Making Horseradish

[fourarmed]

I dug some roots the other day, and made horseradish. It has a great flavor, but it doesn't take the top of your head off. It doesn't even lift it up a little bit. What happened? Could the roots be too old? They sat overnight before being peeled and ground. Could that make so much difference? I never had this happen before.

[dbosman]

I could easily be mistaken or ill informed, but I thought harvest for horseradish in Kansas, as in Michigan, was fall. ???

[LeftyDon]

The finer you grind it the hotter it becomes.

[Duckiller]

Grind it outside in a dedicated food processor. Mother always harvested roots in fall in Michigan.

[duke76]

You are supposed to dig horseradish in months that have rs in them september through april, maybe thats the issue, I always dig mine right before the ground gets to hard and frozen to dig usually that means end of november and it has always had bite and dont grind it in the house, dont ask me or the little lady how we know, she had to leave the house she was crying so bad lol

[waksupi]

Yep, too early to dig it. To add a bit more kick, put in a bit of surgar or honey. That adds a heat kick.

[JWFilips]

How much vinegar? Vinegar cuts the heat

[JWT]

What I remember from a few years back is:

Dig the roots when the leaves have died off.
Grind the root and leave exposed to oxygen
Add vinegar to stop the oxidation
The longer the oxidation time, the hotter your horseradish will be

On a side note, once horseradish is established it's harder to kill than mint.

[MaryB]

Yup dig in fall, wait up to an hour to add vinegar. I use just enough vinegar and salt to cover. Keep in the freezer to maintain the kick for any extra you make. We used to use baby food jars to freeze it in.

[Hickory]

Harvest horseradish in the months that end with a "r".