Shall I take the tops off?


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.
14 K 4.9/5 (15 reviews)
Grade this page:
Keywords for this post:VegetablesWasteRecoveryAnti-gaspiSustainable developmentLeftovers
Last modified on: May 7th 2022
For this postComments Lasts posts Follow
For this post: Comment Follow Ask me a question Send to a friend
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.

carottes avec fanes

Carrots: With the tops, you can make a pesto out of the beaten track where they will replace the basil out of season, think to put about 2 times more than basil.


navets avec fanes

Turnips: Try a"total turnip" where you will see that everything in the turnip is good.

betteraves avec fanes

Beets: In my opinion, the best beet tops ever, with a distinctive taste.
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
With vinegar?
With vinegar?
When you buy a jar of pickles labeled “in vinegar,” you’re looking for their tangy, crunchy flavor to go with cold cuts, sandwiches, or salads. You expect to find small gherkins preserved in vinegar, with salt and herbs, but is that really the case?
July 15th 20261,5634.8
Congratulate the chef
Congratulate the chef
You've just finished a meal that you really enjoyed. The server approaches with the usual question: “How was it?” And then, as a natural reflex, you simply reply, “Yes, it was very good.” However, when the meal was truly outstanding, this brief exchange deserves a little more. .
July 7th 20261,019 25
Cut twice as fast
Cut twice as fast
When you need to cut something long into small pieces, for example chopped chives or the stem of a spring onion, there's a simple gesture that doubles your cutting speed. Let's see how.
May 21th 20262,4215
The other use for bowl scraper
The other use for bowl scraper
Your kitchen or bakery utensils may include a horn (left) or a pastry cutter (right). These practical utensils are normally used to scoop the contents of a bowl or salad bowl - the horn - or to cut dough - the pastry cutter. But they also have another, very practical use - let's see what it is.
May 9th 20262,1663
The strange foam of potatoes in milk
The strange foam of potatoes in milk
As you may have already noticed, when you cook potatoes in milk, especially in small pieces (slices or cubes) for a gratin for example, a surprisingly abundant white foam forms on the surface. Where does it come from?
April 26th 20262,5215
Other articles you might also like
The 3 secrets of successful mousses
The 3 secrets of successful mousses
When you make a traditional mousse, that is to say without using a siphon, whatever the recipe, it's always the same principle: on one side you have a dense mixture, very tasty, and on the other side egg whites beaten until stiff. All the difficulty of the success of a mousse, it will be to mix the...
April 3rd 202111 K4.6
A memo of utensil weights
A memo of utensil weights
You will no doubt have come across this problem while cooking: after starting a recipe, when you already have some ingredients in a pan and have maybe cooked them, you need to know the weight of the pan's contents so that you can take half out, or add the same weight of sugar, for example.
May 9th 201129 K4.6
The art of the charlotte
The art of the charlotte
In cooking, a charlotte is a delicious moulded dessert, with biscuits around the outside that have been soaked in a flavoured syrup, filled with a light cream or mousse. The charlotte is left to set in the fridge before being turned out and served in slices. It is very light and a lovely sweet...
February 27th 201348 K4.3
85 grams of eggs?
85 grams of eggs?
Some time ago, I already spoke to you about the difference between baking and pastry-making, I emphasized, among other things, the precision of pastry-making which requires grams, cm, degrees and minutes. That's why, on the one hand, you have baking and cooking, where a certain tolerance is...
November 26th 201859 K4.6
The proper use of a pastry bag
The proper use of a pastry bag
Ever used a pastry bag? Handy, isn't it, but unfortunately not very easy to fill. In fact, to be comfortable with this tool, you'd need 3 or 4 arms, which isn't very common. Does that mean it's a goner? No, of course not. Here are 2 or 3 tips to help you get comfortable with it.
December 5th 202010 K4.7
Post a comment or question
Posted by
I am not a leaving thing
Follow this page

Receive an e-mail as soon as this page is modified or receives a new comment.

I am not a leaving thing
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.

Back to top of page