Pink carrots! How beautiful!

Upon further inspection, they turned out to be long, pink, carrot-looking radishes. Italian radishes, the man at the farm stand explained. Well, how could I say no?

As he was bagging a bunch for me, I asked him if I could use them just like normal radishes.

“Oh yes,” he told me. “They have a really wonderful, intense radish flavor. You can eat them just plain, with salt, or soy sauce. Oh, and their greens are delicious too, lightly sautéed.”

This was an intriguing insight. Raw radishes, with a smear of salt and butter are a traditional pairing. But soy sauce was a new twist that I hadn’t thought of before. Of course it made sense - the same saltiness to bring out the spicy radish, the round flavor of the soy on the tongue replacing the cooling, creamy butter. It was looking like Asian-style radishes were on the menu that evening.

The recipe that follows is my favorite kind. It incorporates salty, sweet and spicy and a variety of colors and textures. Best of all, it is infinitely malleable and tweakable. Don’t eat meat? Sub the chicken for tofu or chickpeas. Don’t have Chinese chili garlic sauce? Use some hot sauce and garlic (though I highly recommend investing in a jar of the stuff - it spices up everything with a salty garlic heat). Don’t have bok choy? Use whatever vegetables you’ve forgotten about in the bottom of the crisper.
In other words, get thee to some Italian radishes, and make a meal!

Italian Radish Stir Fry

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp olive oil or sesame oil
• 1 lb chicken breast, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 ½ tsp Chinese chili paste with garlic
• 2 heads bok choy, thinly sliced
• 1 bunch Italian radishes, greens cut in strips, radishes diced
• ½ c. mirin (Japanese rice wine)
• 2 Tbsp. rice vinegar
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp honey

Heat one Tbsp of oil in a frying pan or wok over high heat. Add the chicken, then one tsp of the chili paste, and stir briefly to coat. Cook, stirring infrequently, until the chicken is cooked through and has a spicy, golden, caramelization on the outside, about 10 minutes. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon.

Add the remaining Tbsp of oil, then add the radish greens and bok choy. Stir until they are wilted but still have some bite, about three minutes. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon.

Add the mirin, the remaining chili paste, rice vinegar, soy sauce and honey to the pan. Scrape up any browned bits that may be stuck to the pan. Stir the mixture, then allow it to reduce by half or until it becomes a thick, delicious sauce.

Serve the chicken and greens over rice, then drizzle with the sauce and garnish with some raw radish on the top. Enjoy with chopsticks, while watching the Simpsons.