Les Crudités
(ah-SYET duh kroo-dee-TAY)
La Cantine à la Maison: The Midday Anchor
Forget the American party platter with its sad, naked baby carrots shivering around a plastic tub of ranch. In France, crudités mean something else entirely. It is a composed plate of individually dressed, lightly cured vegetables that serves as the midday anchor in every decent brasserie and school cantine. The trick to making this transportive lies entirely in the grandmotherly techniques: osmotic dehydration for the cucumbers, the proper marination of grated carrots, and managing the rapid oxidation of celery root. It is unpretentious, deeply comforting, and requires nothing more than a little patience to coax brilliant, authentic textures out of standard supermarket produce.
Ingredients
- cucumber1 large
- coarse salt1 tbsp
- crème fraîche or full fat sour cream3 tbsp
- white wine vinegar1 tsp
- fresh chives1 tbsp
- black pepper1/2 tsp
- carrots4 med
- neutral oil3 tbsp
- lemon juice2 tbsp
- Dijon mustard4 tsp
- celeriac1 small
- high-quality mayonnaise3 tbsp
- eggs2 large
- baguette1 med
Method
- 01
Draw the excess water out of the cucumbers using coarse salt.
Toss the paper-thin cucumber slices with the coarse salt in a colander and let them rest in the sink for at least fifteen minutes. This osmotic trick, known as dégorgement, is non-negotiable if you want creamy cucumbers instead of a watery puddle.
- 02
Emulsify the vinaigrette and grate the carrots directly into it.
In a large bowl, whisk together the neutral oil, one tablespoon of the lemon juice, and one teaspoon of the Dijon mustard. Grate the carrots into the dressing using a standard box grater—never a food processor—toss well, and leave them in the refrigerator to soften and absorb the flavor.
- 03
Grate the celeriac and toss it immediately with the remaining lemon juice.
Celery root oxidizes and turns brown the moment it hits the air, so work quickly. Once coated in the acid, fold in the mayonnaise and the remaining three teaspoons of Dijon mustard to create a robust rémoulade.
- 04
Boil the eggs until the yolks are just set.
Lower the eggs into boiling water for exactly eight and a half minutes, then plunge them into an ice bath for a perfectly jammy, cantine-style center.
- 05
Aggressively squeeze the rested cucumbers to expel the water.
Grab handfuls of the salted cucumbers and squeeze them hard over the sink. Once thoroughly drained, mix them with the sour cream, white wine vinegar, black pepper, and freshly snipped chives.
- 06
Arrange the salads in distinct, separate mounds.
Take a wide, shallow plate and position the vibrant orange carrots, pale green cucumbers, and white celeriac around the edges, keeping them rigidly separate. Place the peeled and halved eggs in the center, and serve with fresh baguette to mop up the dressings.
Notes
Adapt to American cucumbers.
American slicing cucumbers often have thick, waxy skins and massive, water-logged seeds. Take the time to peel them completely and scrape the seeds out with a spoon before slicing.
The celery root substitute.
If celeriac is unavailable or too intimidating for a Tuesday night, skip it entirely. Substitute a bunch of thoroughly washed whole red radishes, served raw alongside a pat of good salted butter.
From Cook French in America.