Horseradish
Horseradish (Armoracia rusticana)-
Not many vegetables are perennials…the only two that come to mind are horseradish and asparagus (not including fruit). And while horseradish is not native, it is a hardy perennial.
To save you the trouble of looking it up in Wikipedia, horseradish is described thus:
“Horseradish (Armoracia rusticana, syn. Cochlearia armoracia) is a perennial plant of the family Brassicaceae (which also includes mustard, wasabi, broccoli, cabbage, and radish). It is a root vegetable, cultivated and used worldwide as a spice and as a condiment.
“Horseradish grows up to 1.5 meters (5 feet) tall, with hairless bright green unlobed leaves up to 1 m (3 ft 3 in) long that may be mistaken for docks (Rumex). It is cultivated primarily for its large, white, tapered root.The white four-petalled flowers are scented and are borne in dense panicles. Established plants may form extensive patches and may become invasive unless carefully managed.
“Intact horseradish root has little aroma. When cut or grated, enzymes from within the plant cells digest sinigrin (a glucosinolate) to produce allyl isothiocyanate (mustard oil), which irritates the mucus membranes of the sinuses and eyes. Once exposed to air or heat, horseradish loses its pungency, darkens in color, and develops a bitter flavor.”
And this is interesting:
“Allyl isothiocyanate serves the plant as a defense against herbivores. Since it is harmful to the plant, it is stored in the harmless form of a glucosinolate, separate from the enzyme myrosinase. Once the herbivore chews the plant, the noxious allyl isothiocyanate is produced. Allyl isothiocyanate is also responsible for the pungent taste of horseradish and wasabi. It can be produced synthetically, sometimes known as synthetic mustard oil.”
I assume this is why when you grate fresh, raw horseradish root you can only wait a few minutes before you add vinegar. The longer it sits before you add vinegar, the stronger it gets. Bonus points if you know what a panicle is. I sure didn’t.
Horseradish might be the first of this blog’s “Plants That Seem Alien to this Planet”
We planted the horseradish in 2018. I don’t have a photo from then, but here it is in April 2019
April 2019
May 12, 2019
And below, here it is a year later, May 1, 2020
May 1,2020
On a hot summer day, when it is blooming and the sun hits it square on, it releases some of its volatile mustard oil… you walk by and think, what is that smell!? Yes, it’s horseradish.
A friend of ours asked me what is the right type of soil in which to plant the mighty horseradish. Below is what we planted it in:
It is nothing but backfill that was unceremoniously dumped there when the house’s foundation was poured…about 50% gravel and 50% sandy dirt. It’s porous enough…it has that in its favor. But it don’t make no nevermind to the horseradish which seems happy enough right where it is. It has eastern exposure to the morning sun, but it’s right up tight to the house so it gets shade half the day and doesn’t get much rain. Despite all that the leaves do grow almost tropically large.
And below, a photo showing horseradish “bolting” or flowering.
It originally shared a bed with hostas and Bleeding Heart (Dicentra). The horseradish has taken over the bed.
Here it is in full leaf from last year, May 12, 2025
Below are a few photos while I was processing some horseradish root out in the workshop instead of in the kitchen so the fumes wouldn’t force the evacuation of the house:
It’s great with beef. This is “prepared” horseradish which is pretty much straight up horseradish with vinegar and salt. Don’t confuse it with “horseradish sauce” which has sour cream or mayonnaise or some other creamy stuff added. In case you haven’t tried horseradish, it has the same sort of zingy, hot, sharpness as Japanese Wasabi (which is a different type of horseradish?) If you haven’t tried either…well, it might be time to expand your culinary horizons. It’s pretty potent…a little dab’ll do ya.
The recipe I used for “prepared” horseradish is missing/misfiled? Next time I make horseradish I will go back to this blog entry and append the recipe. If you care to send us your favorite recipe please do so [SedgesandCelery email link here]. And take it easy on me…the simpler the better. And I’m not looking for “creamy” horseradish sauce (though I do like that too 🙂 ).
