Celery Root Steak Poached in
Persimmon Shoyu Butter

When it comes to creative and spontaneous scratch-made home cooking, nothing is more essential than having your very own larder. For those unfamiliar, a larder refers to a room or pantry dedicated to stored food; think spice blends, ferments, stocks, vinegars, emulsions, condiments, preserves, and more. It’s true that building a larder can be time consuming—especially when dealing with ferments, which often benefit from long periods of time passing. The flip side is that larders enable one to cook more freely in the moment; and by cook, I mean play. I like to think of larders as being actors, waiting to hit the stage and fulfill their assumed role. They harbor depth and complexity, providing support, or even stark contrast, to other components in a dish. They transform, and they are transformed, by cooking.

Sometimes, the best potential larders are made from the most unexpected, unassuming ingredients. To tease something profound out of seemingly nothing—this is what a chef strives for! This makes a great deal of sense in the context of using koji and mold-based fermentation to create amino sauces. In my case, I had found a small handful of neglected ingredients in the back of my fridge: an aging carton of shishito peppers, and one very ripe persimmon. I decided to turn them into shoyu.

Shoyu is the name for Japanese-style soy sauce, albeit my shoyu does not contain soy. Rather, the persimmon and the shishito peppers serve as the main protein for the koji mold enzymes to break down into amino acids. One month later, I am left with a fruity, spicy, fermented amino sauce with potentially limitless applications.

The process of making an amino sauce is simple, and is thoroughly explained in Shih and Umansky’s Koji Alchemy. To summarize, you will need equal parts protein and inoculated koji, to 2 parts water. I took an additional liberty by grilling the persimmon and shishito peppers before blending for extra flavor. The shoyu itself needs little care and attention as it ferments; though it is necessary to stir the shoyu once or twice a day for the first month. This is to release carbon dioxide trapped in the liquid, as well as oxygenate the mixture and encourage fermentation.

 

At the time I had no clue as to how I wanted to cook with the shoyu. My plans, like the shoyu itself, needed time to develop more fully. When the shoyu achieved one month in age, I decided to try it as a poaching liquid for some celery root. If you have never tried celery root, or celeriac, then know it has a potato-like starchiness, though a bit less so; coupled with a very clean, pleasant, vegetable flavor. I sous-vide cooked celery root slices, poaching them in my shoyu, some butter, and honey, for twelve hours, until its firmness gave way to a silky but toothsome texture. I finished the slices on the grill, searing them briefly on both sides. On the plate I finished with a spoonful of the poaching liquid, and a sprinkling of my persimmon shishito shoyu seasoning salt. The seasoning salt is simply the dehydrated and ground shoyu pulp. I added my amazake fermented reddish for additional umami and color pop.

The first thing to hit you is the supple texture of the celery root. Silky yet firm, it is strikingly similar to soft-shell crab. The savory, umami notes come next, as the amino acids soak into your tongue, making your mouth water with an array of flavors and aromas. The fermented radishes are so, so meaty. Lastly, a clean, refreshing vegetable celery flavor refreshes your palate. This dish is a win. 

For the persimmon shishito pepper shoyu:

• 125g ripe persimmon fruit, grilled
• 125g shishito peppers, grilled
• 250g inoculated koji
• 90g salt
• 500g water

For the celery root:

• 280g celery root, peeled and cut into four “steaks”
• 110g persimmon shishito pepper shoyu
• 64g butter
• 14g honey
• Amazake fermented radish, to garnish
• Persimmon shishito pepper seasoning salt, to garnish

To make the shoyu: Heat a grill to 350. Place the fruit and the peppers on the grill and cook, rotating occasionally, until some char marks are noticeable all over. Set aside to cool. Blend the grilled persimmons and peppers along with the koji in a blender. Transfer the mixture to a mason jar. Stir in the water and the salt and seal the jar with a proper lid. Stir once or twice a day, every day, for the first month. Allow the shoyu to ferment at room temperature for at least 3 or 4 weeks before using.

To make the seasoning salt: After at least a few weeks, strain out the blended solids from the shoyu that you are about to use. Place in a dehydrator set to 100 degrees for roughly 10 hours. Grind the mixture in a spice grinder. Toss in a couple pinches of English flakey sea salt and set aside.

To poach the celery root: Fill a large stockpot with water and set a sous-vide circulator to 170 degrees. Meanwhile, place the slices of celery root, strained shoyu, butter and honey in a vacuum sealed bag. I simply use a 2 gallon ziplock bag. Place the bag in the heated water bath, making sure to remove as much air from it as possible, and let cook for 12-14 hours. Let cool and set aside.

To cook the dish: Heat a saute pan over high heat. Meanwhile, warm some of the poaching liquid in a separate pot. Add slices of the poached celery root to the saute pan and let sear for a few minutes on each side. To serve, place the seared celery root in the center of the plate. Top with fermented radishes. Spoon the warm poaching liquid around one side of the celery root. Sprinkle some of the seasoning salt over the plate. Serve warm.