This site uses only a few technical cookies necessary for its operation. By continuing to browse, you accept their use.
To find out more...
To find out more...
Shall I take the tops off?
If you buy your vegetables at the market, at a farmer's stand, once you have chosen a bunch of carrots or beets for example, you must have already heard this proposal from the salesman: "Shall I pull the tops?
This sentence is his proposal to remove for you all the tops, which he puts aside, to give you only the vegetables with the idea to not overload your basket.
It's a good idea, but it would be a pity to accept it.
This sentence is his proposal to remove for you all the tops, which he puts aside, to give you only the vegetables with the idea to not overload your basket.
It's a good idea, but it would be a pity to accept it.
13 K 4.9/5 (15 reviews)
Keywords for this post:VegetablesWasteRecoveryAnti-gaspiSustainable developmentLeftoversLast modified on: May 7th 2022
Shall I take the tops off?
So yes, it's quite cumbersome, but in practice it can be eaten, it's good, even very good, and as I said it would be a shame to throw them away, even in the compost.
These leaves, that is to say the leaves that are on top of the vegetables, and therefore often what is out of the ground for the root vegetables (carrots, radishes, turnips, beets, etc.) are not always very appetizing, but their use is really anti-gaspi (sustainable development should be said) and allows to complete the use of the vegetables, or to make a separate dish.
For the use it is quite simple, you take your vegetables, you treat the tops as a salad: soaking in vinegar and water, washing, spinning, drying if necessary, and then you can use them in a lot of recipes.
Use the beets in your initial recipe, and keep the tops for another recipe such as fresh spinach soup where they will replace spinach very well.
You will notice that as much as vegetables can be preserved for a long time, easily several weeks for carrots, several days for beets, their tops are not at all: they wilt (no pun intended) in a few hours sometimes, and they must be fresh to be used. When you come back from the market, it is in your interest to prepare them (soaking etc.) as soon as possible, and within the day at the latest.
To sum up: If someone offers to take the tops off your vegetables at the market, it is better to decline politely, so that you can use them in very original recipes.
These leaves, that is to say the leaves that are on top of the vegetables, and therefore often what is out of the ground for the root vegetables (carrots, radishes, turnips, beets, etc.) are not always very appetizing, but their use is really anti-gaspi (sustainable development should be said) and allows to complete the use of the vegetables, or to make a separate dish.
For the use it is quite simple, you take your vegetables, you treat the tops as a salad: soaking in vinegar and water, washing, spinning, drying if necessary, and then you can use them in a lot of recipes.
Use the beets in your initial recipe, and keep the tops for another recipe such as fresh spinach soup where they will replace spinach very well.
You will notice that as much as vegetables can be preserved for a long time, easily several weeks for carrots, several days for beets, their tops are not at all: they wilt (no pun intended) in a few hours sometimes, and they must be fresh to be used. When you come back from the market, it is in your interest to prepare them (soaking etc.) as soon as possible, and within the day at the latest.
To sum up: If someone offers to take the tops off your vegetables at the market, it is better to decline politely, so that you can use them in very original recipes.
Lasts posts
XO Cognac Explained: Meaning, Aging, and Flavor Profile
XO Cognac always goes beyond the labels on the bottle: it is often associated with tradition and quality. You get to appreciate the artistry, character and ageing process when you understand what defines this smooth Cognac. The section below tackles everything about XO Cognac, from complex flavour...January 28th 202662 Sponsored article
Butter vs. grease
We often read in a recipe where a pastry is put into a mould that, just before pouring, the mould should be buttered or greased. But what's the difference between these 2 terms?December 1st 20252,2745
Getting out of the fridge early
Very often when you're cooking, you need to take food or preparations out of the fridge, to use them in the recipe in progress. There's nothing tricky about this: you just take them out of the fridge and use them, usually immediately, in the recipe. But is this really a good method?November 24th 20251,4995
Who's making the croissants?
When you look at a bakery from the outside, you naturally think that in the bakery, the bakers make the bread, and in the laboratory, the pastry chefs make the cakes. It's very often like that, with each of these professions having quite different ways of working, but sometimes there's also one...November 23th 20251,365
Oven height
When we put a dish or cake in the oven, we naturally tend to put it on the middle shelf, and that's what we usually do. But in some cases, this position and height can be a little tricky, so let's find out why.October 8th 20254,2615
Other pages you may also like
Artichoke stalks
When preparing artichokes for cooking, you may well already know that we often need to remove the first round of leaves, if they are tatty or dirty, as well as the inedible stalk. The operative word here is “remove” , rather than “cut off”.October 25th 201654 K4.3
Rosemary in recipes
Rosemary, as I’m sure you know, is a culinary herb, one of the famous French "herbes de Provence", and is very effective in bringing a real taste of the Mediterranean to any dish. The classic way to use it in a recipe is to add a sprig or two and leave it in during cooking as a way of...April 18th 201824 K4.7
The "pith" of the cauliflower
When using cauliflower in a recipe, there is a lot of preparation work at the beginning: removing the leaves, taking the tops or florets, etc. It's a bit tedious, but in the end you're left with the best of the cauliflower, ready to be used in your recipe.February 5th 202214 K4.9
Divide and weigh dough into regular pieces
When you prepare dough for cupcakes in a pastry shop or bakery, at some point you're going to have to divide it, i.e. cut it into small pieces, which should all have the same weight. Sounds simple enough, but is it really that simple?May 30th 202312 K5
Vitamin C against blackening
You've probably heard of this tip: to prevent fruit or vegetables from turning brown or black, simply add or sprinkle lemon juice over them. It's very effective, but why does lemon juice have this effect?July 14th 202310 K 15
Post a comment or question
Follow this page
If you are interested in this page, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the page is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.