Celeriac Thai Salad with Apple

Visiting restaurants that serve aromatic pho soups, seitan fried duck, or coconut curry with tofu, the mango salad is invariably my favourite appetiser. The sweet and creamy mango goes  beautifully with lime, coriander, peanuts, chillies, tomatoes, and chives. Although I must admit that this salad can be prepared in so many different ways, depending on the place. And having some experience in this subject, my biggest mango salad disappointments include: too little herbs (There must be a lot of coriander! Additional points if there is also some Thai basil); too little peanuts and, maybe most importantly: some boring and insufficiently acidic dressing. And so, reflecting on the mango salads I’d tried so far, I saw in my kitchen a handsome celeriac, which I’d got doing the groceries the day before. And, all of a sudden, half an hour later, I had a bowl of Celeriac Thai Salad! Believe it or not: celeriac is a vegetable with a uniquely exotic flavour when it has the right company.

Ingredients for about 2 big or 4 small servings.

Served with rice / fried tofu, it can be a fulfilling dinner.

Sauce

  • 3 full tbsp of lime juice (in my case, the juice from a half of large lime)
  • 2 full tbsp of light soy sauce
  • 1/2 tbsp agave syrup (or other sweetener)
  • 1 tbsp of sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp of neutral oil, such as rapeseed oil
  • Big pinch of salt

Salad

  • 1/2 larger celeriac (about 300 g after peeling)
  • 1 small carrot
  • 1 small apple
  • 1/2 white or red onion or a handful of chopped spring onions
  • 2 handfuls of cherry tomatoes
  • 2 handfuls of roasted peanuts
  • Looots of fresh coriander
  • A piece of fresh chilli pepper and / or sriracha hot sauce

Examples of additional vegetables that should work well here: fresh cucumber, bell pepper, broccoli cooked for one minute, beansprouts

  1. Wash and peel the celeriac. Cut it into thick 2-3 cm slices.
  2. Fill a small pot halfway with water. Bring to the boil, add a teaspoon of salt and the celeriac slices.
  3. Boil the celeriac for 8-10 minutes until it begins to soften. Set aside the cooked and drained celeriac slices. Let them cool down.
  4. In the meantime, prepare the sauce: squeeze the lime juice and combine it with the rest of the ingredients in a small jar. Shake the jar for a few moments.
  5. Cut the celeriac slices crosswise into strips. It’s best to put them in the refrigerator for a few minutes: cooked celeriac tastes best when it’s cold.
  6. Prepare the remaining vegetables: cut the carrot using a peeler (thin julienne strips will be best) or just grate it. Cut the apple, first into slices and then into thin sticks. Cut the onion into thin feathers and the cherry tomatoes into halves.
  7. Chop the peanuts roughly. Wash the coriander and separate the leaves or cut them with scissors.
  8. In a large bowl, mix the celeriac with the vegetables and dressing. Finish the salad directly on the plates with some chopped peanuts and a lot of fresh coriander. Season with small pieces of hot chilli pepper and / or spicy sauce.

Tip: The dressing will taste best when freshly prepared and combined with vegetables at the last minute

Still hungry?