kohlrabi in mustard sauce

This weekend my husband and I drove to Houston to visit my family and celebrate with them the 30-year anniversary of the small high school that we both graduated from, and where my mother has been teaching since it opened. Whenever we visit Houston I always make an effort to stop at the Hubbell & Hudson market in the Woodlands. I absolutely love this place! They import many products that I have never seen anywhere else, like Italian almond oil in this pretty bottle. But, even better, almost everything is organic and sustainable, and much of the produce is locally-grown. They also make their own cheeses and fresh pasta. Some of the interesting things I found this time: a pepino melon (tastes like a cross between a pear and a banana), kumquats, purple flowering kale, and baby red kohlrabi.

For dinner the next night we had H&H fresh spinach fettuccini  with their house-made tomato sauce and this Kohlrabi in Mustard Sauce. I had never cooked kohlrabi before, so I turned to Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything. He didn't have anything for kohlrabi that looked appealing to me, so I tried one for turnips and it turned out to work really well. I also adapted the recipe to use the entire vegetable - root, stem, and leaf. I had a bunch of 4 baby red kohlrabi, but I imagine it would be just as tasty with any variety. If you are worried about them being too bitter you might add a teaspoon of sugar with the stock.

Kohlrabi in Mustard Sauce Recipe:
1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 baby kohlrabi
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup vegetable stock
1 tablespoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
chopped fresh parsley leaves

Heat the oil in a saucepan/skillet.
Cut the bulbous root of the kohlrabi into cubes, about 1/2-inch. Add it to the oil with a bit of salt and pepper. Stir occasionally.
As it begins to cook chop the stems into pieces 1/2-inch long. Stir them in after 3-4 minutes.
Coarsley chop the leaves of the kohlrabi and add them once everything else begins to brown, about 10 minutes.
Add enough stock to cover; bring to a boil and cook until the liquid has mostly evaporated and everything is tender, about 15 minutes.
Add the mustard seeds and paste, stir well.
Add more salt, pepper, or mustard to taste. Garnish with parsley.


I just want to add, I know the pictures are very poor. My kitchen has no window, it does have fluorescent lights, and I have only an old digital camera. But I still feel like it's better than nothing.