Beetroot

Riverford has converted many a veg phobe, but judging by customer comments, no veg has converted as many as the humble and much-maligned beetroot. Its current renaissance is well deserved as its deep earthy sweetness is full of culinary potential; whether as young, tender, thin-skinned new season beets in June in a salad or thumping barn-stored roots whizzed into a winter borscht. The root is vitamin- and mineral-rich and the tops even more so – if they’re fresh they’re as good as their close relative, chard, and can be used in much the same way but need a bit more cooking.