The farm box sent turnips. Dinner started with the leaves.

The turnip tops wilt quickly, so they went into two dishes that first night. Some went into rice with tiny dried fish (じゃこ), and some simmered with chicken, ume and the turnip roots. The same bag of shimeji went into tuna salad that night, then miso udon and pot-au-feu later in the week. By the fifth dinner, that household had used up its winter vegetable box. The greens on a daikon can go straight onto noodles. Fry the chopped leaves and stems with the little dried fish and spoon them over udon. The root can wait for another pot of soup. One person living alone stopped a subscription when the small box already had more than they knew how to cook or store. In Japan, Saka no Tochu (坂ノ途中) lets you see what’s coming before delivery and choose every other week. Count the nights you’ll cook before you set the box to weekly.