25 Most Delicious Turnip Recipes You Need To Try

Turnips are a root vegetable that resembles a radish or beetroot. They are usually eaten cooked, but they also taste great raw.

Turnips are rich in vitamin C, fiber, potassium, folate, iron, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, copper, zinc, selenium, and niacin.

1. Easy Caramelized Roasted Turnips

This is one of those recipes that we love because it makes us feel all warm inside. This roasted turnip dish reminds us of our meals growing up.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss the turnips with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Spread out onto the prepared pan. Roast for about 20 minutes, turning halfway through, until tender but not mushy. Serve warm, topped with lemon wedges. 

2. Garlic Roasted Ranch Turnips

Potatoes aren’t the only star ingredient in this tasty side dish. In fact, it’s got three different kinds of vegetables in it. But don’t worry — there’s nothing too crazy about this low-carb side dish. You’ll find out why in just a moment.

The key to making this dish taste great is roasting the turnips at 400 degrees Fahrenheit. This gives them a nice caramelized flavor while keeping them tender enough to eat like a potato.

Once the turnips are done, take them out of the oven and sprinkle them with Parmesan cheese. If you’re feeling fancy, you could even add some minced rosemary leaves.

When you serve these roasted turnips, everyone will think you spent hours preparing them. And since they’re full of healthy ingredients, there’s really no reason to lie.

3. Sea Salt & Olive Oil Roasted Turnips

Turnips are often overlooked as a vegetable because of their appearance. They look like little white potatoes and can sometimes be mistaken for them.

But when cooked properly, turnips have a sweet flavor and texture, making them a great addition to many dishes.

A good trick to add some depth to turnip flavors is to roast them in a dry pan. This adds a slight smokiness that complements the natural sweetness of the root vegetables.

4. Mashed Turnips Recipe

Turnips are one of our favorite vegetables. They are versatile, nutritious, and delicious. We love them roasted, steamed, boiled, or even fried. But sometimes it is hard to find a good way to cook them.

We came across a few different recipes online for mashed turnips. So we tried some of those recipes and here is what we found.

5. Garlic Mashed Turnips

This recipe combines garlic, butter, salt, pepper, and olive oil into a flavorful sauce that goes great over mashed potatoes. It takes just five minutes to make, and it tastes amazing.

You can use whatever variety of turnip you like; we recommend using larger ones because they tend to cook faster. But don’t worry about peeling them beforehand—the skins come off easily once cooked.

6. Brown Butter Mashed Turnip

This delicious recipe is a great way to use up some leftover holiday turkeys. Browning the butter gives it a rich flavor and makes it extra creamy. Serve this mashed turnip alongside turkey sandwiches or turkey meatloaf.

7. Mashed Turnip and Carrots with Herb Butter

This way of cooking turnips and carrots is perfect for those busy evenings when you don’t have much time for a complex recipe.

You just boil the vegetables separately and mash them together afterward. They are both nutritious, easy to cook and go well with many dishes.

The best thing about this recipe is that you can prepare it in advance. So if you’re having guests over, make enough for everyone.

8. Creamy Turnip Soup

If you are looking for a healthy soup recipe, look no further! This creamy turnip soup is full of flavor, and it is straightforward to make.

You don’t even need to cook the turnips beforehand because they already come pre-cooked. All you have to do is add the spices and let them simmer away.

9. Turnip Green Soup Recipe

This turnip green soup recipe is one of our favorites because it is easy to make and tastes great. We like to add some cheese to ours, but feel free to go without.

You could even use leftover cooked chicken or ham to make this into a main dish. If you don’t want to make your own stock, you can always purchase a good quality store-bought variety.

10. Chickpea, Turnip, and Lemon Soup

This chickpea, turnip, and lemon soup is one of our favorites because it feels indulgent without being too heavy.

You could easily make this into a main dish by adding some grilled chicken breast, or even add some ground beef and serve it over pasta.

We love the flavor combination of lemons and garlic, but if you don’t have those ingredients, use regular white wine vinegar instead. If you want to make this vegan, just skip the cheese and use vegetable broth instead.

11. Parmesan Crusted Crushed

The holidays are here, and it’s time to start planning what to cook for dinner. One delicious way to prepare yourself for the upcoming festivities is to whip up some mashed potatoes.

But there’s nothing wrong with taking things one step further and adding some crushed turnips to the mix. This recipe combines both mashed potatoes and turnips into a hearty side dish.

12. Roasted Turnips with Honey

Roasting turnips brings out their natural sweetness and takes away some of their sharpness. This makes them perfect for serving alongside roast chicken, pork, or beef.

You can use small red or white turnips here. Try to buy larger ones because they are less likely to break apart during cooking.

13. Root Vegetable Gratin

This recipe combines six different root vegetables into one delicious side dish. This gratin is a great way to use up those leftover roots you might have lying around.

You can make this ahead of time and bake it later. Or serve it straight out of the oven. Either way, it makes for a hearty meal.

14. Lemony Lentil Turnip Chowder

This lentil turnip soup is one such pairing. We’ve always been intimidated by turnip recipes because they can be so complex.

They are often served boiled, mashed, sautéed, or roasted. And while those methods work great, there’s nothing wrong with serving them raw. If you want to try it out, here is a recipe that may turn it all around for you!

15. Pan Fried Turnips Recipe with Onions and Spinach

Turnip greens are often overlooked, but this vegetable is packed with nutrients like vitamin A, vitamin K, folate, fiber, and potassium.

And they’re super easy to grow yourself! You just plant seeds in early spring and wait for baby turnips to pop up. Once they do, cut them off and store them in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. They keep well for about five days.

16. Turnip Fried Rice

This recipe is perfect for people who want to eat healthier without giving up flavor. It’s filled with protein and fiber and tastes like comfort food. You’ll love how easy it is to make.

17. Turnip Dhal

This version makes enough for three meals. If you want to serve it with something else, add cooked chickpeas, potatoes, cauliflower, carrots, or spinach.

To keep things interesting, you could switch out the spices. Try adding cumin seeds, curry leaves, mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, or freshly ground black pepper. Or, swap in garam masala for the chaat masala.

18. Grilled Hakurei Turnips and Radishes

Turnips and radishes are both members of the brassica family. They look very different, but they taste pretty much the same. If you’ve ever had one, you know what we’re talking about.

For this recipe, you’ll want to use either a hibachi grill or a regular outdoor grill. You could even do it inside if you wanted to, although I’d suggest using a charcoal grill.

19. Grilled Turnips with Dill Olive Oil

The trickiest part about making these are getting the turnip cut into neat little pieces. You don’t want to use too big of the knife, because you want to keep the core intact. If you try to slice it too thin, it won’t cook evenly.

When you’re done, you’ll have a beautiful dish of charred turnips. And best of all, no one will know it isn’t actually baked!

20. Beet and Turnip Gratin

This recipe for beet and turnip gratin is easy to make and absolutely delicious. The combination of sweet beets and earthy turnips creates a beautiful contrast.

Plus, you don’t even have to peel the vegetables. Cut them into thin slices and toss them with olive oil and salt.

Spread them out onto a baking sheet and roast them in a 400 °F oven for about 30 minutes. Remove them from the oven and let cool slightly.

Once cooled, add some freshly ground black pepper and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

21. Raw Turnip Salad

We love a fresh raw turnips salad! This simple dish is a go-to side for us when we’re looking for something light, yet full of nutrition. It’s also quick and effortless.

All you’ll have to prepare is some chopped-up vegetables, then toss them all together in a bowl with some lemon juice, olive oil, and salt.

You could also experiment with the acid component and try rice vinegar, white wine vinegar, or even apple cider vinegar.

22. Cinnamon Apple Turnip Soup

This fall soup is perfect for those chilly days when you just want something warm and comforting (see also ‘30 Fall Soups To Get You Into The Cozy Spirit‘).

This recipe combines some of our favorite flavor combinations — apple, cinnamon, and turnip — into one bowlful. We love how it makes use of both sweet and savory ingredients, while still remaining light and healthy.

23. Root Vegetable Hash with Eggs

Turnips are one of those vegetables that people either love or hate. They’re high in vitamin C, potassium, and fiber, but some folks just don’t like the taste. If you fall into that camp, we’ve got good news: turnip hash is delicious.

This recipe calls for three kinds of root veggies — turnips, potatoes, and onions — but feel free to use whatever you want. We recommend trying it with sweet potato fries too.

24. Roasted Turnip Hummus

This recipe uses roasted turnips instead of chickpeas. They’re less spicy and sweeter than regular hummus. Serve it over pita chips or crackers.

25. Chinese Turnip Cake

We love how versatile these little cakes are because they can go well with almost anything. And since they don’t contain eggs, they’re perfect for vegans.

These cakes are a must for those who want to impress guests with their culinary skills. You can serve them hot or cold, depending on what’s best for you. But if you’d like to make them ahead of time, be warned: it takes some preparation.

26. Miso Roasted Japanese Turnips

Miso is one of those ingredients that seems to go well with everything. We love it on rice, noodles, steamed vegetables, grilled meats, etc.

But it’s especially good with Japanese turnips. They’re super easy to make and full of flavor.

27. Middle Eastern Pickled Turnips

Pickles are one of those foods that everyone loves, but few people make well. We’ve tried many recipes over the years, and we’re still looking for something that works every single time.

So we thought we’d give it another go, and came across these Middle Eastern pickled turnips.

28. Crunchy Ice Water Salad

We’ve been hearing about the health benefits of drinking lots of water since the beginning of time. But did you know that there are actually some health benefits to eating a salad?

In fact, according to a study published in Nutrition Journal, people who eat salads tend to weigh less and live longer than those who don’t.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Do Turnips Taste Like?

Turnips are one of those vegetables you probably don’t think about much unless it’s the dreaded Brussels sprouts. But did you know there are actually three types of turnips?

They come in white, yellow, and purple varieties. And each type has different tastes and textures.

A small turnip can range anywhere from 2 inches to 3 inches long, and it is usually found in grocery stores. Larger turnips are often sold in farmers’ markets.

Purple turnips are smaller than regular turnips, and they tend to be sweeter and milder tasting.

White turnips are generally bigger than yellow ones, and they have a stronger taste. Yellow turnips are considered to be the best-tasting variety.

How To Pick A Good Turnip

The best way to pick a good turnip is to buy it whole. This allows you to see exactly what you’re getting. If you don’t like the look of the turnip, just cut off the part you don’t want.

Next, check out the size. White turnips tend to be smaller than purple ones, and they often come in bunches.

Finally, look for a firm texture. A soft one indicates that the turnip hasn’t been stored long enough to develop flavor.

Final Thoughts

There are so many ways to enjoy turnips. From soups to stews to side dishes, there are endless possibilities. If you have any favorite recipes, feel free to combine them with one of these to make a super turnip recipe today!