Baked Celeriac Chips or Fries

Delicious and perfectly flavored baked celery root fries (also known as celeriac chips), made using only four ingredients. This recipe is paleo-friendly, whole 30 compliant, low carb, and keto.

Jump to:

• A Brief History Of the Vegetable
• Ingredients
• Equipment
• How to peel and cut
• How to make
• Chef's Tip
• Refrigeration and Freezing
• Calories in Celeriac
• Frequently Asked Questions
• 📖 Recipe

A Brief History Of the Vegetable

Celeriac, also known as celery root is a nutritious vegetable that is seeing less and less usage in today's kitchen. It was used in ancient times as a vegetable as well as for seasoning purposes. The Romans treasured it as a great anti-depressant. Its popularity declined in the middle ages before it made its reappearance in Italy during the 17th century.

It is mostly consumed in Europe where it is also mostly cultivated. Also, it is cultivated all year round and gets particularly cheap during the fall and wintertime (somewhere between September and March). The roots tend to vary in size ranging from that of a pear to the size of a honeydew melon.

Ingredients

You only require four simple everyday ingredients to make these oven-baked celery root fries:-

• Celeriac (celery root): when buying, select one that feels heavy for it's size and doesn't have dents or dark-brown discolorations, a common sign for overripe roots. For this recipe, I would advise you to pick a medium-sized one as it is much easier to work with when cutting.
• Seasoning: salt and ground sweet paprika. These are easily available to buy at most local supermarkets and farmers' markets.
• Olive oil - but you can also use your favorite cooking oil.

Equipment

Good news! You do not need fancy kitchen tools for this recipe, rather, just your everyday kitchen equipment. Here is what you will need:

• Chef's knife - which will be used in cutting and peeling (the surface of the celeriac can be sometimes rough and knobby, so make sure the knife used is sharp enough). Alternatively, you could use your potato peeler to peel.
• Chopping board - to assist with the peeling and cutting into fries.
• A medium-sized mixing bowl - big enough to allow you to toss the oil and seasoning properly.
• A baking tray or cooling rack - A cooling rack is actually better as it results in even circulation of air. If you don't have one then it's ok. You can perfectly proceed to use your baking tray. Just spread the chips or fries as much as possible to prevent ending up with soggy fries.
• Parchment paper - prevents the fries from sticking into the baking tray.

How to peel and cut

Peeling and cutting celery root is actually easier than you may think. I know, this knobby root can look intimidating but trust me, it is very simple.

Peeling: first, start by cutting off each end so you end up with a flat base, which makes it easier to work and prevents it from slipping during peeling. It also makes the cutting process easier.

Next, lay the celeriac on a clean chopping board. Using a chef's knife, start from the top and cut downwards. Alternatively, you can slice it into halves, then slice again so you end up with quarters, then proceed on to peel.

Cutting: to cut into chips or fries, first slice the celery root into quarters and then slice these into smaller pieces each about an inch thick. Next, cut into sticks, about a quarter of an inch wide. If you prefer shorter fries or chips, slice cross-sectionally in the middle. You can also cut into other types of cuts such as cubes, and use them in other recipes.

How to make

Once you have peeled and sliced your celery root, pre-heat the oven for about 5 minutes at 400°F (about 200°C), using the conventional oven settings. Meanwhile, proceed on with the other preparations as follows:

• Place the peeled fries in a medium-sized bowl - this will make it easier to mix the seasoning.
• Toss with oil, salt, and paprika - to season.
• Arrange on a baking tray or cooling rack- try as much as possible to spread them out.
• Bake: for approximately 30-35 minutes.
• Serve: serve these oven-baked celeriac chips or fries with guacamole, drumsticks, filled omelette, or with a healthy side salad.

Chef's Tip

You can save time by making the celeriac fries or chips ahead of time. To do so, proceed to peel and slice the celeriac in the normal way then blanch the cut fries in a pot of salty water for about 2 minutes. Next, transfer to a bowl filled with cold water and ice cubes to stop the cooking process. Place in Ziploc bags or in an airtight container. Store in the freezer. When stored properly, they will keep for about 10 months.

Refrigeration and Freezing

In the fridge- store uncut celeriac in the vegetable compartment of the fridge. However, avoid storing it next to other vegetables as it tends to get spoiled quickly. Once cut, wrap using a plastic wrap or an airtight container and store in the fridge for about 3 days.

Freezing - to freeze, blanch by boiling in hot water for 2-3 minutes then transfer to a bowl with ice-cold water to stop the boiling or cooking process.

Calories in Celeriac

Needless to say, celeriac is a very healthy vegetable. Excluding the salt, one cup or 155 g of cooked celeriac has 41.8 calories (7.28 g net carbs, 18.6mg Magnesium, and 12.5mg Vitamin C, among other useful vitamins and minerals.

The low amount of net carbs makes it a wonderful vegetable for those on the low carb and keto diets.

The first table below shows the nutritional information per one cup or 156 grams of cooked celeriac.

Name	Amount	Unit
Calories ( 1 cup /155 g)	41.8	kcal
Protein	1.49	g
Total lipids (fat)	0.295	g
Carbohydrates	9.14	g
Total dietary fibre	1.86	g
Calcium	40.3	mg
Iron	0.667	mg
Magnesium	18.6	mg
Phosphorus, P	102	mg
Potassium, K	268	mg
Selenium, Se	0.62	µg
Cholesterol	0	mg
Zinc, Zn	0.31	mg
Copper, Cu	0.067	mg
Vitamin C - total ascorbic acid	5.58	mg
Thiamin	0.042	mg
Riboflavin	0.057	mg
Niacin	0.662	mg
Pantothenic acid	0.315	mg
Vitamin B-6	0.157	mg
Folate - food	4.65	µg

The second table below shows the nutritional information per one cup or 155 grams of raw celery root.

Name	Amount	Unit
Calories ( 1 cup /156 g)	65.5	kcal
Protein	2.34	g
Total lipids (fat)	0.468	g
Carbohydrates	14.4	g
Total dietary fibre	2,81	g
Sugars (including NLEA)	2.5	g
Calcium	67.1	mg
Iron	1.09	mg
Magnesium	31.2	mg
Phosporus, P	179	mg
Potassium, K	468	mg
Selenium, Se	1.09	µg
Manganese, Mn	0.246	mg
Zinc, Zn	0.515	mg
Copper, Cu	0.109	mg
Vitamin C - total ascorbic acid	12.5	mg
Thiamin	0.078	mg
Riboflavin	0.094	mg
Niacin	1.09	mg
Pantothenic acid	0.549	mg
Vitamin B-6	0.257	mg
Folate - total	12.5	µg

The nutritional information has been obtained from the USDA database.

Frequently Asked Questions

📖 Recipe