[paintedlady]

For next year what do I need to do to beef them up a bit?  

Last year mine were tidgy.  This year dug in loads of manure and they grew enormous - I reckon that is the secret.

[Rowbarton SVF]

Are you meant to peel the skins off after roasting them?

I leave the skin and eat!! Taste superb!!

as for growing them I have had a real mix of sizes this year, some massive ones which I have pickled and smaller golf ball sizes which are sooooooo tasty roasted!

[lincspoacher]

best roasted whole on the BBQ  - wrap in foil first tho.

i use the same method for the oven actually.  takes a long time tho unless you microwave for a bit first i find. it kind of steams in the foil.

although last night i peeled first, cut into chunks/wedges put in a dish with some carrot of similar size and roasted.  a lot drier than baking in foil but still as tasty!

I was always told you couldnt peel beetroot until they were cooked, is it possible I have been taken up the garden path for the last 33 years on this subject LOL  :roll:

The idea is you twist (not cut) the leaves off, then wash them and cook them whole. When they are cooked, your then top and tail and peel them.

If you peel them before cooking, they 'bleed to death' - all the vitamins and goodness leech out into the water you cook them in. This is not an old wives tale or idle speculation.

[jennyb]

If you peel them before cooking, they 'bleed to death' - all the vitamins and goodness leech out into the water you cook them in. This is not an old wives tale or idle speculation.

exactly what Valentine said on What to Eat Now (BBC2 earlier) - did you see it?

as amazing as that blokes beetroot were,  biodynamic seems a bit too far fetched for me however i will compost/manure better next year

[Ice]

Talking about biodynamics is opening up a can of worms.  Ok for fishermen, but not for this forum.

Last year my beetroot were great but mainly due, I believe, to thinning them early on.