HORSERADISH

Hi..

Was wondering if anyone has ever 'done' Horseradish ?

There's lots around and I would like to try ... but .. if it's too time consumming I won't bother.


Thanks

~M~

'done' as in fixed it? Not yet, but am growing it for the first time this year and I love to eat it.

Yep .. I'd like to try my hand at making some .. perhaps I'll Google it :-) Never thought of that.

The Horseradish I have is pretty much wild .. so I wonder if that means it would have a bit more 'bite' to it ?

Good luck with yours.


:o)

~M~

it's pretty easy actually.. it's not hot until it gets air when you ass vinegar it stops getting hotter. pull a piece of root off, pop it in a food processor (outside) as soon an you start mincing it it starts to get hot. I go 30 seconds than add vinegar to cover it. some people go 60 seconds and probably longer.

can't live without fresh horseradish
-joe-

I remember my first batch. It's easy, but I was stupid enough to be standing over the blender when I opened it. It felt like somebody rammed a pipe up my nose! Here's a link with some details. http://tomclothier.hort.net/page22.html

I was impressed by the info in the link from Agrinerd. The most important part of the article that I want to reiterate is that the degree of heat is determined by the length of time you wait from peeling the root to adding vinegar to the "raw" root.Also, I would strongly recommend a "microplane" or at least the finer side of a box grater. My recipe follows, the amounts below will yield about 1 1/2 cups, enough h-sauce for 32 oz. of prime rib in our house.
1 cup finely grated horseradish root (loosely packed)
1 cup sour cream
vinegar to desired consistency (approx 2 tablespoons)
sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
Enjoy

Thanks so much for the links and recipe.

I am assuming what we have here in Northern Ontario is 'Wild Horseradish' .. if I were to get VERY serious I might plant the Bohemian .. however, I tend to think that my first attempt will be with the wild brand.

I'll have to go back to the article as I forgot to look for the 'proper' harvesting time ..

Thanks so much for all the great info ~~


~M~

Wow! What informative link ~ thank you! I love horseradish but am not quite ready to mix it with my ice cream as that person does... LOL

MarilynneS ~ I don't recall reading harvest info but have been told Fall is the appropriate time. Perhaps only because no one wants to endure that odor in the summer warmth. 8 )

The link says, "Harvesting is usually not started until a frost has killed off the tops. If harvesting is done before that, tops should be removed with a rotary cutter (mower?) as close to the soil surface as possible. Allow several days between leaf removal and harvest. If bad weather prevents fall harvest, the roots can be harvested the following spring", but since it also mentions using a potato harvester, that may be for a large-scale operation that would benefit from the roots being harvested dormant.

There are a couple other links I've kept around after I spent a day obsessing over horseradish. They aren't as in-depth as the first link, but each has a little more info.

http://www.horseradishplants.com/cgi-bin/store/processing.html

http://www.downthelane.net/horseradish.php

Can one grow horseradish in Texas? Zone 8a and hotter. The link mentions a cold snap, which we generally have here, but how cold?

Horseradish is an extremely hardy weed and mine doesn't really get going until it hits 70 degrees. I would imagine that if you can get a sunny spot in the winter that is shady in your hot summer you could probably grow it all year and rob the root every 6 months.

horseradish can be grown in a 5 gallon bucket .
-joe-

There's a DG article on growing and preparing horseradish here:
http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/1088/

Cool, I have 5 gal. buckets....not much shade at my place!

there is a little bit of heaven in every bit of fresh horseradish.
good luck
-joe-

Do you over-winter the horseradish outside in that bucket jj?

GOSH .. you guys are SO informative :o)
I am looking forward to my First Attempt !!!!

~M~

Terri_emory ~ I am zone 8a and this is my first year growing horseradish. It is growing well (in a half oak barrel) as long as I keep it well watered. It is in the full sun and we have had more than our share of 100° plus days this summer. I will know more at the end of this year as to how well it does. Years ago, I knew an elderly man that grew it in ground. He said the primary thing was our clay like soil tended to rot the roots.

Sorry, I overlooked the harvest info in that good link. Hope I don't have to wait for a hard freeze here. I hate to encourage that ~ LOL

Off to read the other links.

Okay, I gotta grow me some now. The closest thing I can find to home-made (no milk, no sugar, no oil, no "natural flavors") is a brand called "Seminole" at Publix in the meat and seafood section, but it's just too mild. I guess they hit it with vinegar pretty quick to suit the average consumer. I never was an average consumer.

i used to pull it out, trim top and some root and pop it back in. usually between halloween and thanksgiving and again in july. only in july i just trim root and not foliage. I did that for three years and now have five plants that make a jar each twice per year for two years. They are in a 4x6 plot with beets. I dug it out and lined the edges with plastic to keep it contained. it is pretty trouble free as long as the soil is loose enough. I found it doesn't get wide, but long in heavy clay. It is also very difficult to dig out if soil is too hard.. think carrots and carrot soil works best. not too many nutrients - no rocks- and loose enough to dig with your hands and a hand shovel.

Just had a wee boo at the wild horseradish .. gosh .. there's lots of it .. our summer, so far , has been a bit of a bust .. have only had a few very warm days (over 90) .. and rain is SO needed.
It's growing in the dirt :-) no idea of the 'consistency' of this dirt .. but .. I am thinking it's neither clay nor sand .. I tend to think it may be a bit rocky ..
Am going to harvest it in Oct I think .. our Thanksgiving in Canada is the first Monday or Oct. .. OR .. I may wait til Hallowe'en .. but .. that's sort of like playing Russian Roulette, as, it could snow :-(

~M~

wow.. nice. from what i understand it is all very good. I would be out there in a heartbeat if it grew wild. There is something about horseradish. can't get enough of it. it's a love it or hate it king of thing.

As soon as the leaves drop pull it up, chop some off and throw it right back in the hole. it's hard to kill. if a root piece is planted near the surface it will grow.. at home never till it. you will spread it throughout the garden.

Thanks, podster. I'm just getting the veg garden up and going again. I really want to give horseradish a try. And asparagus too.