All About Celery

Crisp and fresh celery is a must have side for your summer meals!  That’s why we are featuring it as our veggie of the month.  The most common variety of celery found in your grocery store is the bright green Pascal type.  You can also find Chinese celery at Asian grocery stores.  This variety has noticeably longer, thinner stalks and has more leaves than the Pascal type. The taste is also stronger than regular celery, and so Chinese celery is most often used for cooking.

Look for firm tight, blemish-free stalks that will “snap” when you pull them apart. Never choose limp or rubbery celery. The darker the colour of the celery, the more bitter the taste will be.  Keep celery in a closed plastic bag in the crisper. Celery will keep fresh in the fridge for a week or so.  Only freeze celery that you intend to cook.

Wash celery thoroughly using a vegetable brush to remove any dirt. Trim at both ends but keep the celery leaves for use in soups or stocks. Celery can be eaten raw or cooked. It adds crunch to egg, tuna or chicken salad. Kids love celery stuffed with peanut butter or cheese. It works great in a dip and adds lots of flavour to soups and stews.

Local celery is in season from July to October but celery is available year round.  Celery is very low in calories.  One stalk has about 6 calories. Celery is rich in Vitamin K and a source of Folate. It’s also filled with antioxidants.

Check out our video with Ambassador Chef Michael smith for this absolutely delicious Celery Potato Salad.

Here are some of our other favourite celery recipes:

Avocado Egg Pita: How do you elevate your egg salad?  Add the delicious fresh crunch of chopped celery into it!

Caldo Verde: This soup is bursting with flavours from all the veggies in it, especially that tasty celery.

Celery Bacon Stir Fry: from Cooking with Lei : A quick and easy stir fry to have handy!

Celery and Pepper Salad: from Kevin is Cooking: In this healthy salad, the underrated celery gets elevated with herbs, citrus and other goodies!

Share some of your favourite recipes with us!