We’re roasting our radishes

And sautéing them. And grilling them. And pickling them.

Welcome back to a little series called The Recipe Files, where I share all the recipes I’ve been saving for every bit of in-season produce. Lately, we’ve been gorging ourselves on asparagus, but there’s a lot more ground to cover before we get to the tomatoes and corn. I’ll be back later in the week with our regularly scheduled podcast conversation—did you catch the recent episodes with dream guests Noor Murad and Hailee Catalano? Have you heard the one with Melissa Clark?

Radishes can be a revelation. The raw, crunchy bite may be almost too peppery, but cut and smear the thing with butter, and you’re in business. Shards of nutty parmesan work well too.

Still, it’s roasting that really converted me into a radish lover—the mustardy bite of those little roots gets tamed to a sweetness that’s not far off from turnips or even parsnips. This spring, I’m vowing to cook more radishes, so I’ve been hunting for recipes.

Here are a bunch (sorry) that have caught my eye.

Matt & Ted Lee’s Radish Butter (The Kitchn)
Kay Chun’s Roasted Salmon With Peas and Radishes (NYT Cooking, gift link)
Anna Jones’s Roasted Radishes with Dates and Preserved Lemon (The Guardian)
Elizabeth Stark’s Grilled Radishes With Mint and Lime (Brooklyn Supper)
Melina Hammer’s Tonnato Toast with Colorful Radishes
Hailee Catalano’s Radishes Piccata (Cafe Hailee)
Hetty Lui McKinnon’s Miso Butter-Glazed Radishes with Rice Noodles (To Vegetables, With Love)
Georgia Levy’s Pickle and Dill Chicken With Roasted Radishes and Sour Cream (The Guardian)
Daniel Gritzer’s Butter-Glazed Roasted Radishes With Fresh Herbs (Serious Eats)
Green Tea Noodles With Sake-Pickled Radishes (excerpted from Ottolenghi Comfort)
Samin Nosrat’s Herb and Radish Salad With Feta and Walnuts (NYT Cooking, gift link)
Alex Raij’s Radishes with Vanilla Butter and Salt (Food52)
Andrea Bemis’s Honey and Soy Glazed Radishes (Dishing Up the Dirt)
Carolina Gelen’s Baked Radishes With Lemon and Rosemary (Instagram)
Genevieve Ko’s Radishes With Sesame Salt (LA Times Cooking)
Fuchsia Dunlop’s Sweet and Sour Radishes (Cooks Without Borders)
Lish Steiling’s Triple Pea Salad With Radishes and Cheddar (The Kitchn)
Nigel Slater’s Watermelon, Coppa, and Pickled Radishes (The Guardian)
Nadine Brown’s Roasted Radish and Peanut Salad (Olive)
Kay Chun’s Spaghetti with Radish-Greens Pesto (Food + Wine)
Nancy Singleton Hachisu’s Radish, Goat Cheese, and Cilantro Salad (Saveur)
April Bloomfield’s Steamed and Raw Radish Salad with Kimchi and Sesame (Food52)
Andrea Albin’s Romano Risotto With Radishes (Gourmet / Epicurious)

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A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR

New Challenge Butter Cubes are designed for easy measuring and less-mess cooking, whether you’re preparing a simple spring vegetable sauté or finishing a pot of pasta.

This week, one reader of The Dinner Plan can win a gift package of four pounds of these new Challenge Cubes in your choice of salted or unsalted.

Here’s how to enter:

1. Make sure you’re subscribed to The Dinner Plan. (Free subscribers can enter this giveaway.)

2. Click the heart icon at the top or bottom of this newsletter.

3. Leave a comment below. Are you a salted butter person? Or unsalted all the way?

Giveaway winner will be alerted by DM and email—be sure to check your messages! U.S. addresses only—sorry, we can’t ship butter to Alaska or Hawaii. 18+, no purchase necessary. Giveaway not sponsored or administered by Substack. Ends Monday, May 12, 2025.

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Call in your fridge!

At the end of every episode of The Dinner Plan podcast, my illustrious guest and I play a voice memo from a listener—and that listener could be you.

Want a great cookbook author to help you figure out what to make for dinner? Just record a voice memo or mp3 telling us your first name, location, and a few things you have in your fridge/freezer/pantry. About 30 seconds is ideal. Send it to thedinnerplanpod@gmail.com.

Thanks for your help!