No. 808

Radishes, Black, and Red

Radis Noirs et Roses

For the Black Radishes.—Choose very tender ones being careful that they are not hollow, peel them by removing the black rind, then cut in fine slices across, and lay them in a soup plate with a little salt; cover with another plate, and toss the radishes between the two; fifteen minutes after, drain off the water and season with a little oil, vinegar and pepper, and toss them again between the two plates; range them on side dishes. After the radishes are sliced, pieces as large as can be obtained may be cut from them with a round vegetable cutter; this gives them a finer and more even appearanee.

For Red Radishes.—Cut off the roots, and also the outside leaves, leaving on two or three of the prettiest, smallest, and greenest. Lay the radishes in cold water, taking them out half an hour later, and wash carefully, so that no earth adheres to them. Imitation tulips can be cut from radishes suing the longer ones for this purpose. Have a small, sharp knife, divide the red peel from the radish into five or six thin pieces, beginning to cut from the bottom, and slipping the knife behind the skin as far as the stem; shape each piece on the tip into a point, at the stalk of the radish; then lay them on a side dish with a few pieces of ice, and serve fresh butter at the same time.

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For the Modern Kitchen

Two cold hors d'oeuvre from the same page: a dressed black radish salad and red radishes served raw with butter. Neither needs heat, so almost everything rides on the salting and the knife work.

The hinge: salt the black radishBlack radish is aggressively pungent and holds a lot of water. The fifteen minutes under salt between two plates draws out both, and the liquid must be poured off before the oil and vinegar go in or the dressing will be thin and harsh.
Sourcing black radishAsk for black Spanish radish or radis noir; it turns up at farmers' markets and in Eastern European groceries in autumn and winter. Daikon can stand in but is far milder, and the salting step then matters less.
Hollow rootsThe warning about hollowness is practical: large overwintered radishes go spongy and pithy at the core. Choose heavy, firm roots and halve one to check before you peel the lot.
Tossing between two platesCupping one soup plate over another and shaking mixes without bruising the slices; a bowl with a lid does the same thing.
The round vegetable cutterA small plain pastry cutter or the wide end of a piping tip, punched through each slice, gives the even discs described. It wastes a fair amount of each slice, which is worth knowing before you buy.
Dressing proportionsNone are given. Three parts oil to one of vinegar, salted lightly because the radishes are already salted, is a workable starting point.
Radish tulipsWork with long French breakfast radishes, keep the knife shallow so the peel stays attached at the stem, and drop the carved radishes into ice water. The cold makes the petals curl back, which is the whole effect.
Butter and iceRed radishes with unsalted butter and coarse salt is still standard in France; the ice is most likely there to keep them crisp on the table. Serve a few per person as part of a spread.

A Little History

Charles Ranhofer compiled The Epicurean (1894) out of decades at Delmonico's in New York, and this entry shows how literally he transplanted French service: radis noirs et roses were a standard opening of the hors d'oeuvre course, set out cold with butter. Black radish had long been the winter root of northern and Eastern Europe, valued because it keeps in a cellar for months, while the small pink and red forcing varieties were a market-garden luxury of spring. The carved tulip belongs to the same nineteenth-century garde-manger tradition as turned vegetables and aspic moulds, where a cheap ingredient earned its place on a rich table through labour rather than cost. Radishes served plain with fresh butter are eaten in exactly that form today.