Kohlrabi

Kohlrabi is low in histamine and a solid choice when you are eating carefully. It is a fresh cabbage-family vegetable, not fermented or aged, so there is no built-in histamine problem. The main thing to watch is simply that it is fresh and not gone soft.

Why kohlrabi is rated low

Histamine climbs when certain bacteria act on foods during fermenting, curing, aging, or warm storage. Raw kohlrabi is a firm, crisp bulb you eat fresh, so none of those apply. It is closely related to cabbage, and while fermented cabbage like sauerkraut is a histamine concern, plain fresh kohlrabi is not.

What changes your risk

• Freshness — Pick firm, heavy bulbs with no soft spots. A bulb that has gone spongy or wrinkled is past its best, so choose a fresher one.
• Storage — Kept cold in the fridge, kohlrabi holds well for a couple of weeks. Trim off any leaves before storing the bulb so it stays crisp longer.
• Fermented versus fresh — This is the big one for the cabbage family. Fresh kohlrabi is low, but if you ferment or brine it (turning it into something sauerkraut-like), that is a different, higher-histamine food.
• Cooking — Roasting, steaming, or eating it raw are all fine. Cooking does not change its low standing either way, so choose whatever you enjoy.
• Mold — If a bulb develops soft moldy patches, discard it. On a firm vegetable a small surface blemish can be trimmed generously, but anything soft and spreading means throw it out.

What else is safe

If you like kohlrabi, other fresh members of the cabbage family are also low and worth keeping around: fresh cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, turnip, and radish, all cooked or eaten fresh. What to keep off the list is anything fermented or brined from that same family, such as sauerkraut, kimchi, and vinegar pickles, which are a completely different situation from the fresh vegetable.

How to enjoy it

Choose firm, heavy bulbs, peel off the tough outer skin, and use the crisp inside raw in slaws or slaws-style salads, or roast and steam it like a milder turnip. Store the trimmed bulb cold and use it within a couple of weeks. Keep it plain and fresh rather than fermenting or pickling it, and it stays an easy low-histamine vegetable.

Common questions

Is kohlrabi high in histamine?

No, fresh kohlrabi is low in histamine. It is a fresh cabbage-family vegetable with no fermentation or aging involved.

Is kohlrabi ok if cabbage bothers me?

Fresh cabbage and fresh kohlrabi are both low in histamine. If cabbage bothers you it may be fermented forms like sauerkraut rather than the fresh vegetable, but everyone is different, so go by your own response.

Can I eat kohlrabi raw?

Yes. Raw kohlrabi is crisp and mild and stays low in histamine, so raw or cooked are both fine.