Celery is a staple grocery item for any home or chef. It is used in thousands of dishes, helping to increase the flavor profile. From chicken soup to stir fry dishes, you need to have celery available. Celery also is a fantastic snack, with a delicious crunch when you take a bite. It is full of vitamins with a few calories, making it a great snack. When you pull out the stalks from the refrigerator, you probably wonder how long does celery last. No one wants to use gross food in their dinner!
Celery as a snack with dip
Whether you purchased stalks at the grocery store or harvest it from your garden, the shelf life typically isn’t listed on most fresh vegetables. They don’t always have a sell by date or even a best before the date that lets you know how quickly to use the item. Let’s take a look at how long does celery last and how to store it properly.
More...
Determining the Shelf Life of Celery
Celery stalks on wooden board
Celery is a tricky vegetable because, unlike other veggies, it doesn’t always give the clearest signs that it's nearing the end of its shelf life. However, there are some recommended guidelines to consider.
How Long Does Celery Last?
Dozens of pieces of diced celery
There is no definite way to answer how long does celery last. Instead, the answer is based on the storage method. Depending on how you store your celery, it will alter its best used by date. All methods are cold; you can’t leave celery on the counter. If celery warms up, you will notice it quickly loses its crispness and crunch.
Read more tips: How To Store Broccoli For A Longer Time?
Properly Storing Celery
If you want to maximum the shelf life of celery, you have to make sure that you are properly storing it. Many people recommend storing celery whole, wrapped in a damp paper towel. Then, you wrap that in aluminum foil and store it in the vegetable bin inside of the refrigerator. Another choice is just to store celery in a sealed plastic bag. Plastic containers designed for celery keep them fresh as well. No matter how you wrap and seal celery, you must keep it in the vegetable bin.
Via Youtube.com: Harvesting and preserving celery
How to Freeze Celery
Throughout the year, you might stumble across a great sale on celery, especially close to Thanksgiving. It is very easy to freeze celery. You can store it in freezer bags for easy additions to soups and stir fry dishes. Here are the simple instructions.
Celery diced on a cutting board
- Wash all the stalks thoroughly.
- Cut the stalks into 1 to 1 ½ inch pieces.
- Put the chopped pieces of celery into boiling water for three minutes. Then, quickly transfer those pieces into ice cold water. This process is called blanching. The ice water abruptly stops the cooking process.
- Drain off the extra moisture.
- Store in an airtight container, such as a freezer bag, and freeze immediately.
How to Re-Crisp Celery
There is an awesome trick that can re-crisp celery. Nothing is worse than needing to have celery in your dish only to realize your stalk is starting to get soft and bendable.
- Wash all of the stalks that you need for the dish.
- Cut each stalk into strips.
- Place them into a container of ice water and leave them there.
- In a few hours, drain out the ice water. The once limp stalks will now be crispy and crunchy celery because the stalks were able to absorb the ice water. You can store these stalks in a container inside of the refrigerator, and they will stay crisp for a few extra days.
Related post: How to Freeze Leeks: Here are Five Amazing Ways
Signs that Your Celery is Bad or Spoiled
Row of celery growing in garden
So, you have whole celery in the refrigerator, but you can’t remember when you purchased it. You have to try to decide if you should use it in your soup recipe. Luckily, there are some ways to determine by looking or feeling it if it is going bad.
Fresh celery has light green, firm stalks. If you snap them in half, a loud snap accompanies the action. When you take a bit, the celery has a crunch to it. Bad celery is more whitish in color and becomes hollow in the middle, eliminating that famed sound and crunch. As the celery starts to spoil, the stalks begin to spread out as they become soft and bendable.
Via Youtube.com: How to Keep Celery Fresh for 3 Months!
Celery Dishes: Celery Juice Recipe For Weight Loss
People also ask:
How long does raw celery last in the fridge?
A lot relies on how you store it after you buy it, so always keep celery in the fridge once you buy it!
If you want to keep raw celery fresh for as long as possible, wrap it securely in aluminum foil or plastic wrap. You may also store it in a closed container or plastic bag.
Does celery go bad in the refrigerator?
Celery may be kept in the refrigerator for up to two weeks if properly preserved.
How long does celery last in the fridge once it has been cooked?
Cooked celery may be stored in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days and in the freezer for up to a year.
How long does raw celery last after it's been sliced or chopped?
Freshly chopped fresh celery can keep in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.
Do you need to wash raw celery before eating it?
It's true that celery should be properly rinsed in running water before consumption.
Can you freeze celery?
Frozen vegetables should be prepared as follows:
Step 1: Wash well and cut into 1 to 1 1/2 inch pieces.
Step 2: Blanch for three minutes in boiling water and cool fast in ice cold water.
Step 3: Drain excess moisture and store in sealed containers or freezer bags.
How to tell if celery is bad or spoiled?
Celery that has softened, discolored, or bent easily is likely to be spoilt.
How do you know if celery has gone bad?
Generally, you can tell whether celery has gone rotten by seeing or touching it. The finest stalks are firm and bright green in color. If the celery starts to spread out from the bunch and the stalks become soft and bendable, you know it's bad. Also, old celery has a pale tint and a hollowed center.
Conclusion
When compared to other veggies such as lettuce, celery stays fresh for a longer period. You can typically keep it in its original package if you intend to use it within a week. If you know you won’t use it all within that time fresh, make sure to wrap it in aluminum foil to extend its shelf life.
If you are wondering how long does celery last, the answer will vary based on the storage method. Fresh whole celery that you purchase or grow in your garden typically lasts three to four weeks when kept cold in the refrigerator. Prepackaged celery only lasts for two to three days, but frozen celery lasts up to eight months! Don’t be afraid to stock up on a good sale now that you know its shelf life.
Discover More: