ROOTS

Edible roots must have been one of the very first foods of man; we can easily imagine prehistoric men, even before they learned to fish or hunt, grubbing up roots from the ground. --from “Food” by Waverley Root (Simon & Schuster)

We’re back to our roots, and tubers--those wonderful foods from underground. A prehistoric inheritance, these unsinkable vegetables are reappearing more and more on America’s tables as we return to basics and comfort foods. Roots and tubers are energy foods. It’s hard to believe that the slaves who built the pyramids in Egypt were fed a steady diet of radishes. When the Germans imprisoned French agronomist Antoine Augustin Parmentier during the Seven Year War, potatoes became his means of subsistence during three years of confinement. “Root vegetables are complex carbohydrates, the energy storage for plants,” said Kathryn Boyd R.D., assistant director of clinical nutrition at Saddleback Hospital and Health Center in Laguna Hills. “Although they vary a great deal in nutrient value, they’re good sources of fiber, low in fat and relatively low in calories. In general, they have moderately significant amounts of vitamins A and C.” Ugly ducklings in the garden, roots, fortunately, grow out of sight. Picture the monstrous celeriac, or celery root, or the freaky-looking horseradish. And the bumpy sunchoke tuber is certainly a far cry from its pretty sunflower offshoot. Anyone would be turned off by dark and dirty-looking gobo (burdock) sticks, the hairy taro, the finger-shaped ginger or the ginseng root, whose shape suggests a strange human form. Lacy when sliced, the lotus root in its fresh form resembles link sausage.

Beneath the fibrous, knobby skins of many starchy root crops is a creamy flesh that when delicately simmered turns into a tender mealy pulp. Others, such as jicama, daikon and red radishes, beets, and carrots, reveal a juicy content with crisp textures and a sweet taste. There’s nothing like a glass of carrot juice to start an energy-filled day.

New Varieties Discovered

We’re all familiar with the goodness of potatoes, sweet potatoes, beets, carrots, turnips, rutabagas (the Swedish turnip that is a cross between cabbage and turnips) and parsnips. New varieties, however, can be discovered. If you grow your own, try the golden beet or the white beet varieties that don’t bleed like the red ones. Another good variety is the little finger carrot, grown for its extra-sweet gourmet flavor and smooth skin.

Now available in many markets, golden or Finnish yellow potatoes as well as purple and blue varieties can be grown. Both can be boiled and sliced to show off their pretty colors as an accompaniment to an entree.

Root crops are appreciated by vegetable gardeners with limited size plots because they do not require much ground space. Many of them may be grown in double rows and nearly on top of each other.

“There’s no question that celery roots, jicama, daikon radishes and uncommon root vegetables are selling well,” said Frieda Caplan of Frieda’s Finest, a Los Angeles produce company. “We’ve never seen such phenomenal sales of these . . . it’s a movement that’s growing more and more.”

Upcoming root varieties that are new to the American consumer are really old foods for many ethnic groups. Consider the lotus root, for example.

Underneath the beautiful pink lotus lily, is a woody brown rhizome with lacy flesh. Frequently used in Japanese cooking as a decorative food, slices can be tinted in colorful hues. Cut anyway you want, the mild-tasting sweet lotus root can be added to stews or soups and cooked until tender.

L.A. County Cooperative Extension nutritionist Genevieve Ho describes an unusual preparation of lotus root: “In China my grandmother used to stuff the holes with seasoned cooked rice, sometimes mixed with ground meat, then she would steam the whole root and slice it.”

Karen Lee, cooking teacher and author of “Nouvelle Chinese Cooking,” said: “Lotus root, like daikon, is supposed to be great for getting rid of mucous, good for winter colds.” Another cold-fighter, she added, is ginger, which is becoming more widespread and is being used in many French recipes. “I make a soothing ginger tea. You take a few slices of unpeeled, rinsed ginger and boil them in a pot (do not use aluminum) for five minutes. Strain and add a dash of honey and lemon juice. It’s delicious and it keeps me going when I teach four classes in three days.”

Another versatile tuber is jicama. “It’s great if you can get it fresh when it’s sweeter and easier to peel,” Lee said; “I like it raw in salads with just lemon juice. You can also use it in place of water chestnuts.” Popular in Mexico and other Spanish-speaking countries, jicama is a worldwide treat. In the Philippines, jicama is popularly used, chopped with carrots, as a crunchy extender for ground meats in egg rolls.

The leafy greens in many root crops are not to be overlooked. Although great for show, carrot greens contain more Vitamin C than orange juice, according to Lee. She prepares a stir-fry dish of obliquely sliced carrots with garlic, green onions, ginger and steamed carrot greens. The greens of beets, daikon (if you can find them) and parsnips should also be considered, she added.

Gobo for the New Year

For Dex Nitta, produce manager at Boy’s Market in Lawndale, New Year wouldn’t be complete without gobo. “It’s almost a sacred thing for the Japanese; it helps them bring in a good year. I peel gobo and quickly slice it in thin strips and stir-fry with soy sauce, cayenne pepper, a little sugar and sesame seeds.” We prepared Nitta’s tasty dish and were inspired to do a delicious variation, adding strips of beef, Chinese broccoli and jicama. Like potatoes and other root crops that discolor when exposed to air, the gobo, if not used immediately, can be dropped in water that contains a little vinegar or lemon juice. This will help it retain its fresh appearance.

Distinctive Sweet Flavor

Another white-fleshed long root that comes sheathed in black skin is the black salsify. It has a distinctive sweet flavor reminiscent of small new potatoes. Cut in chunks, the salsify can be added to soups and stews or sauteed in butter with onions and mushrooms.

It’ll probably take Westerners a long time to appreciate the waxy sweetish-to-bland taste and sticky glutinous texture of cassava--also called yuca, manioc or mandioca. Unrecognizable as such in its raw state, cassava is pressed to form the familiar globules we know as tapioca. In Latin countries and throughout the Caribbean, yuca is boiled or baked until tender and added to savory stews and breads or fried as fritters or chips. In the South Pacific, the starchy root is favored as a sweet dessert. Cooked in pudding and mixed with freshly grated coconut and coconut milk, the shredded cassava becomes a tender mush, with an almost cornstarch-like consistency. (Avoid using old cassava, which will have a woody central stem and a more fibrous flesh.)

Favored by Orientals is the taro, while Cubans and Puerto Ricans choose the malanga. Both tubers have similar sticky outer textures that may be washed off. Bland in nature, they absorb the flavors of the ingredients they’re mixed with. Taro or malanga can be used in the accompanying recipe, and either can be made into a sweet--like the cassava--by boiling it with coconut and syrup.

Karen Lee has just developed edible serving baskets for the new Ocean Reef Grille in New York. She shreds taro and potato, mixes it with rice noodles, shapes the mixture into five-inch baskets and deep-fries them until crisp and puffy. “They’re wonderful serving baskets for potato salads,” she said.

One of the ugliest roots, but one noted for its delicate flavor, is celeriac, or celery root. Popular in Europe and getting more and more positive responses here, this vegetable is best blanched to bring out its subtle celery-like taste. It’s good sauteed in butter or in cream soups that contain a hint of wine. In the scrumptious chicken salad recipe provided here, the diced celeriac adds a textural accent to the chicken and potato melange.

Lotus root can be appreciated in the Lotus Root Crab Egg Soup, which is also satisfying with water chestnuts or gobo. Karen Lee also contributed Beet and Sweet Potato Tempura. Placed on a bed of watercress and garnished with lime wedges, the beer-flavored root tempura makes a nouvelle first course at dinner or threaded on bamboo skewers, it can be served as an appetizer.

The simplest preparation of roots and tubers is fresh and julienned, served plain or with a lemony or vinaigrette-type dip. “Couch potatoes” glued to the TV screens can graze on crisp jicama or carrot sticks, radishes or blanched celeriac. Although not as energetic as the slaves of Egypt, these people rooted to the couch would likely benefit more by way of a lower calorie intake.

LOTUS ROOT-CRAB-EGG SOUP

2 shiitake mushrooms

3/4 cup peeled and diced lotus root, water chestnuts or gobo

2 (14-ounce) cans clear chicken broth

1/4 cup cornstarch

6 to 8 small Chinese pea pods, stringed

1/2 cup cooked crab meat

1 egg, lightly beaten

2 drops sesame oil

Soak shiitake mushrooms in warm water until tender. Drain and cut in quarters. Place lotus root in saucepan and add enough water to cover. Cover and simmer until lotus root is tender-crisp. Combine chicken broth and cornstarch. Stir until cornstarch dissolves. Add to saucepan and bring to boil over medium heat. Simmer until thickened.

Add pea pods and crab meat. Cook few minutes. Slowly drop in beaten egg, stirring gently. Add sesame oil. Makes 4 servings.

CARROT, PARSNIP AND CELERIAC SALAD WITH CILANTRO VINAIGRETTE

3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced julienne

3 medium parsnips or jicama, peeled and sliced julienne

1 pound celeriac, peeled and sliced julienne

1 cup boiling salted water

1/4 cup chopped fennel

Cilantro Vinaigrette

Lettuce

Peeled orange cartwheels, optional

Add carrots, parsnips and celeriac to boiling salted water in saucepan. Boil 3 minutes. Drain and cool. Add fennel and Cilantro Vinaigrette. Toss and chill covered several hours. Serve on lettuce and garnish with orange cartwheels. Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Note: Other root vegetables such as daikon and blanched and peeled turnips or rutabagas may be substituted.

Cilantro Vinaigrette

1/2 cup oil

1/4 cup rice vinegar

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Salt

1/2 serrano chile, seeded and minced

Juice of 1 lime

1 shallot, minced

1 small clove garlic, minced

Combine oil, rice vinegar, sugar, cilantro, salt to taste, serrano chile, lime juice, shallot and garlic. Stir well. Makes about 3/4 cup.

CHICKEN-CELERIAC-POTATO SALAD

1 pound yellow or red potatoes, cooked, peeled and diced

2 cups finely diced peeled celeriac, parboiled until tender-crisp

4 cups cubed cooked chicken

1/2 cup chopped sweet pickles

1/4 cup sweet pickle juice

1 cup mayonnaise

1 cup julienned Chinese pea pods

1/2 cup chopped green onions

Salt, pepper

Bibb lettuce

Red radishes

Cool potatoes, celeriac and chicken. Combine in bowl with pickles, pickle juice, mayonnaise, Chinese peas and green onions. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and let stand in refrigerator overnight. Mound on Bibb lettuce and garnish with red radishes. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

CASSAVA (OR YUCA) COCONUT PUDDING

3 egg yolks

2 eggs

1 (14-ounce) coconut milk

1 cup whipping cream or evaporated milk

2 cups chopped or shredded peeled cassava or yuca root

1 cup bottled macapuno (shredded coconut preserve), optional

Sugar

10 to 12 strawberries

Combine egg yolks and eggs in bowl and stir to blend. Add whipping cream, cassava and macapuno. Add 1/2 cup sugar or to taste. Turn into 10 to 12 buttered ramekins or custard cups leaving about 3/4-inch head space. Place on baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees 35 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out dry. Remove from oven.

Cover tops with about 1 tablespoon sugar. Broil to caramelize or brown the sugar topping. Top with strawberries, sliced or left whole. Makes 10 to 12 servings.

Note: Macapuno is available at Filipino or Chinese markets. Remove any woody centers from cassava if present.

KAREN LEE’S BEET AND SWEET POTATO TEMPURA (“Nouvelle Chinese Cooking,” MacMillan Publishing Co.)

1/2 cup flour

1/3 cup cornstarch

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 teaspoon dark soy sauce

2/3 cup beer, cold and flat

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 bunch watercress

4 small to medium beets

1 medium to large sweet potato

3 cups peanut oil

1 lime, cut into wedges

Place flour, cornstarch and salt in bowl. Mix with chopsticks. Combine sesame oil, soy sauce and beer in second bowl. Add liquid all at once to dry ingredients, mixing until batter is almost smooth. Add baking powder and mix again. Refrigerate uncovered at least 4 hours or up to 12 hours.

While watercress is still tied, cut off and discard 2 inches of stems. Wash watercress, then dry. Separate beet roots from greens, leaving at least 3 inches of stem on root ends. Reserve greens for another use. Scrub beets and sweet potato. Steam beets and sweet potato 15 minutes. Peel and cut into thick rounds, slightly over 1/4 inch.

Place wok over high heat about 1 minute or until it smokes. Add peanut oil and heat to 350 degrees. Dip beets and sweet potato rounds, 1 at a time, into batter. Place up to 6 rounds in wok and deep fry about 2 minutes or until golden brown. Remove rounds from wok with wire strainer and drain on several layers of paper towels. Repeat until all tempura is cooked. Place tempura on bed of watercress and garnish with lime wedges. Makes 4 servings.

SWEET ROOTS

2 pounds taro, sweet potato, malanga or yuca, or combination

1 (14-ounce) can coconut milk

1 cup sugar or to taste

1 teaspoon grated orange zest, optional

Coconut-Sesame Topping

Peel and slice taro (if small, leave whole) and/or other root vegetables to be used about 1-inch thick. Place in bowl of water as you slice. Drain. Place roots in saucepan and add water to cover. Cook over medium heat, 30 to 40 minutes or until roots are tender. Drain out liquid. Add coconut milk and sugar to taste to roots in saucepan.

Return to heat and simmer until thickened, about 20 minutes. Stir in orange peel, if desired. Serve warm or at room temperature and serve sprinkled with Coconut-Sesame Topping. Makes 6 servings.

Coconut-Sesame Topping

3 tablespoons butter

1 cup freshly grated coconut

2 tablespoons sesame seeds

3 tablespoons sugar

Melt butter in skillet over medium heat. Add coconut and toast until lightly browned, stirring frequently to prevent browning. Add sesame seeds and sugar. Continue toasting until coconut and seeds are golden brown. Cool to crisp.

DEX’S GOBO ROOT

2 tablespoons oil

1/2 pound gobo root, peeled and cut into fine julienne strips

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds

1/2 teaspoon sugar

Few drops sesame oil

Cayenne pepper

Finely chopped green onions or shredded carrots, optional

Heat oil in skillet. Stir-fry gobo until tender-crisp. Stir in soy sauce, sesame seeds, sugar and sesame oil. Season to taste with cayenne pepper. Serve hot garnished with finely chopped green onions or shredded carrots. Makes 2 servings.

GOBO-JICAMA STIR-FRY

1/2 pound thinly sliced sirloin

1/4 cup soy sauce or to taste

3 tablespoons oil

1/2 pound gobo root, peeled and cut into fine julienne strips

2 large stalks bok choy, coarsely chopped

1 cup coarsely chopped Chinese broccoli

1 cup sliced or cubed peeled jicama

2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

1 teaspoon sugar

Cayenne pepper

Few drops sesame oil

Season beef with 2 tablespoons soy sauce. Heat oil in wok or large skillet over high heat. Add gobo strips and stir-fry until tender-crisp. Add beef and stir-fry just until it loses pink color. Add bok choy and broccoli and stir-fry 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in jicama, sesame seeds, sugar, cayenne pepper to taste and sesame oil. Stir-fry 1 to 2 minutes. Serve immediately. Makes 4 servings.

SALSIFY WITH HAM AND TOMATOES (“Cooking Magic: Vegetables,” Barron’s)

2 1/4 pounds salsify

Lemon juice or vinegar

1 small onion

7 ounces boiled ham

2 tablespoons oil

1 cup meat stock

1/4 cup dry white wine

1/2 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground pepper

2 medium tomatoes

1/2 cup whipping cream

1 tablespoon chopped parsley

Scrub salsify under running water. Peel. To prevent discoloration, immediately drop into bowl of water acidulated with lemon juice or vinegar. Peel and chop onion. Dice ham. Heat oil in large saucepan. Add onion and saute until tender. Add ham and saute briefly. Cut salsify into pieces about 1 1/4- to 1 1/2-inches long. Add to saucepan.

Pour meat stock and wine over. Season with salt and pepper and cook over medium heat 20 minutes.

Blanch tomatoes briefly in boiling water then drain. Peel and dice tomatoes. Add to salsify with cream. Reduce heat to low and cook about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and serve. Makes 4 servings.

Food Styling by Minnie Bernardino and Donna Deane China from Villeroy and Boch