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Turnip Gratin is a fun low-carb veggie side dish, and adding bacon to this made it such a wow for us when we tested the recipe! And if you think you don’t like turnips, making this bacon-flavored Turnip Gratin just might change your mind!

PIN the Turnip Gratin to try it later!

Turnip Gratin with Bacon shown in baking dish

I’m welcoming the new year with this recipe for Turnip Gratin (with bacon!) because I know on the first Monday of the new year many people have a renewed resolve to watch the carbs in their diet. So I always try to welcome the new year with a new recipe that I think is really a wow.

This year I thought about how turnips are a great low-carb vegetable, and I decided to experiment with them more after my recipe for Roasted Turnips got popular! Then I saw a few different turnip recipes online that inspired this one, and we couldn’t resist adding bacon! The Turnip Gratin was absolutely a winner for Kara and I when we tested the recipe. I also shared the recipe with my friend Bev who loved it too and has been waiting patiently for several weeks for me to post the recipe.

The recipe was also inspired by some of the other vegetable gratin recipes on the blog, which are some of my most popular side dishes. Hope you enjoy trying it!

What ingredients do you need?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe with ingredient amounts.

  • turnips
  • thick-sliced bacon
  • bacon grease or olive oil
  • Dried Thyme (affiliate link)
  • grated Gruyere or Swiss Cheese
  • coarsely-grated Parmesan cheese
  • heavy cream, or use half and half or milk if you prefer

What is a Gratin?

A Gratin is a dish where food is topped with a browned crust that usually contains cheese, breadcrumbs, or butter. I’ve become a huge fan of cheesy gratin dishes like this Turnip Gratin, and personally I don’t think any breadcrumbs are needed!

Is Gruyere Cheese a must for the Turnip Gratin?

Gruyere is a type of firm yellow Swiss cheese that’s named after the town of Gruyères in Switzerland. It’s often used to top French Onion Soup and is known for it’s nutty flavor and good melting characteristics. If you can’t find Gruyere or don’t want to splurge on it, any semi-firm Swiss cheese will be fine in this recipe.

Are turnips Low in Carbs?

If you compare the carbs in root vegetables, only radishes have fewer carbs than turnips. In one cup of cubed raw turnips there are 8 carbs and 2.3 grams of fiber.

How low in carbs is this Turnip Gratin?

This tasty turnip side dish only has 6 net carbs and 18 grams of protein!

Can you make the Turnip Gratin lower in fat?

I know people who are eating Keto will love a recipe like this that has bacon, heavy cream, and two kinds of cheese. But if you prefer to make the recipe lower in fat by using turkey bacon, switching out cream for half and half or milk, and/or reducing the amount of cheese, I’m sure it will still be delicious!

More Vegetable Gratins to enjoy:

This recipe for Turnip Gratin with Bacon is joining a collection of super popular cheesy vegetable gratins on my blog! If you like the idea of vegetables baked with cheese check out my gratin recipes for Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli, Sweet Potatoes, Onions, Cauliflower, Spaghetti Squash with Chard, and Delicata Squash with Sausage!

Turnip Gratin with Bacon process shots collage

How to make Turnip Gratin with Bacon:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.

  1. Preheat oven to 400F/200 C and spray a baking dish with non-stick spray. 
  2. Peel turnips and cut into slices, then cut into fourths.
  3. Cut bacon into squares and brown in a large frying pan (big enough to hold all the turnips).
  4. Remove bacon to paper towels and leave some bacon grease in the pan, or use olive oil if you prefer.
  5. Add turnips and dried thyme and cook until turnips are starting to soften.
  6. Add bacon and cook 1-2 minutes more.
  7. Then add heavy cream and both types of cheese and stir to combine.
  8. Transfer to baking dish and bake 35-40 minutes, or until turnips are soft and the top is nicely browned.
  9. Serve hot and enjoy!

Make it a low-Carb meal:

Turnip Gratin will be an amazing side dish for a low-carb meal. I’d love this with Roasted Lemon Chicken and Green Beans, Air Fryer Pork Loin Roast, Roasted Barramundi with Tomato and Olive Relish, or Chicken Piccata with Fried Capers.

close-up photo of Turnip Gratin with Bacon shown in baking dish
Yield: 6 servings

Turnip Gratin (with Bacon)

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour

We absolutely swooned over this Turnip Gratin with Bacon when we tested the recipe; you'll be surprised how absolutely delicious turnips can be when they're prepared like this!

Ingredients

  • 3 small turnips
  • 8 slices bacon (see notes)
  • 1 T bacon grease or olive oil
  • 2 tsp. dried thyme
  • 1 cup grated Gruyere or Swiss Cheese
  • 1/2 cup coarsely-grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream (see notes)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400F/200 C and spray a medium-sized baking dish with non-stick spray. (This dish splatters a bit when it's baking so a baking dish with high sides will be the best.)
  2. Peel the turnips and cut into half inch slices, then pile up the slices and cut into fourths.
  3. Cut thick-sliced bacon into squares and brown well in a large frying pan (big enough to hold all the turnips).
  4. Remove bacon to paper towels to drain and leave about 1 T of bacon grease in the pan, or use olive oil if you prefer.
  5. Add turnips and dried thyme and cook 5-6 minutes, or until turnips are barely starting to soften.
  6. Add bacon and cook 1-2 minutes more.
  7. Then add heavy cream and both types of grated cheese and stir to combine.
  8. Transfer to the baking dish and bake 35-40 minutes, or until turnips are soft when you stick a fork into one of them and the top is nicely browned.
  9. Serve hot and enjoy!

Notes

I would prefer thick-sliced bacon for this recipe.

You can use half and half or milk instead of heavy cream if you prefer.

This recipe inspired by a variety of Turnip Gratin recipes I saw online; this version was tested and perfected by Kalyn and Kara.

Nutrition Information

Yield

6

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 511Total Fat 38gSaturated Fat 22gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 13.5gCholesterol 119mgSodium 675mgCarbohydrates 7gFiber 1gSugar 3.6gProtein 18g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Did you make this recipe?

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating (under the PRINT button in the recipe) or share a photo of your results on Instagram! THANKS!

© All images and text ©Kalyn Denny for Kalyn's Kitchen.
Category: Side Dishes
square image of Turnip Gratin with Bacon shown in baking dish
Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This Turnip Gratin is a good side dish for any low-carb or Keto diet. It is probably too high in fat for the original South Beach Diet, although if you used the tips above to make it lower in fat I would eat it for an occasional treat.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use the Diet Type Index to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This tasty gratin with turnips and bacon was first posted in 2022. It was last updated with more information in 2025.

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