Hakurei turnips are our earliest fall turnips. They’re small and white and are often referred to as “salad turnips” because—unlike most turnips—they can be eaten raw. Their flavor is mild and faintly sweet and they have a pleasing crispy crunch similar to radishes.

So, you could just eat them raw.

But they’re sooooooo extra good when sautéed in a maple miso glaze. And if you keep this vegetarian, any leftover glaze can be mixed with a bit of tahini and then slathered on blanched/wilted greens (turnip, spinach, arugula to make a delicious side of gomae.

In the picture above, we served the turnips with their own greens (gomae-d) over a bed of coconut rice, but brown rice, white rice, or fried rice would all go deliciously with this recipe. You could also use the sauce on any root vegetable or add sliced beef or chicken and make it a proper stir fry.

Ingredients

1 pound Hakurei turnips, cut in roughly 1/2-inch pieces
2 TBSP white miso paste
2 TBSP maple syrup (or honey, if you prefer)
1 TBSP rice vinegar
1 TBSP soy sauce
1.5 TBSP of vegetable oil

Instructions

Whisk together miso paste, maple syrup, rice vinegar, and soy sauce. Once blended well, toss turnips in the sauce, cover and put in fridge to marinate—for as long as it takes you to get rice completely cooked or up to eight hours.

When ready to sauté—heat the vegetable oil in a medium-sized skillet until shimmering, not yet smoking. Using a slotted spoon, transfer turnips to skillet. Keep the remaining sauce for other uses—gomae or another sauté.

Sauté until softened (not mushy) and lightly browned. Serve immediately over warm rice.