If you’re not eating celeriac on a keto diet, you really are missing out. Celeriac (or Celery Root if you are American), is a great staple to have in your keto kitchen cupboards, it’s versatile, and is the perfect keto alternative for potato. Read on for some of our favourite uses for this underrated vegetable, and why you need to be eating Celeriac on Keto!
- What is Celeriac / Celery Root?
- What are the Health Benefits of Celeriac?
- Is Celeriac full of Carbs?
- What is the nutritional value of Celeriac?
- How many net Carbs are there in Celeriac?
- What does Celeriac taste like?
- Celeriac as a Potato Substitute on a Keto Diet ?
- How to Prepare Celeriac
- ?? How to Cook Celeriac
- How to Store Celeriac
- Can you Freeze Celeriac? ?
- So are you missing out on Celeriac on Keto?
What is Celeriac / Celery Root?
Celeriac also goes by the names; celery root, knob celery, and turnip-rooted celery (although Celeriac is not a close relative of the turnip) depending on which part of this wonderful world you live in!
Celeriac is also known as Celery Root, Knob Celery, or Turnip-Root Celery
What are the Health Benefits of Celeriac?
Celeriac is not only keto-friendly, but it also has a number of amazing health benefits.
Celeriac is a root vegetable that is purported to have a wide range of health benefits. It is very rich in dietary fibre and also contains vitamins C, E, B6, K, B, phosphorus and potassium.
The health benefits of celeriac include, but are not exclusive to;
Strengthening Bones
Phosphorus and Vitamin K are essential for healthy bones; they promote calcium absorption and therefore preventing bone loss, which naturally happens as we get older.
Studies have found that persons with higher vitamin K intake are less likely to suffer bone fractures than those with a lower vitamin K intake.
Heart Health
Better heart health is something that we are all looking for. Potassium and vitamin K also have a part to play in ensuring better heart health.
Anti-Inflammatory
Celeriac is also full of antioxidants. Antioxidants fight against harmful free radicals in your body, which prevent cell regeneration. This means that eating celeriac has the potential to reduce inflammation in your joints.
Wow! That is only a short snippet of the range of health benefits that Celeriac offers.
Is Celeriac full of Carbs?
Like many other roots, celeriac is a carbohydrate-rich root vegetable. Hever, the majority of the carbohydrates in this root are made up of dietary fibre, so while celeriac is still a carbohydrate-rich food, it is not the same as typical carbohydrate-rich food.
If you have been eating a keto diet for any time, you will know that the whole focus of keto is to reduce the number of carbohydrates and increase the number of grams of fat that you eat on a daily basis.
If this concept is new to you, check out our Keto Guide for Beginners, which will give you all of the information you need in order to get you started on your keto journey.
Let’s get onto how you can incorporate Celeriac into your keto diet without going over your macros.
What is the nutritional value of Celeriac?
Celeriac is one of the few vegetables whereby cooking it significantly alters its nutritional value.
? The nutritional values of celeriac per 100 grams, raw and cooker are;
| Raw | Cooked | |
| Carbs | 9 | 6 |
| Protein | 1.5 | 1 |
| Fat | 0.3 | 0.2 |
| Fibre | 2 | 1 |
| Sugar | 1.6 | 1.6 |
| Calories | 44 | 44 |
How many net Carbs are there in Celeriac?
Net carbs are the total number of carbs, minus the amount of fibre. Therefore, raw celeriac contains 7 grams of net carbs per 100 grams (9 grams of carbs – 2 grams of fibre = 7 grams of net carbs). Cooked celeriac contains 4.4 grams of net carbs (6 grams of carbs – 1.6 grams of fibre = 4.4 grams of net carbs.
SUMMARY: Per 100 grams; Raw – 7 grams, Cooked – 4.4 grams
As discussed above, if you are eating a traditional keto diet, the aim is to keep your carb intake under 20 grams per day; this means that celeriac can be enjoyed on a keto diet.
What does Celeriac taste like?
Thankfully, celeriac tastes a lot better than it looks!
A lot of people worry that celeriac will taste like celery, but it doesn’t. Celeriac tastes more nutty and earthy than celery, but not quite as sweet as a parsnip. If you season your Celeriac, for me it is somewhere between a regular, white potato, a sweet potato, with a texture more like a parsnip.
Celeriac as a Potato Substitute on a Keto Diet ?
Celeriac can be used as a substitute for potatoes on a keto diet. Pretty much anything that you would have eaten potatoes as.
Check out some of our favourite keto celeriac recipe ideas here as an alternative to your favourite potato versions;
- Keto Celeriac Chips / Fries
- Keto Celeriac Dauphinoise
- Keto Celeriac Roast Potatoes
- Keto Celeriac Mash
- Keto Celeriac and Cauliflower Mash
- Keto Celeriac Soup
- Keto Celeriac Crisps / Chips
- Keto Roast Celeriac
How to Prepare Celeriac
So you’ve gone out, and you’ve bought this funny looking vegetable, and now you’re wondering what to do with it?
The simplest guidance I can give you is to treat celeriac like a potato.
First of all, you will need to peel the celeriac. From here, prepare as you would a potato. If you are looking to make crisps/chips, slice thinly and toss in oil and salt. If you are making roasts, cube your celeriac, just as you would a roast potato and season. You get the idea!
?? How to Cook Celeriac
We’ve been through how to prepare your celeriac, now let’s cover how to cook it!
Unsurprisingly, treat it as you would a potato! If you would normally shallow fry your fries, shallow fry your celeriac fries, if you would normally cook them in the air-fryer, this will work too…you can see where I’m going with this?!
The only difference is, if you are making celeriac mash, it doesn’t work with a hand masher as the texture is too tough. If you are going to make celeriac mash, you will need to use a hand blender, or a food processer in order to blend it into a ‘mash’ texture. Trust me, it’s worth the effort!
How to Store Celeriac
Celeriac, like other root vegetables, is best stored in a cool dry place, like a pantry or a vegetable cupboard. If stored correctly, celeriac will last 6-8 months whole. Once celeriac has been cut into, it will last a further 3-4 weeks before it will start to go soft; therefore, it is best not to peel celeriac until you are ready to use it.
As celeriac ages, it will go soft and once it is past its best, it will start to hollow in the centre.
Can you Freeze Celeriac? ?
Yes, you can! In order to freeze celeriac, first, you need to cut your celeriac into what you ultimately want it to be, roasts, fries, crisps/chips etc. Then you will need to blanch it in boiling water and then cool it down fast, before freezing.
So are you missing out on Celeriac on Keto?
In this article we have taken you through all of the amazing health benefits of celeriac, the nutritional value, including the carb content as well as given you some ideas as to how you can use celeriac as a potato substitute on keto. It really is a versatile vegetable and perfect for those wanting to cut the carbs out of their diet. So what are you waiting for?
Try out celeriac today and let us know what you think!
If you’re already a celeriac fan, whether you eat keto or not, share with us your favourite celeriac recipes in the comments below! ???
