchi with some daikons in it; but I just do not like the taste of kimchi, it seems like. I do like the daikons made into pickles though, and that is what I have mostly been doing with them, except as for a potato substitute in soups. Today, I got some hot green peppers from the Asian market as well as more daikon, and I am trying an experiment. I chopped them in the food processor with a few red peppers, chili peppers, and a bit of onion. When they were the consistency of relish, I put them in jars and added a vinegar brine that also has cayenne and red pepper flakes in it; so these are going to be really HOT and spicy once they sit and soak up the vinegar brine. I think that they will be an accompaniment for either meat or eggs maybe, or even on hamburgers. There are almost no carbs, so I can enjoy as much as I want. Here is a picture.