If the fennel I wrote about last week seems still exotic to me what do I now think of celeriac? Not so sure. I wonder why, even though it is definitely not a vegetable I have grown up with or cooked with or eaten – it still almost falls in my mind, to the category of the much maligned swede. Having said that, price wise it is more of a luxury vegetable, and certainly in culinary sense you will find it much used in french and european cooking – remoulade sauce and salad being very traditional uses of celeriac. We also often see it on restaurant menus in soup or puree/mash under fish and meats and with its celery flavour it lends itself to all these ideas and many more salads.
I have paired it today with walnuts, cornichon, apple, radishes and lots of fresh herbs -dill, parsley and mint. This salad reminds me a little of my easy-raw-beetroot-salad in its simplicity of preparation and in its ability to satisfy. This salad works well in many situations, it is great as a side with a main meal or made into a salad meal in its own right. It works well teamed with lightly smoked and rich flavours – think about – smoked fish tumbled gently through this salad, with boiled egg and your favourite greens, or with chicken or pork braised in rich smoked paprica and lemon sauces or chorizo sausage, or you could eat it as part of a salad bowl for lunch with greens, tuna or cheese, boiled egg and pickles such as quick-fridge-pickle
Mix this salad up and change out the,
- cornichon for capers
- walnuts for hazelnuts
- apples for grapes
- radishes for fennel
- Add some parmesan or pecorino cheese
- add a couple of teaspoons of sour cream or mayonnaise
Celeriac, something new for me – probably not for many – but worth adding to your shopping, a little goes a long way and is very easy and delicious.
CELERIAC, CORNICHON AND WALNUT SALAD
Ingredients
- 1 small to medium celeriac bulb shredded
- Juice of half a lemon (to toss through celeriac and apple as soon they are shredded to stop them browning)
- 1 small granny smith apple shredded
- 4-5 radishes shredded or finely sliced
- Bunch of fresh herbs dill, mint and parsley – the more the better
- Handful of cornichons chopped
- Handful of walnuts roughly chopped
- Tbsp walnut or dijon mustard
- Tbsp olive oil
- Approx 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- Salt and pepper to taste ( you wont’ need much)
- Place your list items here
Shred your celeriac and apple first and thoroughly toss with the lemon juice.
Add all the rest of the ingredients and toss well to mix,
Taste and check seasoning and enjoy.
This really couldn’t be easier. It is delicious and satisfying to be able to enjoy raw vegetables that taste sooo good and are good for you at the same time.
