Celery is a light and natural snack, which contains almost no calories. It tastes delicious whether eaten raw, cooked, or paired with a variety of dipping sauces and toppings. In addition, celery is also highly nutritious. Keep reading and learn how to get the most out of celery. (Notes: the celery in this article is celery that has large stems, not the small stem celery that we usually find in meatball sauce).
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Method 1 of 3: Preparing the Celery
Step 1. Buy fresh celery
You can find celery in most supermarkets and traditional markets, and you may find it in your garden.
- For fresh celery, consider buying locally grown produce. You can find celery already packaged in plastic, but such a product was probably imported from somewhere, stored for who knows how long, and sprayed with who knows how many pesticides.
- Buy celery with the whole stem. Make sure the celery stalks are light green, firm, and unblemished. If the celery stalks look whitish, mushy, or cracked, they may be starting to lose their quality; if the leaves wilt, choose fresher stems.
- If you're looking for a quick and convenient snack, consider buying a pack of chopped celery sticks. Again, packaged celery stalks may not be as fresh as whole, locally grown stalks, but celery stalks like these don't take long to prepare if you're in a hurry.
Step 2. Consider growing your own celery
Celery is a Mediterranean plant, and is best grown in climates with temperatures between 15-21 degrees Celsius.
- Celery is a plant that has a long growing season, and may be difficult to grow in areas with short summers. Celery shoots are best when germinated indoors.
- You can buy packaged celery seeds at your local nursery or at a grocery store that supplies gardening needs. You may be able to harvest wild-growing celery seeds; seek information from a field guide to the field of botany, or match information from a friend who grows celery in his garden.
- If you grow celery yourself, you can collect celery seeds and use them as a spice. With care and planning, you can ensure you don't run out of celery supplies year after year.
Step 3. Wash your celery
Use fresh running water, but avoid using soap or detergent. Celery grown for commercial purposes is likely to be sprayed with pesticides and other chemicals, and thorough washing can remove many potential contaminants. Washing can also reduce the risk of catching a number of food-borne diseases.
Step 4. Store the celery in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it
You can store celery in the crisper drawer, after first placing it in a well-sealed plastic bag, or in a bowl or jar with the root tip slightly submerged in water to keep it fresh.
- If stored properly, fresh (whole) celery can last up to 3-4 weeks after the sell-by date on the plastic; packaged celery will last 2-3 days after the date stated on the packaging; and cooked celery will last for one week after processing.
- Celery sold in the market does not always include an expiration date. Use your instincts: if the stems are whitish, mushy, cracked, or wilted, the celery may no longer be suitable for consumption.
- If you're not using your celery after four weeks, consider freezing it. You can thaw it again if you want to eat it.
Step 5. Cut the celery sticks, according to taste
If you bought whole stalks of fresh celery, cut off the leaves at the top; Turn the leaves into compost or throw them in the trash.
- If you're dipping the celery in a sauce or pickle, cut the stems into roughly 7-inch (5-10 cm) chunks.
- If celery is an ingredient or you want to add it to a salad, cut it into smaller, bite-sized pieces, or into neat dice.
Method 2 of 3: Dipping Raw Celery
Step 1. Dip the celery into some of the sauce
Celery has a light, juicy taste that goes well with almost any other food. Experiment with your favorite soups, dips, sauces, and butters, and see what gets you hooked.
If you're not sure if a particular sauce will match the taste of celery, just dip a small piece of celery in and see if you like it. There's no harm in trying
Step 2. Try dipping the celery sticks in the hummus
This thick, dipping sauce made from garbanzo beans has been used in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine for centuries, and is perfect for enhancing the taste of Mediterranean celery.
- You may be able to find ready-to-eat hummus at some major supermarkets. Plain hummus tastes great, but you can also find hummus sold with a mixture of garlic, eggplant, red pepper, avocado, and other ingredients.
- Experiment with other Middle Eastern sauces, such as tahini (sesame seed dip) and toum (tomato paste). Note that this dip tends to have a sharper and saltier taste than standard hummus.
Step 3. Consider dipping the celery in the peanut butter
It's both classic style and a fun way to add protein to your snack. Most peanut butter is thick enough that you can apply it directly to the celery sticks.
- Choose a smooth peanut butter or peanut butter mixed with chopped nuts, adjust it to your liking. You can find peanut butter at almost any supermarket, and there may be some stores that will allow you to grind your own freshly selected nuts.
- Celebrate this classic choice by using peanut butter made from different types of nuts: almond butter, cashew butter, or walnut butter, for example. This kind of jam may be harder to find, but some of the major health food retailers might sell it.
- Make “Ants on a Log”: Vary peanut butter-dipped celery sticks with raisins, seeds, or even M&Ms. That way, the appearance of celery will arouse children's interest.
Step 4. Dip the celery in the salad dressing
Ranch is a popular choice, but any thick salad dressing will do: thousand island, blue cheese, Italian dressing, Caesar dressing, etc. Serve the sauce in a small bowl or tray for easy access. Be wise; You can always add to it!
Step 5. Try dipping celery in yogurt or cream cheese
- Greek yogurt or unflavored yogurt may work best with the celery flavor, but you're free to experiment with other flavors.
- Plain cream cheese is fine with celery, but consider trying a variety of cream cheeses with added herbs or other flavors.
Step 6. Try dipping the celery in the cheese sauce
Fondue, nacho cheese, or other melted cheese can be an option. You may be able to find cheese sauce at some grocery stores; but consider making your own fondue.
Step 7. Dip the celery in the soup
The soup that works best is a chowder: clam chowder, scallion potato soup, or even celery soup itself.
- You can use celery instead of saltine crackers for soup or low-calorie oyster-flavored crackers. Celery won't soak up soup the way crackers do, but the grooves in the celery sticks can serve as scooping tools.
- Serve 7.5–10 cm pieces of celery with soup to use as spoons, or cut celery into small pieces and dip into soup.
Method 3 of 3: Making a Dish with Celery
Step 1. Make celery soup
Celery soup is a warm dish in cold weather, besides celery soup is easy to make and goes well with bread.
You will need a head of celery; onion; 15 g butter, margarine or olive oil; 900 ml of vegetable stock or water; salt and pepper to taste
Step 2. Make a celery stew
It's a quick, simple side dish and can complement a larger, richer appetizer. For example, you can boil celery in olive oil, wine, and a white or other sauce.
Step 3. Slice the celery and add it to the salad
Many recipes explicitly call for celery (for example, potato salad), but you can add raw celery to any salad. You can also make it the star of your salad – for example, consider making a lemon, celery and Parmesan salad:
Take a medium-sized bowl and add 4 thinly sliced celery stalks, celery leaf, 2 tablespoons olive oil, teaspoon grated lemon zest, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, and teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Gently mix all the ingredients together with 28 grams of Parmesan cheese. Serve cold or at room temperature
Step 4. Make the celery stir fry
Celery adds a unique flavor and texture to stir-fried vegetables, and goes well with a variety of Asian and Mediterranean dishes based on rice and pasta.
- Slice the celery sticks into bite-sized pieces for processing. Leave the celery leaves intact, and think of it like any other leafy green: they cook quickly, so add them later after the other vegetables.
- Celery is 75% water, and the rest is lint and fiber– so it doesn't need to be overcooked. Don't expect the celery sticks to change much after cooking, although the celery sticks will be soft and less chewy.
Tips
- Make sure you chew the celery until it's soft. Celery is often referred to as “natural dental floss” because of its tendency to break down into strands of fiber that can naturally clean between teeth.
- Chewing vigorously also tends to stimulate the production of saliva in the mouth, which is very good for the teeth: saliva neutralizes acids, and contains calcium and phosphate that restore nutritional minerals.
