Celeriac Soup with parmesan chips / Σούπα σελινόριζας με τσιπς παρμεζάνας

Greek Fisherman’s Fish Soup / Ψαρόσουπα με τα κεφάλια ψαριών

March 29, 2022

Traditional Greek bean soup / Φασολάδα της Γιαγιάς Πόλλυς

April 18, 2022

Published by karolos on March 29, 2022

Celeriac Soup with parmesan chips

/

Σούπα σελινόριζας με τσιπς παρμεζάνας

#Celeriac, #Soup, #vegetables

Celeriac is this brown root that you often see at your grocery store and you ignore since you do not know what to make with it. It might seem big and dirty but it makes the most elegant and creamy, almost white low-carb soup. This vegetable can stand on its own to give your soup a body with a fine flavor. Celeriac is part of the celery family, so it has the fresh and grassy flavor of celery but with a more earthy and nutty undertone. You can do with celeriac almost everything you can do with potatoes. Chips, puree, roast it, boil it, you can even eat it raw. For this soup you can always skip the potato if you want to keep the soup super low-carb, I add a potato or two to make it creamier since it has starch. If you sauté your vegetables well and let them brown you can also use just water for the soup rather than vegetable stock. This keeps the purity of the celeriac and its flavor. Both work well, so it is your choice which one you use.

I first made this soup a few months ago as a starter dish at a brunch we organized @Ethrio. My friend Agapi, with whom we cooked together, proposed to make this soup. We accompanied it with these parmesan chips which are super easy to make and gives the soup a bit of crunch and saltiness. You can also add crushed tasted hazelnuts and a thyme infused olive oil. Thyme is one of the herbs that goes well with celeriac and can be added at the chips as well. Since then I have made this soup several times, in big batches, and kept it in the freezer in individual portions.

INGREDIENTS

For the Soup

60g / 4 tbsp butter

2 garlic cloves , finely chopped

1 onion , diced (brown or yellow)

1/2 leek (white part only) , diced into 1cm / ½” cubes

3 celery stems , diced into 1cm cubes

800g-1 kg celeriac , cut into 2cm cubes

200g potatoes , peeled, cut into 2cm cubes

1.5 litres (6 cups) water , or vegetable stock if you prefer

2 tsp salt

2 tsp white pepper

250 ml cream , full fat

Herbs: thyme, bay leaf

For the Parmesan Chips

200 gr of finely grated parmesan

1 tbsp of corn flour

*you can add paprika, dried thyme, pepper, oregano or anything else you want to make your chips flavored or keep it simple.

PREPARATION

FOR THE SOUP

Saute your chopped leek, onion, garlic and celery in melted butter until they become sweet and translucent.

Put your chopped root vegetables, celeriac and potato, and mix well till softened and well oiled, around 10 minutes. Do not brown them, we want our soup to be light and white.

Add the water or vegetable stock until your vegetables are covered and simmer for 30 minutes. Add the stems from the fresh thyme and bay leaf to the pot and salt and pepper as well.

When vegetables are soft but not completely melted use your blender or even better your hand blender to puree the soup. Don’t do forget to remove the bay leaf before blending.

Add the cream and adjust seasoning to your taste and bring to a boil for just a few minutes. Remove from the heat and serve. Garnish with the parmesan chips, some olive oil, fresh thyme stems and crushed toasted hazelnuts or just with some chives. Enjoy!

tip // How to peel celeriac: Slice any wiry roots at the base. Then use a potato peeler to peel the skin off. You will likely need to go over it a couple of times to get all the skin off. I use a good knife and cut around it trying to lose as little root ass possible.

FOR THE PARMESAN CHIPS

Preheat oven at 200C.

In a bowl mix the parmesan and corn flour and any herb of your choice (thyme, oregano, paprika, pepper). Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Spread the parmesan mix either on a unified thin layer using your fingers and the back of a spoon to level it or smaller round shapes if you want your chips to have a defined shape.

Bake for 9-10 minutes until golden. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on the baking paper. Brake with your hand carefully in different shapes or remove the chips with a spatula. Store in a tupperware after completely chilled placing kitchen paper between each layer.