Celery
Selection Information
Usage: Eating fresh, cooking and salads.
Selection: Good-quality celery should have even-colored, unblemished and smoothed-skinned stalks. Leaves should be fresh with no signs of wilting. Contrary to popular belief, light green stalks taste better than those that are dark green. Scratch the butt-end of the celery with your fingernail. A sweet or bitter smell means sweet or bitter flavor.
Avoid: While light green stalks are preferred, avoid celery with white stalks which indicates old product.- Stalks that are soft, spreading out and bend are also signs of old product. Thick veins and rough inside surfaces indicate over-aged and tough celery.
Seasonal Information
Celery is available year-round from California. Washington celery is available from August until November with a peak in September.
Celery Nutritional Information
Serving size 2 medium stalks (110g)
Calories 25
Total Fat 0g
Sodium 125mg
Total Carbohydrate 5g
Dietary Fiber 2g
Protein 1g
% of U.S. RDA
Vitamin A 2%
Calcium 4%
Vitamin C 10%
Iron 2%
Low-calorie, Low -sodium, Source of vitamin C, Cholesterol-free, Fat-free.
Celery Tips & Trivia
- Don't throw away celery that has been in your refrigerator a little too long and gone limp. Revive the stalks (or extend the shelf-life of fresh celery) by shaving a small amount off from the butt-end, soaking in luke-warm water (1/2 hr. or more), and refrigerating.
- Originally a bitter, wild marsh plant ranging from Sweden south throughout Europe, celery was used over centuries for medicinal purposes "to purify the blood."
- The winner of an athletic event in ancient Greece was given a bunch of celery, much like flowers are given today.