French · Authentic-ish French
Celeri Remoulade
96 kcal a serving, against 532 for the traditional version. That is 436 kcal off, or 82%, with 6.8g of protein. Serves 4. 20 minutes, plus 30 minutes chilling.
What the traditional version is
A whole celeriac, peeled and grated into fine matchsticks. It gets folded into a classic homemade mayonnaise made by whisking egg yolks with a serious quantity of sunflower oil until emulsified. The dressing is heavily seasoned with Dijon mustard and fresh lemon juice to cut through all that fat. It is rich, glossy, and entirely devoid of nutritional balance.
What changed, and what each change costs
200g of sunflower oil for 150g of fat-free Greek yoghurt
Oil is pure fat and brings absolutely zero protein to the party. Greek yoghurt provides the thick, creamy texture you need to coat the raw vegetable while boosting the protein significantly.
What it costs you. You lose the incredibly rich, mouth-coating luxury of real mayonnaise. Yoghurt is sharper and wetter, so the salad feels much fresher but lacks that heavy bistro decadence.
Keeping just 20g of raw egg yolk
I left 1 raw yolk in the mix. Whisking it into the yoghurt and mustard brings back a tiny hint of that authentic fattiness. It bridges the gap between a sharp yoghurt dressing and a proper remoulade.
What it costs you. You have to separate an egg and figure out what to do with the white. It adds 5 minutes of faff to a very simple recipe.
The numbers
| Per serving | Traditional | Lightened |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 532 | 96 |
| Protein | 3.8g | 6.8g |
| Fat | 53.3g | 2.1g |
| Saturated fat | 6.2g | 0.6g |
| Carbohydrate | 12.6g | 13.7g |
| Protein per 100 kcal | 0.7g | 7.1g |
Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish French prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked.
Allergens. celery, eggs, milk, mustard.
The method is in the book
Call it a sharper, fresher alternative that you can actually eat a massive bowl of rather than a perfect replica of a Parisian brasserie staple and you'll be about right. The Greek yoghurt brings a sour tang that works incredibly well with the earthy celeriac and the hot mustard. It feels like a proper meal rather than just a garnish. The original is better if you want a heavy, luxurious side dish to go with a steak. My version is better if you want a massive portion of crunchy salad for lunch. I eat this all the time with a slice of cold ham and some crusty bread to mop up the leftover dressing at the bottom of the bowl.
The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish French, along with 54 more. Buy the paperback