Celeriac Remoulade with Irish Bacon

so, after making this classic dish, celeriac remoulade. i realised that 1) remoulade is a fancy word for coleslaw and 2) its pretty tasty! and after a few seconds of wiki research i realised the name stems from french cusine and that remoulade is a sauce like aioli or mayonaise. so celeriac remoulade means: celeriac with a creamy sauce, or - coleslaw, i was RIGHT. i love coleslaw so thats probably why i think this is so tasty. the simpleness of the recipe and the flavours are lovely for a sunny day lunch or a picnic, if you're lucky enough to live somewhere it isn't raining.

preparing a celeriac

i have already mentioned my love of the root vegetable Celeriac before, if you care to read about my celeriac rants you can click, here. in the post i went as far as to claim myself an expert on the subject of celeriac. with some fancy trivia on the misnomer of its nickname: 'celery root.' very exciting and VERY nerdy. im still reserving extra space in the garden for my new root friends this year while cutting back on its stalky cousin. celeriac to me is a very understated veg, and everytime i peel, slice, or grate one im reminded this. what shows itself as an angry knobbly root in the garden is actually a subltle and friendly vegetable in the kitchen. sweet! this post is in a way a fairwell to a good friend, as this celeriac is the last celeriac from the garden this year, until october when the next crop will be ready. i've got the seed packets ready!

top and tail

slice off the skin with a sharp knife: slice, dice or grate as desired

im using bacon (a cheaper cut but very similar to the traditional 'ham') from my local butcher, Lordan's Butchers. Donal Lordan, the owner, was recently questioned about irish beef, and the recent findings of horsemeat in irish beef products. the interview included how traceable beef from small producers could not possibly contain horse DNA in an abbatoire like his own, and why paying a bit more for your beef products from local sources is by far the best. and basically to sum it up: pay more for your meat from local butchers and you'll get what you expect, possibly more! you can listen to the radio broadcast, here he also proves why his burgers are so good, they are literally just beef, thats IT! his bacon (ham) is equally as nice, not over brined and salty like some bacon can be. so i used it with my remoulade lunch today. local produce is almost always better.

i used all parts of the celeriac in this recipe. which is adapted from the magnum opus: Tender: a cook and his vegetable patch, by: Nigel Slater. i used the leaves of the celeriac for the slaw and the garnish, as well as grated beetroot mainly for colour contrast, but taste as well. (im putting beetroot on everything lately, there's so much in the garden!) this recipe uses creme fraiche in place of the more common coleslaw condiment: mayo. which gives celeriac remoulade a modern and updated makeover.

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Celeriac Remoulade with Irish Bacon
serves 4

300g grated celriac, peeled, washed and grated fine
1 small handful of celeriac leaves, finely minced

150g creme fraiche, or sour cream
juice from half a lemon
1 tablespoon grainy mustard
salt and pepper

garnish:
beetroot, finely grated
celeriac leaves, minced

serve with:
a few slices of precooked cold ham
with lemon and mustard on the side

• peel, wash and grate celeriac with a box grater as shown in pictures.
• add celeriac leaves to grated celeriac in a medium bowl
• mix in a smaller bowl: the creme fraiche, lemon juice, mustard, salt and pepper
• mix together all ingredients
• place a few slices of ham on your plate, then top with remoulade, grated beetroot and celeriac leaf garnish.
• voila!