Salt-Baked Celeriac with Truffle Butter and Toasted Hazelnuts

⏱ 140 min · Serves 4

A whole celeriac buried in a herb-flecked salt crust emerges impossibly sweet, silky and faintly nutty. Carved at the table, doused in truffle butter and showered with toasted hazelnuts, it's the vegetable dish that steals the show from any roast.

Per serving: 425 kcal · 8.0g protein · 18.0g carbs · 36.0g fat

Ingredients

• 1 large celeriac (about 1kg), scrubbed, roots trimmed
• 1.5kg coarse sea salt
• 300g plain flour
• 4 egg whites
• 150ml cold water
• 2 tsp thyme leaves
• 1 tsp black peppercorns, crushed
• 2 bay leaves, torn
• 80g unsalted butter, softened
• 1 tbsp truffle paste or 10g fresh black truffle, finely grated
• 1 tsp truffle oil (optional)
• 1 small garlic clove, grated
• 60g blanched hazelnuts
• 2 tbsp hazelnut oil
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 20g Parmesan or vegetarian hard cheese, finely grated
• Small handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• Flaky salt and black pepper

Method

1. Heat the oven to 200C fan / 220C conventional. Line a roasting tray with baking paper.
2. In a large bowl, mix the sea salt, flour, thyme, crushed peppercorns and bay. Add the egg whites and enough cold water to make a thick, sandy paste that holds together when squeezed.
3. Spread a 1cm bed of the salt mix on the tray, sit the celeriac on top, then pack the rest firmly all over so it is completely sealed with no gaps.
4. Bake for 1 hour 45 minutes, until the crust is hard and pale golden. A skewer pushed through the crust into the centre should slide in with no resistance; if not, give it another 15 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, toast the hazelnuts in a dry pan over medium heat for 5 minutes until golden and fragrant. Cool, then roughly crush.
6. Beat the softened butter with the truffle paste, garlic, truffle oil if using, and a good grind of pepper. Set aside at room temperature.
7. Rest the baked celeriac for 15 minutes, then crack the crust with the back of a heavy knife or a rolling pin. Lift away the salt shell and brush off every last crystal. Peel off the skin — it should come away easily.
8. Cut the celeriac into thick wedges or 2cm slices and arrange on a warm platter. Dot generously with the truffle butter so it melts into the crevices.
9. Whisk the hazelnut oil with the lemon juice and spoon over. Scatter with crushed hazelnuts, Parmesan, parsley, flaky salt and pepper. Serve at once, ideally cracked open in front of your guests.