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Jan232020

French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast

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French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast
French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast

Find the recipe card at the end of the post. Make sure to read the content as it contains chef tips, substitution options, answers to FAQs to help you succeed the first time around!

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A classic French snack of just 4 ingredients that is a surprisingly delicious, elegant lunch or snack treat that takes 5 minutes to make!

While this technically is a recipe as it’s a list of ingredients and a set of steps to create a result, it’s probably the EASIEST thing you’ll ever “make”.

French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast

Radishes are one of those vegetables that rarely get the limelight. Most think of them as that added bit of extra heat or color that’s on a salad bar. Well, I’m here to show you that radishes are incredible and are a true showstopper!

We were fancy and didn’t know it!

This dish is something I grew up eating however it wasn’t until 9th-grade French class did I find out that this was actually a classic French snack.

Growing up on 41 acres we grew almost all of our fruits and vegetables. Radishes were always in our garden. My job was to pluck them from the soil, shake ’em clean and hand them over to Mom.

Being as picky as I was, I refused to try them as they weren’t potatoes or corn. But then my Mom brought out the bread and butter (she knew my weakness) and it was all she wrote!

By toasting up fresh bread, slathering on creamy butter, topping it with a few slices of radishes, and finishing with salt, I was introduced to one of the best snacks ever!

French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast

Ingredients needed to make this AMAZING snack

  • 1 bunch French Breakfast Radishes, washed and leaves/roots removed *Save the leaves – see below!
  • 1 stick European butter, unsalted *you can use regular butter but the European butter has a more rich flavor
  • Finishing Salt Flakes or Fleur de Sel
  • Toasted baguette or rustic bread slices

If your store doesn’t carry those radishes, you can order them online using the link above or use another radish variety.

French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast

Radish varieties

For years I only ever knew about those round, red radishes with leafy green tops. It wasn’t until later on when ingredients became more readily available and I was in more of a commercial food setting did I become educated on the wide variety of radishes.

Most of us equate those “common” radishes with heat or a bite. Those do work in this recipe but honestly, my favorite to use are French Breakfast Radishes.

My friends from Melissa’s Produce sent me recently a box of produce to sample of which included were these radishes.

French breakfast radishes are milder in flavor and almost sweet. They definitely don’t have that heat punch we’re used to. They are perfect in this recipe.

French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast

Not all salts are the same

I’m sure most of you have heard of Finishing Salt Flakes or Fleur de Sel and Maldon Sea Salt. These are drastically different than Kosher or regular table (iodized salt). While Mom only ever used iodized (as that’s all we had), trust me when I say that you really don’t want to use that in this recipe.

Invest in quality salt. Both Finishing Salt Flakes,  Fleur de Sel, and Maldon Sea Salt are what’s known as “Finishing salts”. They are put on right before serving a dish to add that last bit of flavor elevation of a bright and clean profile.

While most folks use them interchangeably, they are different.

  • Fleur de Sel is bright and oceanic. It’s “moist” in the sense that the flakes stick together a bit. This keeps the salt from dissolving instantly on the tongue which allows the flavor to be more long-lasting. It also has a more grayish hue due to the minerals in the ocean(s) it’s harvested from.
  • Maldon Sea Salt is dry. Thus when it hits the tongue, it tends to melt faster. This salt is also stark white like regular salt due to how it’s processed.

French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast

In my pics, my salt looks white but it’s actually more of a light gray in person.

However, if all you have is Maldon Sea Salt, you can most certainly use this in the recipe!

French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast

How to make Toasted Bread Slices (crostini)

You can use any baguette or rustic country bread.

  1. Slice the bread on an angle to get elongated slices.
  2. Brush one side lightly with olive oil and place it on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
  3. Bake the bread at 400F for 6-8 minutes or until the tops start to toast lightly.
  4. Remove from the oven, brush the other side with the remaining oil and bake for another 5-7 minutes. Remove from the oven when done.

The bread should be toasted but not super hard.

Presentation/Assembling your toast

Now if you’ve never had this before OR your guests haven’t either, I find it easier to make a few up, place it on a tray and leave the rest set up on a board for folks to make themselves. I find it to be prettier and more elegant.

However, it’s totally OK if you want to make them all up ahead of time but I would not add the salt until right before serving.

  • Liberally spread on the butter to each slice of toast
  • Garnish with a few slices of radishes
  • Finish with a sprinkling of fleur de sel

French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast

Uses for Radish Leaves

I was taught at a very young age to waste as little as possible. Radish leaves are not only delicious, but they are also good for you!

  1. Clean the leaves and toss them in a pan coated with olive oil. Saute them with garlic, salt, pepper as a great greens side dish.
  2. Pesto – just swap out basil leaves for the radish top leaves.
  3. Chimichurri – swap the cilantro for radish greens.
  4. In a salad – these are great mixed in with arugula and a spring mix. I personally like it with a dijon vinaigrette.

French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast

Print

French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast

  • Author: TKWAdmin
  • Prep Time: 5
  • Total Time: 5 minutes
  • Category: Appetizers
  • Method: No Bake
  • Cuisine: French

A classic French snack of just 4 ingredients that is a surprisingly delicious, elegant lunch or snack treat that takes 5 minutes to make!

French Radishes with Butter and Salt on toast
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★★★★★ 5 from 10 reviews
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Ingredients

  • 1 bunch French Breakfast Radishes, washed and leaves/roots removed
  • 1 stick European butter, unsalted
  • Finishing Salt Flakes or Fleur de Sel
  • Toasted baguette or rustic bread slices

Instructions

  1. Using a mandoline or a sharp knife, slice the radishes into long, thin slices.
  2. To the top of each slice of toast, spread on a layer of butter, top with radish slices and sprinkle with Fleur de Del.
  3. Enjoy!
21161 g316.7 mg3.2 g18.1 g3.9 g6.7 mg

Keywords: radishes with butter and salt, french radish sandwich, radish toast, sliced radishes with salted butter, french breakfast with butter and radishes, #radishtoast #radish

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Recipe Reviews & Comments

  1. Beatrice says

    June 20, 2021 at 8:52 am

    This recipe was mentioned in an article I read about what the French eat for breakfast. I don’t always toast my baguette but it’s still delish either way and my older daughter seems to enjoy these when I make them. I occasionally add a sprinkle of black pepper and chives on top as well. Such lovely flavors!

    Reply
  2. Gavin says

    June 10, 2021 at 10:16 am

    I’m about to try it and it sounds amazing, but I definitely wouldn’t use a mandoline to cut these radish… Ive cut myself badly cutting potatoes, and french breakfast radish are even worse because they are very small. Aside from that, this recipe sounds amazing and I will use the radish from our garden for it 🥰

    Reply
    • TKWAdmin says

      June 11, 2021 at 7:40 am

      Thank you! So I actually wear THESE GLOVES when I use a mandoline as they protect your hands from getting cut. I swear by them!

      Best Kitchen Wishes!

      Reply
  3. Lisa says

    February 4, 2020 at 11:52 am

    So I made this for the ladies on Super Bowl Sunday while the guys had pulled pork, beer and nachos. OMG the guys DEVOURED this! Thank goodness I had lots on hand as this truly was the first thing to go!

    Thank you for such an incredible and easy recipe!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • TKWAdmin says

      February 8, 2020 at 8:16 pm

      HAHA that’s so awesome Lisa! This is seriously one of my favorite dishes!

      Best Kitchen Wishes!

      Reply
  4. Jo says

    February 3, 2020 at 6:53 am

    That’s a great idea for healthy snacking. It’s a refreshing unique idea which I haven’t tried until now. Love to give it a try soon.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • TKWAdmin says

      February 8, 2020 at 8:15 pm

      Thank you so much Jo! It’s definitely one of my favorites!

      Best Kitchen Wishes!

      Reply
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