Celery Root

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Celery Root comes from a version of a celery plant which over the centuries has been bred and developed for its root, which is a large, round bulb with gnarly, light-brown skin. The inside is white with a hint of pale-ish green. It tastes like celery with a hint of parsley, but doesn't have the stringy fibres that celery does. So, even though not many vegetables come more ugly than Celery Root, it is very useful in stews and other dishes at giving a great celery-like flavour without strings of it getting stuck between everyone's teeth.

Celery Root can be grown anywhere that celery can. The bulb is ready for harvesting about 200 days after the seed has been planted. The plant's leaves have the same flavour as the root, and you can clip off some of those for use at any time during the plant's growth. The leaves, in fact, are a more flavourful substitute for parsley.

Celery Root has been more popular in Europe, especially France and Germany, than it has been in Anglo-Saxon countries.

When buying, choose bulbs that feel heavy for their weight and are hard with no soft spots. Don't go for the really big ones, as they can often have empty spaces inside or woody cores. They are most often sold without the stalk and leaves attached, but if they are, look for greenery that is still green.

Cooking Tips
Wash root. To peel, some use a French knife to hack off the gnarled sides, though others prefer to use a potato peeler. Plan on losing a lot of the skin, as you will have to remove a lot of it to get rid of the crevices that are dirt-stained. You will lose at least a quarter of the weight after it is peeled.

Once peeled, the exposed flesh will darken quicken (in less than 5 minutes), so have handy a bowl of water with lemon juice in it to put the pieces in as you peel and chop them. They need to soak in there for about 15 minutes if you are planning to then expose the raw pieces to the air, say, in a relish tray or in a salad.

If you are planning on baking the whole root, wash and scrub the skin well, but don't peel it: bake it first, then peel it.

To boil, place peeled pieces in boiling salted water for 10 minutes.

Boiled Celery Root can be added to boiled potatoes before mashing. Great in soups and stews. Great grated fresh in salads (treat with lemon water first).

Substitutes
Celery

Nutrition
30 calories per 1/2 cup (110g). Contains no cholesterol or fat. Provides an excellent source of dietary fibre. Good source of iron, vitamin C, calcium, phosphorous, potassium.

Equivalents
1 small celery root = 1 pound = 2 cups sliced, raw
1/2 cup raw = 110g = 1/4 pound

Storage
Celery Root is sometimes sold with its stalk still attached. If so, remove and discard the stalk (or freeze the leaves for use as a flavourful herb) before storing in plastic bag in refrigerator for up to a week. Don't wash and peel Celery Root until you are going to use it.

History
Originally grown in Northern Europe and the Mediterranean. Recorded descriptions of it were made around 1600 by Italian and Swiss botanists, who were labouring to breed it for the best results.


Language Notes
It is still much more common to call it Celeriac rather than Celery Root, but I think Celeriac is a bit foreign sounding to the English-speaking ear, as it were.

Also called:
Apium graveolens var rapaceum (Scientific Name); Céleri-Rave (French); Knollensellerie (German); Sedano rapa (Italian); Apio nabo (Spanish); Aipo-rábano (Portuguese)

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