- Blanch celery before freezing to better preserve its texture and flavor.
- You can also freeze raw celery, but it will have a mushier texture and less flavor once thawed.
- Frozen blanched celery will last eight months or more in the freezer.
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Despite having a reputation as an everyday snack food, celery is an incredibly versatile ingredient that lends itself well to various recipes, adding both texture and flavor. The carrot-family vegetable can be eaten raw or sauteed. It's also a source of several vital nutrients, including vitamin A, C, and K. "Mostly all of the classic comfort foods use celery," says Chris Mentzer, a chef and director of operations for Rastelli Market Fresh.
Buying a whole head of celery often leaves you with too much on your hands. While fresh celery keeps longer than other vegetables, it eventually turns mushy and inedible if you don't eat it quickly enough. Freezing celery is a great way to make sure you always have this commonly used ingredient on hand.
The best method is to blanch celery before freezing, says Mentzer. Doing so helps extend the frozen celery's lifespan for eight months or more. And, because the celery is pre-cooked, it's easy to toss into soups and stews.
You can freeze fresh celery, but it will soften significantly during the thawing process and lose much of its distinct celery-like flavor, says Mentzer. "Fresh frozen celery has a much shorter shelf life, too — only about two to three months," he adds.
Why you should blanch celery before freezing it
Blanching extends the life of frozen celery because it helps expel some of the moisture from the vegetable, which in turn prevents freezer burn. The texture of cooked frozen celery is superior to fresh frozen celery, which becomes soft and soggy as it thaws.
Best ways to use frozen celery
If you diced and blanched your celery before freezing, you can add it to soups and stews straight from the freezer, says Mentzer. However, if you plan to use celery in something like a stir fry, thawing helps prevent moisture from ruining the dish and turning it mushy.
You'll need to thaw and cook fresh frozen celery before using it in recipes.
Some of Mentzer's favorite uses for celery are in comfort foods like:
- Pot pies
- Soups and stews
- Stuffing
- Casseroles
Frozen celery lends itself particularly well to soups and stews because you likely won't notice the slight change in texture.
Mentzer doesn't recommend using frozen celery for juicing since the fresh frozen stalks become too soft once thawed.
Insider's takeaway
If you have too much celery on your hands that you don't want to waste, freezing is a great way to prolong the life of these crunchy stalks. Blanching then freezing celery will extend its life for eight months or more. Use it in your favorite comfort food dishes like Thanksgiving stuffing, cream of celery soup, and chicken pot pie.