Is your celery a stringy, bitter disappointment, or as floppy as a wet noodle? If so,
keep watching to learn a few simple tricks to beat the bitterness and crisp up your stalks.
Whether you're whipping up a tuna salad, putting together a crudité platter, or crafting your
go-to stuffing recipe, celery is a staple in many kitchens. It adds a unique herb-like
flavor and a whole lot of crunch. However, for many individuals, there's one issue preventing
them from loving this particular vegetable — the stringy texture of celery's exterior.
In a Reddit thread from several years ago, one user made the simple suggestion
of removing the exterior strings before eating and the post racked up
361 comments. Some Reddit users commented about what a silly extra step it was.
Raw celery has what are called collenchyma cells on the exterior, which are responsible for helping
give the produce its customary crunch. These water-filled cells are also the reason behind that
stringy texture, though. Yet, while it adds an extra step to your prep process, there's a special
hack to get rid of that stringy exterior in order to whip up the celery dish of your dreams.
While you might not consider celery to be a vegetable with a peel,
a vegetable peeler is the easiest way to get rid of those strings. Particularly on the outer
stalks, which tend to be a bit tougher. This effectively removes those stringy portions and
you're left with crunchy, string-free celery to enjoy in whatever dish you're making. Or,
you could use a sharp paring knife to peel away that exterior portion of your celery.
If the peeling process sounds too time-consuming, there's another method
we recommend you try. Grab the base of the celery stalk you're looking to de-string,
snap it, and you should be able to simply pull the thick threads away from the stalk.
Is all this additional prep work just too much for
you to handle? Are you getting exhausted by just the thought of peeling celery?
"I'm tired of this grandpa!"
"That's too damn bad!"
It's just the price you pay for the best celery of your life! But,
if you really can't be bothered to add an extra step to your celery prep, we suggest
you go for just those tender inner ribs. They may be too stringy for true celery haters,
but they are much different in texture and flavor than the exterior stalks.
In addition to the unappealing texture of the stringy portions, another key factor that causes
celery-haters to avoid the vegetable is its bitterness. Luckily, there are a few ways to
help temper the vegetable's natural bitterness. It all depends on how you need to use the celery in
your dish, starting from the point of purchase. While you may normally be drawn toward the most
vibrant, colorful produce possible, as that's typically a visual indicator of ripeness, you want
to go in the opposite direction for celery. Deeper green stalks are a strong indicator that the
celery will be on the bitter side. This is because they haven't been bleached in the sunlight.
Bleaching helps to combat processes that encourage that color and consequent bitterness to develop.
If you're trying to rescue celery that you've already purchased, there are a few
things to consider. You're in luck if your dish requires the celery to be cooked. Because this
will help reduce those bitter flavor notes while highlighting some of the more aromatic,
pleasant flavor notes within celery.
With any preparation, you can also incorporate seasonings designed to counteract the bitterness.
Salty and fatty flavors can counteract the bitterness,
so you may consider pairing your celery with some strategic flavors.
If you're a celery lover unbothered by its stringiness or bitterness, there is one hurdle
that you may face. Reaching into your refrigerator to pull out celery only to find that it's become
limp seemingly overnight. Don't immediately toss it out, though — it can typically be revived.
An easy way to bring limp celery back to life is to cut off a small portion of the stalks in order
to expose more of the interior. Then stand the celery in a jar or container with cold water for
an hour or so. This tip works because the cells in those submerged celery stalks will absorb the cold
water, firming up the stalks again. You can also try wrapping the celery loosely in aluminum foil,
this will help keep it from becoming dry and limp. Alternatively, you can cut the stalks
into smaller pieces and store those in water from the moment you bring the produce home.
Of course, if your celery is limp, it just means you don't want to use it in dishes
where you need that crunchy texture. Instead, consider incorporating it in something like a
soup or stir-fry, where it'll soften during the cooking process anyway.
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