Roasted Spiced Celery Root with Jasmin Rice
- 1 large celery root, peeled, then diced (should yield about 6 cups, diced)
- 1 teaspoon Ras el Hanout
- 3 1/2 teaspoons sea salt divided (use half the amount if using iodized salt)
- 4 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
- 1 1/2 cup jasmine rice, rinsed
- 1 small onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 2 1/4 cups water
- 1/3 cup fresh chopped cilantro (about 1 cilantro bunch)
- 1/2 cup pomegranate seeds (about 1 pomegranate)
Preheat the oven to 400°F
Place the peeled and diced celery root in a baking dish or onto a sheet pan. Next, add 2 tbsp of the olive oil, Ras el Hanout , 1 1/2 tsp sea salt, and toss together until the diced root is evenly covered in the seasoning. Bake for 45 minutes, tossing and turning every 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat a pot over medium heat. Drizzle the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil, add the diced onion, season with 2 tsp sea salt and black pepper to taste. Cook until the onions are translucent and have browned edges ( about 6-7 minutes).
When ready, add the rinsed rice and garlic to the onions and stir-fry until the rice becomes slightly translucent ( about 2-3 minutes). Next, stir in the water and cook until tender for 16-18 minutes. Once cooked, turn off the heat and place a clean dish towel underneath the lid and let sit for 10 minutes.
Finally, fluffy the rice with a fork. Add half of the roasted celery root, and cilantro—toss to combine. Then, add the rest of the celery root, and cilantro on top along with the pomegranate seeds. Enjoy.