Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Potatoes vs. turnips: I made a stew this past weekend and substituted turnips for the white potatoes in the recipe. They look like potatoes (when peeled and diced), and they almost taste like them. My husband was happy. How do turnips compare nutritionally to potatoes?

Jennifer Huget: Potatoes have enjoyed a recent rehabilitation after years of being shunned by the low-carb crowd. We now know that the humble potato packs a powerful nutritional punch. A single boiled white potato (with skin) does contain about 22 grams of carbohydrates. But it also has only about 100 calories, no fat and a fair amount of fiber (about 2 grams). Potatoes are regarded as strong sources of vitamin B6, potassium, copper and manganese. Surprisingly, a single potato delivers about a fifth of your daily value of Vitamin C.

As for turnips, a cup of boiled cubes of this cruciferous root vegetable has just about 35 calories and 8 grams of carbohydrates. No fat here, either, and the turnip offers a tad more fiber -- 3 grams -- than the potato. Turnips deliver some calcium, Vitamin B6, iron, phosphorus, manganese and potassium, plus a whopping 30 percent of your daily value of vitamin C.

Calorie for calorie, turnips appear to trump taters -- if, in fact, you (and your husband) like the way they taste. Otherwise, the potato's no piker, and you should feel good about adding a few to your stew, provided you include the skin, which features most of the potato's Vitamin C and half of its fiber.

Richmond: About a month ago I bought some pork chops on sale and put them in the freezer. On Sunday we defrosted them and were struck by the fact that they smelled like seafood! We decided to bake them anyway. The odor lessened after cooking but was still noticeable. How did they taste? Like pork chops.

Neither of us got sick. Last night I took a leftover out of the refrigerator, and once again it smelled like seafood. Still tasted like pork, and I am fine today.

I'd never experienced that before, and I'm wondering how crazy we were to eat it. Thoughts?

Joe Yonan: I bet that your pork chops weren't going bad at all but instead picked up those seafood odors from the refrigerator. Did you by chance defrost them in the same compartment where you recently defrosted or stored seafood? Or, given your leftovers issue, perhaps your entire fridge might be in need of some odor removal. Stick your head in and take a whiff.

If that's the problem, you've got a little cleaning to do. It's a bit of a process, but it could be worth it. According to the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service, you should:

· Dispose of any spoiled or questionable food.

· Remove shelves, crispers and ice trays, wash them thoroughly with hot water and detergent, and rinse with a solution of 1 tablespoon bleach per gallon of water.

· Leave the door open for about 15 minutes to let air circulate.

If the odor remains, the service has several other recommendations, including wiping down the fridge with a vinegar-water solution, setting out trays of baking soda or coffee grounds or using a commercial product. For more information, go to http://www.fsis.usda.gov and search for "removing refrigerator odor."

Jennifer Huget's column Eat, Drink and Be Healthy appears every Tuesday in the Health section.