Skirret

Sium sisarum · Root vegetable

40 pairings

Skirret is the sweet, starchy cluster of slender roots of Sium sisarum, a hardy perennial in the carrot family (Apiaceae). Once a staple winter root across medieval and early-modern Europe — prized as the sweetest of all garden roots — it was eclipsed by the potato and survives today mainly as an heirloom and forager's vegetable.

Picking a good onedrag

Winter-dug, hard, snapping whiteLimp, wrinkled, going soft

Market freshBoil, roast, fry or mash it, or grate a young root raw. A woody core runs through some plants and not others; where a root has one, it lifts out easily after boiling.Everyday best

SkinDuller, a few scuffs, still smooth over the flesh

The snapSnaps under pressure, break face still damp

Smell at the scrubbed skinFaintly sweet, mostly plain soil

What to look for, from winter-dug, hard, snapping white to limp, wrinkled, going soft.

Preparing