A Guide to Different Types of Radishes

Radishes are a tasty and healthy vegetable that many of us add to fresh salads. However, few of us know that, just like with many other plants, there are many varieties of this vegetable.

5-Minute Crafts wants to guide you through what types of radishes exist.

French Breakfast

This is a popular old variety with cylindrical roots. Its texture is crispy with a strong and peppery taste. It can be grown both in the sun and in partial shade. It’s important to thin out this type of radish crop because these plants make new leaves at the expense of usable roots.

Plum Purple

This type can be recognized by its appearance — it has unusual purple skin. The flesh has a white color. The taste of a “plum purple” radish is sweet, with distinguishable spicy notes.

Bartender Mammoth

Radishes of this type resemble a pink-colored carrot. It can grow up to 9″ long and will resemble carrots by shape but, still, it’s not a carrot. Its taste surprisingly combines freshness and spiciness. It can be marinated, stewed, fried, or eaten raw.

Tsukushi Spring Cross

This is the Asian version of a European radish. The roots of this variety have an oblong shape that resembles a Bartender Mammoth to some extent, however, its skin can have a different color, not necessarily pink. They are perfect for long winter storage.

Mirabeau

This is a type of slightly oblong radish with a bright-pink base and white ends. Just like with other varieties, the texture of these radishes is quite crispy with a pleasant peppery flavor.

Helios Radish

When looking at these radishes it becomes instantly clear what qualities this type got its name for. Not only does this vegetable have edible roots but also leaves that are bright green with purple veins, which look perfect in salads. The Helios Radish withstands heat well but if you let it grow to a big size, it’s likely that the roots will take on a bitter taste.

Round Black Spanish

This variety can be planted at the end of summer and collected in autumn so you can enjoy radishes until winter. Black radishes don’t require a long light day and high temperatures to ripen, that’s why the end of summer and the beginning of fall is the perfect time for growing them. The skin of this variety has a rather unusual attractive color, while the pulp becomes creamy when cooked and takes on sweet peppery undernotes.

Dragon’s Tail

This variety is good for those who like to experiment because, in the case of these radishes, you should use the seedpods and not the roots. This Asian aerial radish reaches up to 50 inches long, gets covered with flowers, and then with thin purple seedpods that later are picked for eating. They are quite crispy with a spicy flavor.