A method of magnetic resonance (MR) imaging to enable ‘silent’ zero echo time (ZTE) imaging in combination with water/fat separation. The method includes subjecting the object to a first self-refocusing zero echo time imaging sequence, wherein a first sequence of gradient echo signals is acquired as a first number N1 of radial k-space spokes at a first repetition time TR1; subjecting the object to a second self-refocusing zero echo time imaging sequence, wherein a second sequence of gradient echo signals is acquired as a second number N2 of radial k-space spokes at a second repetition time TR2, wherein N2≠N1 and/or TR2≠TR1; and reconstructing a MR image from the acquired gradient echo signals. Signal contributions of chemical species (e.g., water and fat) may be separated exploiting the different echo times attributed to the gradient echo signals.