Michigan State University Extension
Preserving Food Safely - 01600690
10/13/97
Celeriac is not one of our more popular vegetables,
perhaps because it resembles an unwashed horseradish root.
Yet beneath its unattractive, unglamorous shell lies a
flavorful, crisp, cream-colored, smooth-textured flesh that
tastes like celery. Celeriac can be used raw in fresh
salads or as a cooked vegetable and is an important
ingredient in soups. Celeriac is very popular in northern
Europe. Here at home, fresh celeriac is available every
month but June and July.
When harvested, celeriac looks like coarse green celery
attached to a rough-looking bulbous root. In late summer
and early fall it comes to market usually tied in bunches
that have three knobs and with the celery-like greens
attached. The greens are too coarse to use raw as table
celery, but if they are fresh and have not begun to yellow,
they make a fine soup green. After the first frost, the
celeriac is shipped to market minus the greens and sold as a
root vegetable by the pound.
Select firm medium-sized knobs; small ones have too
much waste when peeled and large knobs are apt to be hollow
or woody. Pressure on any darker areas of the skin will
expose decay that otherwise might be hidden by the rough
exterior.
When served raw, the exposed flesh tends to discolor.
The discoloration can be retarded by adding a few drops of
vinegar or lemon juice. When cooking celeriac, they will be
easier to peel after they have been boiled.