Slightly underrated winter veggies - celeriac & chard play main role in this delicious Celeriac & Chard Vegetable Curry. Beautifully flavoured with an array of Indian spices this simple & seasonal, vegan curry recipe is not to be missed.
It never ceases to amaze me how many different variations of vegetable curry one can make.
However, we tend to go for same old ingredients we feel comfortable with and leave out the slightly odd ones or ones we don't really know how to tackle.
Say hello to humble celeriac & chard!
I cook with both a lot so I thought I would share with you this really simple yet packed with flavour vegan curry recipe.
Celeriac with its slightly nutty flavour goes beautifully with all the lovely spices and chard (I used rainbow variety) makes a nice change from more widely used spinach and kale.
It's time to widen our veggie horizons - Celeriac & Chard Vegetable Curry, here we come!
How to prepare celeriac?
Knobbly and rough exterior of celeriac might put a lot of people off this delicious root vegetable.
However, it really isn't difficult to prepare and once you're done, there is so much you can do with it, from mashing, roasting to using in soups, gratins and more.
The easiest way to tackle celeriac is to top and tail it first by cutting off the small piece from the top and enough off the bottom to get rid of all the knobbly parts that tend to hold all the dirt.
Don't worry if it's quite a bit you need to get rid of, that's just the beauty of celeriac.
Next thing to do would be to peel the remaining skin with vegetable/potato peeler to reveal lovely white interior.
Once you got there, simply give your celeriac a rinse and use as required by your recipe. For my celeriac and chard vegetable curry you'll need to cut it into cubes.
What makes good vegetable curry?
The answer is pretty simple really...
Use fresh and seasonal ingredients for maximum flavour, organic if you can afford them.
Don't be afraid of spices! You really can't go wrong with Indian spices, it's really very difficult to overdo them (in my opinion anyway).
Don't forget your 'holy trinity' - onions, garlic and ginger! You could add fresh chilli if you're not afraid of heat but as this curry is aimed at families I decided to keep it out. You can always top your portion with a drizzle of sriracha or your favourite hot sauce.
To make your vegetable curry go further add your favourite lentils, beans or pulses. I used red lentils in my celeriac & chard curry which not only make it more substantial but thicker and creamier too!
Taste, taste and taste some more. If you feel like your curry could do with a bit extra seasoning, add it.
If you don't have nut allergy, a handful of ground almonds and a squeeze of lime or lemon juice will always finish your veggie curry off nicely.
Celeriac & Chard Vegetable Curry - Serving Suggestions
This delicious vegan curry will go beautifully with a simple side of plain white or brown basmati rice.
However, if you'd like to take it to the next level, try it with my Easy Indian Rice (gently spiced basmati rice) or perhaps this super fragrant and beautifully yellow Easy Turmeric Rice.
I don't know about you but for me curry wouldn't be complete without delicious homemade naan bread or chapati (both easy, no-yeast versions) and cucumber raita. These super simple sides will turn your simple celeriac & chard curry supper into real feast!
How do you store vegetable curry?
You can store your vegetable curry leftovers in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Make sure you put it in the fridge as soon as it's cooled down and reheat only the portion you intend to eat leaving the rest in the fridge.
If you're not sure whether you'll be able to eat your leftovers within that time, it might be better to freeze them instead. They will keep in the fridge for up to 3 months.
For best results defrost your curry in the fridge overnight and reheat on the hob or even in the microwave.
How to make celeriac & chard vegetable curry - step-by-step instructions
- Heat up the oil in a large lidded casserole dish and add mustard seeds together with bay leaves.
- After a couple of minutes of gentle frying and when the seeds start to "pop" add chopped onion, garlic and ginger and cook until they start to soften, stirring frequently to prevent them from burning (approx. 5 minutes).
- Next, add finally chopped chard stalks, immediately followed by spices, tomato puree and chunks of celeriac.
- Give everything a good stir and cook for a couple of minutes.
- Next, add red lentils, vegetable stock and coconut milk and give it all a good stir.
- Bring curry to boil then turn the heat down to simmer and cook (partially covered) until celeriac is tender and lentils are cooked (approx. 20 minutes). Make sure to keep an eye on the pot and stir your curry from time to time. if you notice it is getting a bit to dry, simply add more stock or water.
- Once you are happy with tenderness of celeriac, add chopped chard leaves and stir them into your curry.
- Continue simmering until chard wilted down and softened slightly (approx. 5 minutes).
- Add lemon juice followed by ground almonds and cook for further 2 minutes.
- Taste your curry, adjust seasoning if needed and you're ready to serve.
Have you tried my Celeriac & Chard Vegetable Curry?
Please consider giving it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in recipe card below and share your views or tips in the comments.
If you enjoyed this Celeriac & Chard Vegetable Curry recipe make sure to try my other vegetable curries:
Easy Cauliflower & Lentil Curry (Vegan)
Tarka Dhal with Spinach (Vegan)
Some more delicious celeriac recipes:
Roasted Celeriac & Sweet Potato Soup
Easy Leek & Potato Soup with Celeriac
Celeriac Veggie Loaf
Celeriac & Chard Vegetable Curry (Vegan)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 400 g celeriac (peeled weight) peeled and cut into chunks
- 2 tablespoon coconut or rapeseed oil
- 1 onion peeled and finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves minced or finely chopped
- 11 g (thumb size) piece of fresh ginger peeled and grated or finely chopped
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon tomato puree
- 1 tsp black mustard seeds
- 1 tablespoon mild curry powder see notes
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 500 ml vegetable stock from stock cube is fine, I use Kallo
- 1 tin coconut milk (400ml/13.5 fl oz)
- 100 g red lentils rinsed well
- 1 large bunch of rainbow or swiss chard stalks finely chopped and leaves shredded or roughly chopped (keep stalks and leaves separate)
- handful of ground almonds optional
- juice of half a lemon or lime or to taste
- salt & pepper to taste
- fresh coriander/cilantro to garnish
Instructions
- Heat up the oil in a large lidded casserole dish and add mustard seeds together with bay leaves.
- After a couple of minutes of gentle frying and when the seeds start to “pop” add chopped onion, garlic and ginger and cook until they start to soften, stirring frequently to prevent them from burning (approx. 8 minutes).
- Next, add finally chopped chard stalks, immediately followed by spices, tomato puree and chunks of celeriac.
- Give everything a good stir and cook for a couple of minutes.
- Next, add red lentils, vegetable stock and coconut milk and give it all a good stir.
- Bring curry to boil then turn the heat down to simmer and cook (partially covered) until celeriac is tender and lentils are cooked (approx. 20 minutes). Make sure to keep an eye on the pot and stir your curry from time to time adding some more stock or water if mixture gets too dry.
- Once you are happy with tenderness of celeriac, add chopped chard leaves and stir them into your curry.
- Continue simmering until chard wilted down and softened slightly.
- Add lemon juice followed by ground almonds (if using) and cook for further 2 minutes.
- Taste your curry, adjust seasoning if needed and you’re ready to serve.
Notes
- Nutritional information is approximate, per serving (without accompaniments) based on 4 generous servings and should be treated as a guideline only.
- I use mild curry powder but feel free to use medium or even hot if you prefer.
- Leftover vegetable curry will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days. Alternatively, freeze it for up to 3 months.
Veenas says
Nice Blog !! A Very Yummy Wonderful Recipe !!! WOW Nice Photos to See. I'll Definitely Try it. Thank You for Sharing that Lovely Food.
joskitchenlarder says
Thank you and hope you enjoy! 🙂