The grubby orbs beckoned to me from across the produce section, their bottoms bedecked with what looked vaguely like octopus-tentacle suction cups.
We’re the ugliest vegetables you’ve never tried, they whispered. Come check us out.
I was in a hurry that day; no time for a new-veggie meet-and-greet. But truly, I’d never seen such creepy, troll-like vegetables. Seemingly of their own accord, my feet began heading towards the random-root-veggie display; no match was I for the siren song of those homely knobs.
I picked up a root about the size of a baseball, and was immediately dismayed by its dry, spongy feel. I searched for a tag or sticker that might give me some clue as to its identity.
Nothing.
So I looked around, then did what my dog would do.
I sniffed it. (Come on, I’m not actually going to lick something covered in dirt.)
Celery. The smell was unmistakable, as if I was about to take a bite of a freshly cut stalk.
I looked at the root anew, riffling through my mental files. Celery root? Was that a real vegetable? Or was I making it up, matching together two vegetables that seemed to be united in this one? I put the mystery root back, vowing to identify it when I had some time, and hoping that a newer, fresher batch of them would arrive in the meantime.
Later that night, I looked up celery root. I hadn’t made the term up, which was a relief; there is indeed a vegetable called celery root, although it’s more commonly known as celeriac. (Which gives me images of half-crazed celery.) It’s purportedly delicious, tasting much like celery, but without the pesky strings. Apparently it’s quite popular in Europe, but—perhaps due to its decidedly un-photogenic appearance?—it never quite took off in the States. Tempting as it sounded, I decided to put celeriac on the back burner; there were other veggies that seemed more pressing (and a whole lot fresher).
Just a few days later, though, I got an email from my friend Tammy (who lives in the UK) suggesting that I make mashed celeriac and potatoes for Veggie Quest. Then, the very next day on an across-town trip to Whole Foods, I came across some gorgeous celeriac. These were solid, heavy, robust roots, beautifully ugly, replete with gawky celery stalks poking out their tops at odd angles.
I took these two events as signs from the veggie fates and bought three celeriac on the spot: two the size of apples, one (I swear to you) nearly the size of a bowling ball.
I decided to try two very different recipes: one for céleri rémoulade, a traditional French dish that uses grated raw celeriac, and the other for celeriac and potato mash. I decided to serve both when my parents came over for an early Christmas dinner, since having company adds to the sport of making an entirely new food in two entirely new ways.
Unfortunately, the céleri rémoulade didn’t go over well, so I won’t post the recipe here. The celeriac and potato mash, however, was a hit. It was delicious both with turkey and with apple-sage vegetarian sausage. Given its celery flavor and parsley overtones, I’m betting this mash would be right at home with turkey and stuffing at Christmas, too. (Bonus: celeriac is lower-calorie than potatoes, so more room for pumpkin pie!) Better yet, the water used to cook the veggies made a ridiculously rich vegetable stock—I unwittingly poured most of it down the sink this time, but next time I plan to save it all and use it to make some killer veggie soup.
Anyhow, given celeriac’s high score on the tastiness scale, I’m shocked that it doesn’t have more of a following. I know it’s ugly, but cooking is no beauty pageant, and this veggie’s flavor is loaded with personality. Consider it the Shrek of veggies, and give it a try.
Selection
When buying celeriac, look for medium-sized roots with a minimum of snaggly rootlets and funky knobules to reduce waste when peeling. Resist the urge to buy one the size of a cantaloupe unless you have massive upper body strength, and/or you don’t mind getting blisters from the pressure you’ll have to exert on your knife to chop that baby up. Also, choose roots that are firm and heavy for their size; those with intact green stalks also tend to be fresher. Luckily, celeriac is in season now through spring, so there’s a good chance you’ll find a tasty specimen at a store near you.
Another word to the wise—buy a vegetable brush if you don’t already have one! Dirt loves to hide in this vegetable’s nooks and crannies, and as I can personally attest, it takes a really, really long time to scrub one with the freebie toothbrush from your dentist. Also, don’t worry about how to peel these guys—I’ll walk you through that process in the recipe.
_____
Celeriac-Potato Mash
This recipe was inspired by my friend Tammy’s timely suggestion, as well as the celeriac-potato puree description in Elizabeth Schneider’s comprehensive compendium, Vegetables from Amaranth to Zucchini.
Prep time: 1 hour (30 minutes hands-on) Serves: 6-8
Ingredients:
salt
2 lbs celeriac (Without green tops; 1-4 roots, depending on size. If you buy celeriac with green tops intact, get 2¼ lbs or so.)
2 lbs russet potatoes
4 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp butter (or olive oil)
2 Tbsp butter (or olive oil)
Directions
Put 3 quarts of cold water and 2 tsp salt in a large pot.
Wash and peel potatoes. Cut into ½-inch cubes and add to water.
Wash celeriac, scrubbing with a vegetable brush. Cut off the bottom ½ inch of each root. Then cut the top off (including any stalks). Your celeriac should look about like this:
Using a sharp knife, cut the skin off the the root from top to bottom in wide strips (the way you would for a pineapple) following the contour of the outside of the root. (Don’t worry about cutting off some of the root flesh with the skin. If you don’t, you’ll be there all day gouging out dirty pockmarks.) Now it should look about like this:
Quarter each celeriac the way you would an apple. Cut out the fibrous, woody central core (if your celeriac has one).
Cut celeriac into ½-inch cubes and add to water with potatoes. (Don’t leave peeled celeriac sitting out; it browns quickly.)
Peel garlic cloves and slice thinly; add to pot with celeriac and potatoes.
Cover and bring to a gentle boil. Boil 30 minutes, or until both potato and celeriac are tender. (The celeriac will take a little longer than the potatoes.)
Drain, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid. (Better yet, save all the cooking liquid, and whip up a delicious, celery-scented vegetable soup the next day.)
In a large mixing bowl, mash potatoes, celeriac, 2 Tbsp butter, and ¼ cup cooking liquid using a hand blender, ricer, or potato masher. (I used a hand blender, which worked beautifully.) Make the mash as chunky or smooth as you like. (To keep this recipe plant-based, swap olive oil for the butter, or dispense with the oil altogether to make it really healthy.) Feel free to add more butter, olive oil, or cooking liquid until you get your mash to its happy place.
Add salt and pepper to taste and serve!
You might also like:
I'm Lee, an RD thriving on a healthy plant based diet.
Leave a Reply