Speaking of Horseradish ...

[Leon m]

I finally get it !...for most my life I never understood how people could eat that stuff. My Mom used to grow it, and every now and then she would try to sneak it into our food to get us to like it...didn't work...for one thing there is no such thing as "sneaking" horseradish into anything. I always thought it had a harsh taste, kinda like some industrial chemicle. That was until a couple of months ago when my boss bought us lunch from my favorite delly. She got us each a roast beef sandwich smothered in a creamy horseradish sauce ( I think the key here is the creamy part).So now I'm hooked on the stuff, it is my new favorite sandwich,and I order it with extra sauce.

So anybody have a good recipe for creamy horseradish sauce?

[paladin]

first...start with horseradish...

Peel 1-2 pounds of horseradish root and cover with cold water. Squeeze a lemon into the water and let the horseradish soak for 30 minutes or so. This will keep it from turning brown. Drain off the water and chop the horseradish very fine, a food processor helps. Spoon the horseradish into half pint glass jars and top each with 1 tsp. salt. Pour distilled white vinegar, or half white vinegar and half cider vinegar, into jars to cover horseradish completely. Screw on caps, let cool at room temperature, and refrigerate.

1-2 pounds of horseradish root
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup cider vinegar
1 tsp salt
1 lemon


to make sauce...
2 Tbsp. mayonnaise
2 Tbsp. sour cream
1-2 Tbsp. horseradish
1/2 tsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. chopped parsley
dash paprika




Mix all ingredients together well. Refrigerate until served.

[Leon m]

Mmmmm, sounds great...Thanks!

[Donn]

I keep a veggie baggie of roots in the fridge. When I need some, I take out a root, and grate it with one of those micro-plane gizmos from Lee Valley.

I typically don't mix it with anything for beef, just spoon the shredded root straight onto the beef.

For seafood, I mix the shredded root 50/50 with Ketchup.

For pork and lamb, I mix it 50/50 with poupon mustard.

SWMBO is a sauce freak. She's always trying out some new concoction on me, especially with horseradish. They're usually ok, and occasionally excellent, but frequently not enough root for my taste.

PS..I'm digging fresh root tomorrow. 1.5" of warm rain and 50F should have thawed the ground sufficiently.

[Norman Bernstein]

For the traditional Yiddish version, grate in a little beet, enough to give it a deep red color.

[paladin]

for seafood, I mix it 50/50 with Heinz chili sauce....haven't tried the mix with poupon....got a couple of lamb chops for dinner tonight...think I'll try it...

[Donn]

If you want to really make your head sweat, mix it 50/50 with McIlhenny's. :eek:

[TomF]

Horseradish has a reputation for mistaking an effort to harvest the roots for propogation. Once in the garden, always in the garden.

I've never grown it - do the actual growing habits live up to the press reports, Donn?

[Donn]

They sure do. I root prune the perimeter of my horseradish patch twice a year, to keep it in bounds.

When I dig it, I replant 1/2" thick sections in the space I've dug. I mix a bunch of compost into the bed and cover it with a soaker hose and 3" of mulch. Inside a month, I'll have new foliage breaking ground.

[Hughman]

I scrub a pile of roots with a green scrub pad to clean, then dice, then grind in a blender with cider vinegar and salt - and sometimes garlic - to make a paste.

A quart lasts all winter without much loss of flavor. Make sure you use glass with a plastic lid - metal lids last about a week.

This will dress a steak nicely, and mixes with ketchup for cocktail sauce.

I think this ends up stronger than just grated, IMHO.

[Donn]

I think this ends up stronger than just grated, IMHO.

I have to disagree with this. When you shred horseradish, and the ground root comes into contact with air, an enzyme action which creates the heat takes place, and continues building heat until you hit it with the vinegar (or mix it with Ketchup). The vinegar stops the process, and it can't get any hotter.

The hottest root is shredded, and spread out on a plate for a period of time before being eaten. There's a fine line between when it's hot enough to suit and when it starts to go brown. The finer you shred it, the more surface can contact air, and the hotter it'll get.

Next time you grind some up, try this: Take a few scoops out before you add the vinegar et al. Spread them out on a plate, and stir them up with a fork every few minutes. Taste it each time you stir it. You'll notice a definate increase in heat each time.

If you really want to go nuts, and create the hottest possible root, you have to expose the young growing root and prune off lateral roots. Do this 2-3 times a few weeks apart, and you'll force a straight fat single root that is far hotter and better tasting than the smaller roots which develop if the laterals are left to grow.

[Hughman]

I have to disagree with this. When you shred horseradish, and the ground root comes into contact with air, an enzyme action which creates the heat takes place, and continues building heat until you hit it with the vinegar (or mix it with Ketchup). The vinegar stops the process, and it can't get any hotter.

The hottest root is shredded, and spread out on a plate for a period of time before being eaten. There's a fine line between when it's hot enough to suit and when it starts to go brown. The finer you shred it, the more surface can contact air, and the hotter it'll get.

Next time you grind some up, try this: Take a few scoops out before you add the vinegar et al. Spread them out on a plate, and stir them up with a fork every few minutes. Taste it each time you stir it. You'll notice a definate increase in heat each time.

If you really want to go nuts, and create the hottest possible root, you have to expose the young growing root and prune off lateral roots. Do this 2-3 times a few weeks apart, and you'll force a straight fat single root that is far hotter and better tasting than the smaller roots which develop if the laterals are left to grow.

Thanks for the insight. I have grated horshradish directly onto the steak, and been able to retain my skull intact rather easily. Perhaps the blender process speeds up the O2 reaction, usually done before the vinegar is added.

Because Horseradish is fibrous, the root needs to be cut into thin slices, or the blender can't deal with it, unless one has a custom V8 turbo model...:D

[Donn]

The science behind the heat is pretty interesting, but if you plan to read it aloud, you'd better slap a splint on your tongue first.

An intact cell of horseradish root contains two glucosinolates (isothiocyanates); sinigrin and gluconasturtiin.

When the cell wall is broken, these substances begin an enzymatic hydrolysis yielding two volatiles called allyl isothiocyanate and 2-phenylethyl isothiocyanate.

That's the heat, and it's the same stuff found in Mustard, Wasabi, Rocket, Cress and other related plants. Vinegar, and a variety of other additives, stops the hydrolysis in it's tracks, suspending the heat level at that point, unless more intact cells are broken open. It also preserves the stuff, slowing or preventing browning.

If you watch a serious horseradish addict eating a steak, you'll notice he applies a bit of the freshly shredded root to each bite of meat. That's because heat also stops the hydrolysis. Sometimes, you'll see him take a dab of root on a table knife, and crush it with another table knife. That's to break more cell walls. After a minute, it's slapped on the bite, and et. Two spoons work, as well.