Turnips

Sheldon Margen

Like cabbage, to which it is related, the turnip has long been thought of as ‘plain folks’ food. It is economical; it grows well in poor soil; it keeps well; and it supplies complex carbohydrates. One of the cruciferous vegetables in the Brassica genus, it can be cultivated for its root – which is a good source of complex carbohydrates – as well as for its greens, which are rich in vitamins and minerals […]. Turnips come in an astonishing range of shapes and sizes, depending on the age and variety – some have weighed 40 to 50 pounds, others are the size of a golf ball. The flesh can be white or yellow, but most commercial turnips have white flesh.

Fonte: Margen, S, ed. 1992. The wellness encyclopedia of food and nutrition. Berkeley, U California P.