In Your Share (June 10th edition)

This is Ian showing off some of the beautiful Joi Choi that will be in your share again this week! I know it’s an unfamiliar vegetable for some folks, so there are recipes in your packet and some more ideas below. It can also be confusing to figure out what exactly is the difference between joi, pak, and bok choi or is it choy?  In this case, Joi Choi is actually the variety name. It’s part of a larger class of Brassica rapa Chinensis group which includes similar leafy veggies. The group varies considerably in size, thickness of stem, color and also how spicy they are. Many can be used interchangeably in recipes. Joi Choi is one of our favorites because it grows quickly in the spring and  makes a nice tasty large head. The bright white stems are sweet & crunchy and the dark green leaves have good flavor without being too spicy.

Lots of great ideas & recipes for the choi, other veggies and beans are in this week’s recipe packet which you can download HERE. I had hoped there would kohlrabi in the share this week. It won’t be ready until next week so save the kohlrabi recipes from this packet for next time!

This week your share may include…

• Dry Beans: We’ve ‘ll have some different varieties to choose from including several Borlotti types and  a pretty gold & white bean called called Kenearly Yellow which is popular for baked beans.
• Cilantro: Check out the yummy cilantro-yogurt sauce in your packet this week.
• Choi: Nice big heads of Choi have sweet crunchy wihite ribs and tender leaves. This soba noodle salad is one of my favorites – made it for the crew lunch last week and it was a big hit!
• Garlic: We’re passing out some of our newly harvested Early Chinese Pink this week. The heads look like storage garlic, but they’re much more succulent. They’re not completely cured yet so you should use them sooner rather than later.
• Spinach: The cooler weather keep the spinach happy. The leaves are great in salad or lightly sautéed.
• Spring Onions: Bunches of small onions that are just starting to bulb. Use that bottom like you would a storage onions, and the green tops like scallions.
• Sugar Snap Peas: What can we say about these peas except yum!
• Cayenne Peppers: Dried peppers can be cooked whole with the beans to add a git of spice or grind them to make a bit of homemade chile pepper flakes.
• Hakuri Turnips: I heard folks at the pickup last week were asking for more of these turnips so here you go. The roots make great snacks just raw and are very sweet when roasted. And don’t forget to cook up the greens too!

Coming soon… purple kohlrabi!