History

The parsnip is native to the Mediterranean region. Parsnips have been around since prehistoric times and were much used by the ancient Greeks and Romans. Parsnips became the traditional vegetable to eat with salted fish on Ash Wednesday and other penitential days in England. By the early 1600's, parsnips were grown in America. Eventually, the potato replaced the parsnip as the filling, high-starch, high-protein vegetable of choice.