Name: Unagi with Celery Root and Wasabi
Yield: Serves 4
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: ¼ cup soy sauce; 1 tablespoon dry mustard powder mixed with 1 tablespoon water; 1 (12-ounce) package frozen unagi (contains one eel); Black pepper; 1 teaspoon prepared wasabi (if you can only find the powdered kind, mix it with a little water according to the package directions); 4 pinches of finely julienned celery root, shallow-fried until crisp (optional); 4 pinches julienned scallion greens; Salt; 2 tablespoons sugar; 2 slices fresh ginger; ¼ cup light corn syrup; Black pepper to taste; 3 tablespoons dashi (optional); 1 tablespoon mirin; 1 teaspoon lemon juice; Pinch of grated lemon zest; 1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds; ¾ teaspoon salt; 1 small celery root, peeled and julienned (about 2 packed cups); 2 tablespoons thinly sliced (on a bias) scallion greens; ¼ cup mayonnaise

Preparation info

Serves
4

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Cooking without Borders

By Anita Lo

Published 2011

About

Unagi, or freshwater eel, with anything sweet and starchy is delicious. Celery root has both of those traits, so it’s the perfect match. I like to present it in remoulade form, which is a classic way to treat the root vegetable. I learned to make it in France, where they invented the preparation; comparable to cole slaw, it’s a salad mixed with mayonnaise and a lot of mustard.

To play off the eel, a staple of Japanese cuisine, I add that country’s mustard, karashi, and some h