Serendipity often affects what I cook. So, it was with this Watermelon Radish, Citrus, Cucumber & Feta Salad. Recently the local produce market started carrying watermelon radishes. Seeing a basket of these unusual radishes reminded me of a trip to Beijing. As a radish lover since childhood, I had to try them.
I first saw these green, turnip-like, tennis-ball size globes mounded decoratively at Beijing’s produce market several years ago. What attracted me specifically was the bright pink slivers of the cut vegetable. Unable to read the Chinese character sign, I used pantomime to communicate with the young woman vendor, pointing to familiar vegetables to which this green vegetable could be related. While photographing her display so I could identify it later, she solved my dilemma by cutting a piece of one globe. Its taste was crunchy and lightly sweet like jicama but with a hint of radish. Its mild flavor and beautiful color convinced me to give it a try when I had a chance. Now, I had my chance.
Where did the watermelon radish come from? Watermelon radishes are an heirloom Chinese daikon radish and botanically, a member of the Brassica (mustard) family. Many varieties of radishes (Raphanus sativus) have been grown and eaten for centuries throughout the world. There is little archeological evidence when and where radish domestication started, although written records of ancient Greeks and Romans from the 3rd century BCE mention the medicinal properties of radishes to lessen intemperance and combat intoxication.
Wild radish variants also appeared in Southeast Asia, India, central China, and Central Asia, some of which were native, others hybrids of foreign cultivars. The most produced radish in Asia, the daikon, can be traced to the Mediterranean and Black Sea coasts. Approximately 1,300 years ago the daikon radish found a home in Japan (its Japanese name comes from dai, meaning large, and kon, meaning root) where it was popularized and from where it spread to China and other parts of Asia. Daikon is a white radish with a mild flavor — sharp and astringent but not hot with a crisp, tangy and juicy texture similar to an apple.
Unlike the long and narrow white daikon, the watermelon radish is round or oval, ranging from golf ball to softball size. The exterior of the watermelon radishes I first saw in Beijing was uniformly green, while those I bought in Chicago were pale green or creamy white with pale green ends. Its interior resembles watermelon only in color which ranges from striated to a solid fuschia. Its flesh is tender-crisp, succulent, and firm. Its flavor is mild, only slightly peppery with a faint sweetness.
These beautiful radishes are deemed to be a superfood loaded with phytonutrients, high in fiber and low in calories and carbohydrates, the vegetable is rich in potassium, vitamins A and C, vitamin B-6, calcium, and magnesium.
Watermelon radishes have many culinary uses. They can be served fresh or cooked, hot or cold and they pair well with various ingredients such as fennel, apple, salty and soft cheeses such as feta and chèvre, butter, creamy dressings and vinaigrettes, bacon, white fish, cucumbers, mild salad greens, cooked eggs, Asian noodles such as soba and udon, citrus, cilantro, mint, and tarragon. Although cooking the watermelon radish enhances its natural sweetness and mellows its spice, its vibrant color and crunchy flavor are best showcased in salads when sliced in uniform paper-thin on a mandolin (about 1/16th of an inch).
This Watermelon Radish, Citrus, Cucumber and Feta Salad is a visually stunning and delicious combination of crisp watermelon radishes, cool cucumber, tart and sweet citrus fruit, salty feta with a sprinkle of walnuts, dressed with citrus juice, shallot, honey, rice vinegar and olive oil with a dusting of parsley and mint – a perfect balance of sweet, sour, salty and bitter and a great addition to my summer salad repertoire.
As salad days and nights started in July instead of August this year and I avoid cooking when the outside temperature is over 90˚F (32˚C), I served this salad in a cooling all-salad dinner which provided opportunities to improvise. I accompanied this Watermelon Radish, Citrus, Cucumber and Feta Salad with two salads of contracting flavor and texture profiles: crunchy and citrusy, creamy, spicy and herbaceous. I added an improvised curried chicken salad (made from a purchased rotisserie chicken, celery, shallot, a bit of red chili pepper, a few spoons of mayonnaise and Greek yogurt, spiced with Madras curry powder, a pinch of turmeric, a clove of garlic, salt and pepper) and blanched and chilled haricot vert dressed with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. The resulting three salad dinner was satisfying and refreshing and, best of all, it did not heat up the house!
Watermelon Radish, Assorted Citrus, Cucumber and Feta Salad
For the salad:
1 each navel or Cara Cara* orange, grapefruit and blood orange, peeled, seeded and sectioned
1-2 watermelon radish, depending on size, sliced paper-thin
½ English cucumber, about 7 inches ( cm), sliced thin
1 small red onion, in thin slivers
2 ounces (57 g) Greek feta, crumbled, or more to taste
For citrus vinaigrette:
1 small shallot, finely diced
¼ teaspoon finely grated grapefruit zest (saved from preparing fruit)
¼ cup fresh grapefruit juice (saved from preparing fruit)
½ teaspoon finely grated orange zest (saved from preparing fruit)
¼ cup fresh orange juice (saved from preparing fruit)
½ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon rice-wine vinegar, unflavored
1-2 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon coarse salt, more to taste
Pinch of freshly ground pepper, more to taste
Garnish:
2 ounces (57 g) walnuts or pecans, chopped into large pieces and toasted (optional)
1 tablespoons assorted herbs – mint, parsley
Preparing the citrus: Zest the citrus fruit, set aside for adding to the dressing. Cut off each end of each fruit, save the end cuts in a separate bowl for later use. Using a thin, sharp knife remove the skin from each fruit, following its round shape. Cut in between membranes to remove each slice, placing the slices of each citrus in a separate bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Squeeze juice from end cuts, peel and remaining membrane into a separate bowl and set aside.
Preparing citrus vinaigrette: Whisk all ingredients together in a nonreactive medium bowl until combined. (Remember to add zest and juice.) Pour into a mason jar. Cover tightly and share vigorously to combine. Set aside. Makes ¾ cup.
Toasting nuts (optional): Preheat oven to 350ºF. Place nuts on a sheet pan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly toasted and fragrant. Remove nuts to a tea towel. Rub off the skins. Set aside for garnish.
Preparing watermelon radish and assembling salad: Wash, but do not peel the watermelon radish. Using a mandolin set to thinnest slices possible, cut off one end of radish (leaving the other as a handle (or use a handguard if available.) and push the radish through mandolin and cutting entire radish into slices. (A 2-3 inch diameter radish may yield 35-40 paper-thin slices.)
Arrange slices decoratively folded over or flat on a platter. Add cucumbers and citrus segments and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle citrs vinaigrette over the salad, adding enough feta, nuts if used and herbs so that the beauty and taste of the radishes shines through.
Serves 6-8
* A Cara Cara Orange is the result of the cross-pollination of a Washington Navel Orange and a Brazilian Bahia Navel Orange which creates all-natural hybrid medium-sized oranges with red to pink flesh resembling a grapefruit with an incredibly sweet flavor.
One year ago: http://www.kitchenepiphanies.com/mushroom-shawarma/
Two years ago: http://www.kitchenepiphanies.com/roasted-summer-vegetable-terrine/
Three years ago: http://www.kitchenepiphanies.com/revitalizing-ukrainian-cooking-masterchef-evgeniy-klopotenko/
Four years ago: http://www.kitchenepiphanies.com/aquachile-verde-shrimp-scallop/
Five years ago: http://www.kitchenepiphanies.com/mile-high-strawberry-pie/
Six years ago: http://www.kitchenepiphanies.com/a-tomato-lovers-panzanella/
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