Roasted Radishes & Garlic Scapes with Dill

Diversify your radish game with roasted radishes. Roasting takes radishes from crisp and peppery to caramelized and meaty in under 30 minutes. And for any low-carb fans, swap these for roasted potatoes. Ten radishes clock in at about 1g carbs. I googled that just for you.

Roasted Radishes

The first time I ever roasted radishes is when I participated in my first CSA. This was way back before I even knew how to grow a radish! I wasn’t used to cooking with as many vegetables as was currently filling up my weekly box. Radishes were just lovely raw, but I wanted to try something new. 

So, I did what any reasonable person would do, and googled radish recipes. I came across a recipe for roasted radishes. As a person who feels adding “roasted” before a word instantly makes it sound more delicious, I thought I’d give it a go. What I didn’t realize is that saying you are roasting something and successfully roasting something are two different things. I wasn’t yet very experienced with vegetables, and my roasted radishes turned out pretty bleh.

Fast forward a few years, and I now grow over 100 varieties of fruits and vegetables, including a number of radishes. I’ve learned a thing or two about perfectly roasted radishes, and I’m here to share them with you.

5 Rules for Perfectly Roasted Radishes

1. Small enough pieces. Halve small radishes and quarter larger radishes. They contain a lot of water, so smaller pieces mean better browning.
2. Long enough roasting time. Roast those babies until they’re browned and delicious, OK? For me, that’s around 20 minutes, but maybe your radishes are bigger. Or smaller. Or just right? Don’t be afraid to open the oven, peak at the color, and pop one in your mouth. Is it delicious? You’re done.
3. Hot enough oven. I think 425 is juuuust right. 
4. Enough seasoning. Don’t be shy with the salt. My belief is that too much salt in our diets comes from processed food (not from seasoning home-cooked veggies). I love garlic salt for spectacular flavor.
5. Enough fat. Depending on dietary preferences, either olive oil or butter are excellent choices.

Garlic Scapes

Because they’re in season, I also threw in garlic scapes. Not sure what garlic scapes are? Scapes, or garlic shoots, are the stalks that grow from the bulbs of hardneck garlic plants. I wrote about them many moons ago here. You can usually find them at farmers’ markets this time of year, and our local co-op has even been supplying them! Exciting stuff for local, seasonal eating. If you can’t find them, though, no worries. Toss in some minced garlic after roasting. What a treat 🙂 

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