One of my favorite winter salads is one made from shredded celery root, or celeriac. If you are unfamiliar with this nubby root vegetable, typically found in a quiet corner of the produce section, here’s what it looks like:

This is what a nice one should resemble–unfortunately, because they are still unfamiliar to many people, the unsold celeriac will sometimes linger way past its prime before it gets yanked by the grocer. Your ideal root should be fresh, firm, the color somewhere between creamy-light beige-faintly green, with the stem ends where the celery was once attached looking recently cut and verdant, rather than withered and mottled.

Once you find a nice globular one, bring it home, peel off the tough exterior, and use it to make one of several things: a mash just like you would mashed potatoes with butter or cream and freshly ground nutmeg; or simmered in a chicken or vegetable stock until soft enough to pierce with the pointy end of a knife and then pureed for a soup; or shred it for a light winter salad.

I follow my Belgian grandmother’s recipe, which is basically the classic French celeriac remoulade. It’s very weeknight friendly, you can improvise with whatever herbs you like (think parsley, tarragon, chives), and even add chopped gherkins or capers. In a way it has the same versatility as cabbage–which can also be turned into a slaw or cooked until broken down and all together something different.

For the cookbook I’m working on a recipe for pairing the salad with a turkey schnitzel, but really it goes well with any breaded cutlet recipe you like. It can also be the main part of your meal if you’re going meatless— mixed with a green salad, some quinoa or brown rice, and roasted vegetables. My mother and grandmother used to also eat it on a sandwich, piled between two pieces of crusty baguette. Trust me–it’s delicious.

Recipe for Celeriac Salad

Peel one large celery root, removing all of the tough outer skin with a sharp peeler until you’ve exposed the white interior. Cut into thick finger-shaped slices and feed into a food processor using the shredding blade (you can also use a box shredder or mandolin).

Place the shredded celeriac in a large bowl. Squeeze one lemon and pour the juice over the celeriac, tossing to combine so that all of the celeriac is covered.

In a separated bowl combine 1/2 cup mayonnaise (if you don’t want to use mayo then you can just make a vinaigrette with the following ingredients and substitute grapeseed oil), 1 tbs champagne or white wine vinegar, 1-2tbs dijon mustard (depending upon how mustardy you like it), salt and a good amount of freshly ground pepper (I’ve also had it with 1 tsp of horseradish, if you want a little heat). Add to the celeriac and toss to combine. You can now add the chopped capers and gherkins, if you’d like. I sprinkle some chopped parsley or chives on top before serving. Enjoy!