Stir Fried Minced Beef w/ Celeriac & Onion

This is one of my quick and easy stir fry recipes that was handed down to me by my Mormor (grandmother) Lisa via my mom. As kids we loved it and luckily my kids love it too! She would always serve it with macaroni pasta and garnish with sliced, raw leek and a tomato salad on the side. The key ingredient in this dish is the celeriac, which isn't a commonly used vegetable.

Celeriac (also known as celery root and knob celery) is a variety of celery cultivated for its edible stem (or hypocotyl) and shoots. Celeriac is like a root vegetable, except it has a bulbous hypocotyl with many small roots attached. It is widely cultivated in Northern Europe and apparently in the Mediterranean Basin (although not common at all here in Portugal, I can only find it in a handful of  supermarkets). Celeriac is a nutritional powerhouse, packed with fiber and vitamins B6, C and K. It's also a good source of antioxidants and important minerals, such as phosphorus, potassium and manganese.

 

Typically, celeriac is harvested when it is 10-14 cm in diameter. However, a growing trend (specifically in South American cuisine, particularly Peruvian) is to use the immature vegetable, valued for its intensity of flavour and tenderness overall. It is edible raw or cooked, and tastes similar to the leaf stalks of common celery cultivars. Celeriac may be roasted, stewed, or blanched, and may be mashed. Sliced celeriac is used as an ingredient in soups, casseroles, and other savoury dishes. The leaves (both the stalks and the blades) of the vegetable are quite flavoursome, and aesthetically delicate and vibrant, which has led to their use as a garnish in contemporary fine dining.

 

In my family we use celeriac quite a bit. Either for this dish, the “Swedish” Bolognese (see previous recipe on this blog), soups or we mash it and serve it as a side like mashed potatoes. I highly recommend this ugly and scary looking root. It is so tasty and healthy! So don’t be scared of its looks. Go ahead and buy it next time you’re at the supermarket. 

Enjoy!

💗Helena

Ingredients:

• 1 kg minced beef
• 4 yellow onions, chopped
• 1 celeriac, chopped into cubes
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Fry in butter, ghee or olive oil 
  
  
  
  
  

Directions:

1. Chop up the onions and cut the celeriac into small cubes. 

2. Stir fry each ingredient separately in a huge pan on high heat, for example a Dutch Oven. Start with the onions. Transfer to a large bowl when they start looking transparent and shiny. 

3. Next, stir fry the celeriac. After stir frying on high heat, turn to low heat and cover with lid to steam for a few minutes in order to soften the cubed celeriac. Then remove lid and stir fry for another minute or so on high heat. Transfer to the bowl with the onions. 

4. Divide up the beef into 3 parts. Stir fry each part separately and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl when done. When third part is done, lower the heat and transfer all ingredients back to the pan and mix everything together. 

 

5. Serve with either rice or for example a fusilli pasta, along with some steamed broccoli and cherry tomatoes. Garnish with some sliced leek or parsley.