Celery Root Remoulade - Céleri-Rave Rémoulade - A French Classic

Celery Root Remoulade, Céleri-Rave Rémoulade, is the French classic that makes a silk purse out of a sow's ear. When I first posted about it more than six years ago, one commenter called it "an adventurous coleslaw," but it's much more sophisticated than that!

Could this refreshing winter salad be the "something different" on your menu this month?

Celery root, also called celeriac, is a very unattractive fall and winter root vegetable that can be prepared many ways. If you haven't tried it, it's probably because you've been put off by its appearance.

It is perhaps the ugliest vegetable you'll ever see, sort of like a hairy turnip with tumors. After all the ugliness is trimmed away, you're left with about three-quarters, even two-thirds, the weight you started with.

You can cook celery root, but this raw salad that is a French bistro classic is my favorite. Celery root remoulade is something I first made years ago after seeing Julia Child* make it on television.

Of course, I made up my own recipe to suit myself; and here it is. It can be tricky to follow a recipe when celery roots come in such a wide range of sizes. Just adjust the dressing amounts to the weight of the celery root.

To make enough to serve two people, look for one that is about 3/4 pound. After all the strange bits are trimmed away, it will probably be down to 1/2 pound, just right for two people.

If you've been passing over celery root just because of its appearance, as I did for so long (I feel so shallow!), quickly pop one or two in a bag next shopping trip. After you taste this, you might even decide that celery roots, like baby hippos, are so ugly they're cute!

PS I just learned that ThermoWorks Electronic Gift Certificates are now available and are the easiest and fastest way to give the gift of ThermoWorks (the famous Thermapen and all kinds of thermometers and timers).

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Celery Root Remoulade

(Serves 2)

3/4 pound (12 ounces/340 grams) celery root
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 1/2 teaspoons sweet pickle relish or finely minced sweet pickle
1 teaspoon capers, rinsed and drained, chopped
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/8 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
Garnish: minced fresh parsley or julienned green apple

1 Cut off the leaves and root end, then scrub. Trim, peel and halve lengthwise the celery root. Cut each half lengthwise into 2 or more pieces, whatever will fit into the feed tube of your food processor. With shredding disk in place, coarsely shred the celery root. In 1-quart bowl, toss the shredded celery root with salt and 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice. Cover and set aside to soften for 30 to 60 minutes.

Note: Though the shreds should be no bigger than a matchstick, they should not be too fine. Coarsely shredded.

2 In small bowl, stir together 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice and remaining ingredients. Stir the dressing into the celery root and mix well. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or up to 2 days.

Note: Though some people say it's not good the next day, I haven't found that to be the case.

3 Spoon each serving into a small bowl or on a small leaf of butter lettuce on a plate. Garnish.

* See Vegetable Quiche post for one of my Julia Child stories. And, speaking of Julia, she favored white pepper and would not have liked the black specks of pepper in my remoulade! But I love my coarsely ground black pepper and put it in and on everything.

Updated and edited from my archives, Celery Root Remoulade.

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