When you taste watercress, it’s easy to understand its familial ties to the mustard family. It has a slightly bitter, peppery flavor that adds a distinctive bite to dishes.

Watercress typically is used in salads (such as Roasted Baby Beet Salad) and is often tempered with sweet or full-flavored ingredients like beets, fruit, nuts or cheese, or it’s combined with milder greens. In Britain, watercress is featured in tea sandwiches with cream cheese, mayonnaise or hard-boiled eggs.

You also can cook watercress. It’s delicious pureed into a creamy soup or a sauce to top fish. Chinese cooks stir-fry watercress with ginger and soy sauce. You can also add it to risotto.

Watercress makes an attractive garnish, too, especially for red meat and salmon. Both the leaves and the smaller portions of the stems can be used.

Because it’s highly perishable, watercress should be stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.