My friend and neighbor Harriet is a very generous gardener. As well as fresh kale and cucumbers, she recently shared some of her very interesting radishes. Not the round or oval red, pink and white variety, but a bag full of Dragon’s Tail Radishes. I am totally enchanted by their unusual beauty…colors from almost black, to a dark purple and a hint of lime green and their very peppery flavor with long curly “dragon’s tails”. They are a crisp, tender edible roots, with an intense peppery bite. The larger the stem the spicier. Have you ever grown these? I have not, but Harriet says they are easy to grown from seeds, and prolific. Next year. Thanks, Harriet.
Isn’t it fun to try something new? Or to use something you eat all the time in a new way? All of the ingredients in my salad could also be just as delicious quickly stir-fried with some shrimp or tofu. I hear they are great pickled as well.
Dragon’s Tail Radishes (or any radish) chopped up and added to a bowl (is there any reason at all to turn on the stove for meals this very hot summer?) along with a few large cucumbers peeled, seeded and sliced, homegrown sweet golden cherry tomatoes cut in half (from our small garden) with a few of your favorite greens, then drizzled with the ginger-miso dressing…a complete joy to eat.
For the “there-is-no-recipe dressing” you toss into a blender 1 heaping tablespoon freshly grated or chopped ginger, 2 tablespoons white miso, 1/2 cup rice vinegar, 2/3 cup canola or vegetable oil, a splash of orange or apple juice, 1 tablespoon honey and some red pepper flakes to taste. Blend, taste, adjust, pour into a container with a lid and chill. Shake and drizzle on whatever salad you like.
This summer might be a good time to try some new things all around. Wear less clothing to stay cooler? Spend more time in the shade? Sit in a comfy cool indoor space and read, read, read a book or 10? Give and take dinner ideas that are easy, healthy and fun from your friends and neighbors? Take very early morning or late day strolls? Doze in a hammock? Take up cards or board games? What do you like to do to get outside your life-box? Do share.
Take care and stay cool
Those radishes look like string beans, don’t they? Beautiful salad. We like to eat fruit popsicles, (mango) in the shade on a hot afternoon. We live in the PNW so it isn’t scorching hot like other parts of the country so it’s really quite pleasant to sit out or garden in the shade.
Chris, thank for stopping by my once-in-a-blue-moon blog these days. These radishes do look like very skinny green beans I agree. Oh yes, to fruit popsicles of any type. It has been a very tiring summer in so many ways here in Nashville, only relief is lots of rainy afternoons to help with the cooling. And it hasn’t been as bad here as in some other parts of the South. We just have to learn how to live with it. Again thank to you.
It just so happens that our son is leaving Seattle tomorrow to visit a friend in Nashville..I’ll tell him about the rain..it will make him feel right at home! 🙂 Although we are in our drought period now. Stay cool!
Teresa, I have never seen or heard about dragon tail radishes but, I am loving it. There are so many garden delights that never reach the grocery store produce-what a shame. Loved how you incorporated it into your beautiful summer sales.
Thanks for sharing this with us.
Velva
Thank you Velva. This was my first encounter, but have now discovered that a lot of seed catalogs carry them, so I plan to see how I do with them next spring. Your mentioning items that never reach the grocery store…you are so right and these would be perfect as they are quite sturdy and not at all fragile. Fun and delicious.