Celery and Date Salad with Pecans and Pecorino

Celery and date salad is a raw, no-cook salad of crisp celery cut on the bias, chopped Medjool dates, and chopped pecans, dressed in lemon juice, date syrup, and high-phenolic extra virgin olive oil. It comes together in about 20 minutes with no stove or oven, and is finished with broad slices of Pecorino Romano and a final drizzle of olive oil.

What arrives at the table looks like a plate of cheese. The salad reveals itself as people eat – celery, dates, pecans surfacing one forkful at a time. A last drizzle of olive oil over the top catches the light and pulls the two layers together.

Celery rarely gets to be the main event. It's diced into a mirepoix and cooked until it disappears, or it shows up raw as a vehicle for something else. Cut on a steep bias into short, angled pieces, though, it becomes a different vegetable entirely — pale green, glassy at the edges, with a clean snap and enough surface to hold a dressing. On its own it tastes faintly saline and grassy.

Dates are its natural counterweight. Their caramel sweetness meets the mineral bite of the celery, and pecans bridge the two with butter and a second kind of crunch. The dressing keeps everything bright: lemon juice for acid, a spoonful of date syrup to echo the fruit, and a generous pour of kyoord high-phenolic extra virgin olive oil, whose peppery finish is the sensory signature of its polyphenol content. Because nothing here meets heat, that character arrives on the plate intact.

Then the cheese, which is the whole reason to make this salad for company. Cut the Pecorino Romano into slices as broad and as thin as you can manage and lay them over the surface, overlapping, until the salad disappears underneath. 

TIP: Slice the celery no more than an hour ahead and keep it in ice water until you dress it. It crisps the stalks and takes the edge off any bitterness. Dry it thoroughly since a wet stalk won't hold dressing.

Why finish a raw salad with high-phenolic olive oil

Polyphenols are the compounds responsible for the peppery catch at the back of your throat when you taste a robust extra virgin olive oil, and they're sensitive to prolonged heat. A raw salad is one of the simplest ways to get them exactly as they left the bottle. Early research also suggests that the fat in olive oil helps the body absorb fat-soluble vitamins from the vegetables it's dressing, which makes a generous pour a functional choice as much as a flavorful one.

Celery and Date Salad

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Servings

4

Prep Time

20 minutes

This refreshing Celery and Date Salad combines the crunch of fresh celery with the sweetness of Medjool dates and the richness of pecans, all brought together with a zesty dressing. Optional Pecorino Romano adds a delightful creaminess, making it a perfect side dish for any meal.Author:

Dr. Limor Goren

Ingredients

For the Salad

• 6–7 medium celery stalks, inner heart preferred

• 8 Medjool dates, pitted and chopped

• ¾ cup pecan halves, roughly chopped

• 2 ounces Pecorino Romano, in one block (optional)

For the Dressing

• 3 tablespoons high-phenolic extra virgin olive oil

• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, about 1 lemon

• 1 tablespoon date syrup

• ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

To Finish

• 1 tablespoon high-phenolic extra virgin olive oil

• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Trim the celery and slice on a steep bias into pieces about ½ inch thick. For maximum crunch, hold the slices in ice water for 10 minutes, then drain and dry thoroughly.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, date syrup, salt, and several grinds of pepper. Stream in the 3 tablespoons of olive oil, whisking until emulsified.

3. In a large bowl, combine the celery, dates, and pecans. Pour over the dressing and toss until everything is evenly coated. Taste and adjust salt and lemon.

4. Transfer to a wide, shallow platter and spread into an even layer rather than a mound — a flat surface gives the cheese something to drape over.

5. Bring the Pecorino Romano to room temperature for 15 minutes. Using a Y-shaped vegetable peeler, a mandoline, or a sharp knife, cut the broadest, thinnest slices you can manage, working slowly along the flattest face of the block. Lay them over the salad in overlapping shingles until the surface is completely covered and no salad shows through.

6. Drizzle the remaining tablespoon of olive oil over the cheese, finish with cracked pepper, and serve immediately.

Recipe Note

Pecorino Romano is dry and firm, so broad slices will sometimes crack as they come off the block. Let the cheese sit at room temperature first and work slowly, and don't worry about the pieces that break as irregular shards overlap beautifully and give the top more texture than uniform ribbons would.

 

Make it in a jar. This salad travels well. Pour the dressing into the bottom of a wide-mouth jar, pack the celery on top of it, and finish with the dates and pecans so they stay dry. Seal and refrigerate for up to a day, then shake and tip onto a plate when you're ready to eat. Add the cheese and the final drizzle of olive oil at the table.

 

To keep it dairy-free, skip the cheese and finish with flaky salt, a heavier pour of olive oil, and a little more lemon zest.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I make celery and date salad ahead of time?
Yes. The neatest way is to build it in a jar: dressing on the bottom, celery packed above it, dates and pecans on top so they stay dry. Sealed and refrigerated, it holds for up to a day. Just shake and tip it onto a plate when you're ready. If you'd rather assemble on a platter, dress the salad no more than 30 minutes before serving and add the cheese and final drizzle of olive oil just before it goes to the table.

What kind of dates work best?
Medjool dates are soft and caramel-like and chop into sticky, jammy pieces. Deglet Noor are drier and firmer and will give you distinct little nuggets rather than a chewy bite. Either works; use whichever you prefer.

What can I use instead of date syrup?
Honey or maple syrup in the same quantity. Date syrup doubles the fruit flavor already in the salad, so it's the most seamless choice, but the dressing works with any of the three.

Is this salad vegan?
It is without the Pecorino Romano, which is optional. The dressing and the salad base contain no animal products.

What should I serve it with?
It's a natural partner for roast chicken, braised lamb, or anything rich enough to want something bright and crunchy alongside. It also holds up well on a buffet, since the celery stays crisp far longer than leafy greens.

Why use high-phenolic olive oil in a salad?
Polyphenols are heat-sensitive, so an uncooked dish delivers them intact. You'll also taste the difference: the peppery finish of a high-phenolic extra virgin olive oil gives the dressing a backbone that a milder oil can't.