Whole Roasted Celery Root

European · 120 min · Easy · 4 servings

Whole Roasted Celery Root

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A whole celery root scored deep, rubbed with oil and thyme and roasted slowly until the outside goes mahogany and crackling and the inside turns sweet and custardy. It comes to the table whole and gets carved like a joint.

~200 cal per serving. Calories are approximate, per serving — a guide only.

Plan it:

Method

  1. 1

    Score and oil it

    Heat the oven to 180C (350F). Trim the roots and any gnarled patches from the celery root but leave the skin on. Score a deep crosshatch about a centimetre into the top and sides, rub each one all over with the oil, and season it heavily, working salt down into the cuts.

  2. 2

    Roast it long

    ⏱ 90 min

    Sit it in a tray with the thyme and bashed garlic tucked underneath and roast until a knife slides through the center with no resistance and the outside has gone dark and papery. Do not hurry it: this is the whole recipe.

  3. 3

    Baste and crisp

    ⏱ 15 min

    Spoon the herby oil from the bottom of the tray over the scored top and return it to the oven, uncovered, until the ridges of the crosshatch have crisped and the surface is glossy and mahogany.

  4. 4

    Rest and carve

    ⏱ 10 min

    Let it sit for ten minutes, then squeeze over the lemon, scatter with parsley and carve it into thick wedges at the table so everyone gets both crust and center.

Notes

Buy the heaviest celery root you can lift for its size, since a light one is woolly inside. Timing scales with weight rather than a clock, so test with a knife rather than trusting the minutes. The scored crust is the point: shallow cuts give you a plain baked root.

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