Horse radish

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Bacpacker

Bacpacker

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I dug up a couple of horse radish plants yesterday. I wanted to remove them from my raised bed before they took it over. Hopefully I got all the roots out. I spent hours digging thru the bed, even down to removing the wood I had put down in the bed before filling with compost.

My question is this: has anyone ever processed a decent amount of horse radish? Any tips? Did you cure it before processing? Would it can or freeze well just as the root form and process just a little as needed? What else am I forgetting to ask?
 
Bacpacker said:
I dug up a couple of horse radish plants yesterday. I wanted to remove them from my raised bed before they took it over. Hopefully I got all the roots out. I spent hours digging thru the bed, even down to removing the wood I had put down in the bed before filling with compost.

My question is this: has anyone ever processed a decent amount of horse radish? Any tips? Did you cure it before processing? Would it can or freeze well just as the root form and process just a little as needed? What else am I forgetting to ask?
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I have a bunch growing on my property. It was planted long ago and is fairly hardy. Cold nor summer heat kills it..its like the cockroach of plants..lol
Personally I dont like eating it..but I do like the plant. It makes for a pretty nice midsize green plant. The cats and chickens will lounge in it on a hot day for shade and it requires very little care from me.
A boy I dated several years ago wanted to can some . He wanted to learn canning too and I suggested this would be our second date activity..lol..
We did end up with at least a dozen jars ..but I would highly advise to NEVER can this inside a home. It was a very cool November day and we had to open every window, fans on and crank up the wood stove to keep warm. Neither of us had sinus issues that night..lol..
 
Sounds fun, @Bacpacker
Once upon a time my husband wanted to process it and he used a food processor in the kitchen on a nice spring day. He was going to use it for making cocktail sauce, having it on hand for sinus issues, etc. That was at least 15 years ago and I have no recollection other than...yeah, like, wear a mask, goggles. 🥽 :good luck: Read everything you can about processing it. Be careful! Keep pets away. LOL Wowzers, he had enough for keeping it on hand for a while. Good stuff.
 
I grind some every year. Not a lot, just a small jar or two, then I freeze what I don't use right away. I use my food processor and grind it very fine. I grind it with vinegar and a little salt. Just remember not to breathe in over the ground horseradish.
My Dad use to grind it with a hand grinder in the back yard, Mom wouldn't let him do it in the house.
The greens are good as a cooked green in the spring. They can be a bit strong and can be mixed with other greens. They are a good plant for "just in case" because of their hardiness.
 
All I can tell ya is that 'Grandma Rose's Cream Horseradish Sauce' (Beaver brand) goes REALLY WELL with BBQ'd steak, but ya gotta use it sparingly, lol... I keep a bottle on the fridge door. It's good on steak or roast beef sandwiches too, but it doesn't take much. I like that 'Ghost Pepper Monterey Jack Cheese' in a steak sandwich too, that stuff is mighty tasty! The NY Strips I BBQ'd on Saturday were delicious, and I still have one left in the fridge, lol... :cool:
 
Read a couple articles today. Both said it would store in the fridge raw and unprocessed for 4-6 months. Frozen much longer. One article used a food processor to grind it up. The other mentioned that, but said it left it chunky and recommended using a microplane to grate it fine. We have both and will try both to see what we like best. I don't plan to do more than a pint at a time, maybe even half pint, put a quart bag of roots in the fridge and divide up the rest into quart bags, vacuum seal, and freeze. I've got enough to likely last a year easy, maybe much more than that. Plus 3 more plants that will grow much larger down in the ground in the lower garden that we'll harvest from for the upcoming years. All work will be done outside, with gloves, eye protection, and maybe a half face respirator if the wind is in the wrong direction
I need to look into cold tonic's. Never heard that before.
 
I smear the top of a pot roast with horseradish. The cooking makes it mild. I use a whole jar on a pot roast.

Horseradish mixed in sour cream for prime rib.

Horseradish mixed with mayo for a sandwich spread.
 
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