Recipe: Kohlrabi Mango Mint Salad With Variations :: Easy Like A Sunday Morning

Easy Like a Sunday Morning, that’s how the recipes in my “Easy” category will be. Nothing rushed or frantic, nothing with a long list of ingredients. Something that is so easy, you don’t really need a recipe. Something that almost cooks itself or requires no cooking at all.

Inspiration for this salad came from two recipes. Watermelon Arugula and Feta Salad by A Kitchen Muse, I featured on July 24th, as part of my MMM (Must Make Monday) series and Kohlrabi and Mango Salad by Easy Natural Food.

Kohlrabi brings back fond memories from when I was a kid. My Grandmother used to grow the strange-looking vegetable in her garden. She would let us kids (there were six of us and sometimes more as my parents took in foster children) select some kohlrabi from her garden. She peeled the vegetable and sliced it up into medallions for us to snack on. I loved it almost as much as I loved her fresh green peas in the pod…I couldn’t get enough of those! I would sometimes sneak out after the dark to snatch some peas from Gramma’s garden. I remember trying fake sleep walking when I got caught.

Anyhow, when I saw Debbie’s recipe for the Kohlrabi and Mango Salad, it brought back such wonderful childhood memories, I had to try kohlrabi again. Along with a mango, I picked up one of the odd-shaped bulbs from my local produce store. I intended to make Debbie’s salad but when I got home I realised I had forgotten to get some fresh cilantro. Dang.

Oh well, when it comes to recipes, I’m pretty good at improvising. I opened my fridge and spotted some fresh mint and the remnants of a dressing I had made for Linda’s Watermelon Arugula and Feta Salad. Hummm, I wonder, what if I were to use Debbie’s idea for pairing kohlrabi with mango and Linda’s pairing of fresh mint and a citrus dressing…this salad is the result and I just love it!

Kohlrabi is an unusual looking vegetable. It looks like a turnip but it is from the cabbage and broccoli family. I regretfully didn’t get any pictures before I made the salad but Debbie has pictures of purple kohlrabi (I used green) over on her site. The vegetable has a thick outer skin that you peel off with a paring knife. Underneath you find a crisp, juicy, white centre. You can eat it raw or cooked but I only ever remember eating it raw. It has a really mild taste which makes it perfect for pairing with the sweetness of mango.

If you’re interested in finding out a little more about this unusual vegetable, I found  this article by Renée Shepherd whose childhood memories of kohlrabi closely match my own. I’m so glad I tried the vegetable as a kid, otherwise I would probably take a pass on it.

Like most salad recipes, this one is really versatile. I bet some mild tasting beans, such as Navy Beans would make a nice Vegan option. Oh, and how about adding some roasted sunflower seeds or hazelnuts? I think that’s what I’m going to try the next time I make this salad.