I bought my first kohlrabi thinking it was a funny looking turnip. It is not a turnip, and it is not a root at all. It is a swollen stem, the same family as cabbage and broccoli, and it presses into one of the lightest green juices I make. A kohlrabi bulb is roughly 27 calories per 100 g and mostly water, so this is the glass I reach for when I want something cold and green that is not a fruit blend. Two bulbs, one sharp green apple and a lemon is the whole thing, with a small piece of ginger if I want a bit of warmth.
Why these ingredients work
Kohlrabi does the work here. Ounce for ounce it carries more vitamin C than an orange, about 62 mg per 100 g raw against roughly 53 mg for orange flesh, so the two bulbs in this recipe give the glass a real dose without leaning on citrus. It is also low in calories and high in water, which is what makes it a sensible everyday drink rather than a sugar heavy fruit juice. The apple softens the flavour, and the lemon is the thing that stops the glass tasting flat, because kohlrabi on its own can be a little dull and faintly peppery. The leaves are edible and taste like a cross between kale and cabbage, but I trim them off for the juicer, because they are much tougher and far higher in vitamin K than the bulb is.
FAQ
Is kohlrabi juice good for weight loss?
Only in the honest sense. It is a low calorie, high water drink at about 96 calories a glass, most of that from the apple, so it is a lot lighter than a typical fruit juice. Nothing you drink burns fat and no juice speeds up your metabolism. What it does do is give you a cold, filling, low calorie alternative to a fizzy drink or a shop bought smoothie, and that is the only reason it earns a place on the weight loss shelf.
What does kohlrabi juice taste like?
Mild and gently sweet, somewhere between a broccoli stalk, a cucumber and a very soft cabbage, with a faint peppery edge. It is nowhere near as strong as raw cabbage or a kale juice. The apple rounds it off and the lemon keeps it fresh, so even if you are not sure about brassicas it is worth a try.
Can I juice the kohlrabi leaves as well?
You can. They are edible and taste like a light cabbage, but they are tough and stringy in a juicer and they are high in vitamin K. If you take warfarin or another blood thinner, either leave the leaves out or keep your intake steady and tell your clinic, because vitamin K works against those medicines. The bulb itself is one of the few brassicas that is genuinely low in vitamin K, which is worth knowing if you are on a blood thinner and still want a green juice.
More weight loss recipes: see the full Weight Loss collection.
Kohlrabi, Apple and Lemon Juice
Equipment
- Nut milk bag
Ingredients
- 2 kohlrabi bulbs about 300 g, stalks and any leaves trimmed right off, peeled and quartered
- 1 large green apple about 180 g, cored and quartered, skin left on
- 1 unwaxed lemon peeled, or left whole if it is organic
- 1 small piece of fresh ginger about 2 cm, optional, for a little warmth
Instructions
Juicer method
- Trim the short stalks and any leaves right off the kohlrabi bulbs. Peel them if the skin feels thick or tough, then cut each one into wedges that will fit your juicer's feed chute.
- Core and quarter the apple, leaving the skin on, and peel the lemon unless it is organic. Peel the ginger if you are using it.
- Feed the kohlrabi through first, then the apple, then the ginger, and finish with the lemon, alternating the lemon pieces with the rest so the juice keeps moving freely.
- Give the juice a quick stir, pour it into a glass and drink it soon. It is at its best within about 15 minutes and it will separate if it is left standing.
Blender method
- Chop the peeled kohlrabi, the apple, the peeled lemon and the ginger into rough chunks and tip them into the blender with 120 ml of cold water.
- Blend on high for 45 to 60 seconds until there are no solid pieces left.
- Pour the lot into a nut milk bag set over a jug and squeeze it firmly until only dry pulp is left behind.
- Bin the pulp, or keep it for a slaw, then pour the strained juice into a glass and chill it briefly before drinking.