Can You Freeze Celery?
Celery is an ancient green veggie that originated from the Mediterranean region. In ancient days, celery was used as both- a cooking ingredient and a medicinal herb. Before we discuss ways to freeze celery, let’s talk more about the benefits associated with it.
So, this crispy vegetable has some serious myths and benefits associated with it. One of the biggest lies associated with celery is that it requires a high amount of energy molecules to metabolize celery. Indirectly, aiding in weight loss by boosting your metabolic rate.
Well, that’s not the case in reality. Similar to other green veggies, celery will satisfy your hunger but it won’t burn any extra calories. Also, there is a good number of humans who are allergic to celery and have a threat of getting anaphylactic conditions due to the same.
For others, celery is a potential medicinal herb that can help eliminate conditions like gout and arthritis. It depends on how your body reacts to this herb on the molecular level. Besides these two myths, celery is a nutritious plant, and consuming it regularly will keep you healthy.
3 Unique Ways to Freeze Celery
Fresh celery stalks along with roasted chicken or other grilled meat pieces sounds the perfect combination, right? But, what if your guests demand an aromatic experience of celery flavors in soups and other concoctions? Well, if you freeze celery effectively you can use it for almost a year! Check out these three quick and easy ways to do so.
1. Freeze Celery Rolled on Parchment Paper
The least cumbersome method of freezing celery is to simply roll it and freeze it. Try this method to freeze celery if you are in a hurry and wish to prevent your celery from going bad.
Method: Take fresh celery stalk and separate leaves from it. Wash the leaves and stalks separately with cold water. You can also dip them in a bowl of water for a minute or two so that the dirt particles settle down. Then, remove the leaves and stalks from the water and dry them using napkins.
Allow them to air dry for some time and then roll leaves and stalks separately on parchment paper. Make sure you roll them tightly so that the least air can go through them. Then, transfer these rolled leaves and stalks to clean airtight bags and freeze.
Lasting Period: This method of freezing celery is a last-minute option for the moments when you don’t have much time. You can freeze celery using this method for two months at the most. Try to use celery within four to five weeks for the best flavors.
Tips for Freezing: When you freeze celery using this method, be sure to squeeze out excess air from the roll and bags before freezing. Any traces of moisture or air will hamper the quality of leaves and stalks and possess a risk of freezer burn.
2. Freeze Celery Ice Cubes
As the name depicts, this method involves freezing celery in the form of flavored ice cubes for longer periods. Here’s what you should know about this process.
Method: Wash and clean celery leaves and stalks properly. Then, you can either chop them manually or use a food processor to assist you. In any case, make sure you have finely chopped pieces of celery leaves that are suitable for freezing as ice cubes.
Now, in a clean ice cube tray, add these chopped leaves and stalks and top them with water or olive oil. At this point, you can mix them with other herbs as well, but be sure you are well aware of different flavors from different herbs.
Once the ice cubes are completely frozen, you can remove them from the tray and freeze them in zip-lock bags or airtight containers.
Lasting Period: Frozen celery ice cubes can last for as long as six months to twelve months. However, you should keep a check on the ice cubes and look for any cases of damage. If there’s any sign of freezer burn you must discard them immediately. It is best to use these ice cubes within eight months at the most.
Tips for Freezing: So, there aren’t any special tips for this method but you can follow this one step for better freezing. When you are preparing ice cubes, try to freeze them in oil instead of water. Freezing veggies in oil are more effective as it halts the enzymatic processes altogether. Also, do not forget to label your bags containing celery ice cubes for future reference.
3. Freeze Celery by Blanching Method
By far this is the best method for freezing celery in comparison to the other options. So, if you have some free time you must invest it in preparing your celery for freezing using this method.
Method: Take fresh celery leaves and stalks and chop them into one-inch-long pieces. Give these pieces a thorough wash using cold water. Then, add them to a pan containing boiling water. Blanch celery for a minute or two until it is properly cooked.
Do not blanch for more than two minutes. After two minutes, turn off the flame immediately and shift the blanched celery pieces to a bowl containing cold water. This will instantly halt the cooking process and prevent the discoloration of celery. Now, shift these celery pieces over a paper towel and pat them dry.
After drying, you can flash-freeze celery for three hours. Then, transfer the frozen celery pieces to airitght bags or containers and freeze. Add labels to the bags so that you can differentiate them from other veggies.
Lasting Period: The only benefit of this method is that it lasts long for around a year. Blanching celery halts its degradation process dramatically and allows you to use it even after ten months. Thus, you can use this method to have a stalk of celery for an entire year!
Tips for Freezing: Do not blanch celery for more than 2 minutes and immediately shift it to cold water. Or, else it will lose its color, flavor, and texture instantly.
How to Defrost Celery? Is it okay to Refreeze Celery?
Defrosting celery isn’t needed and you can use them directly in your recipe. It is because any way you won’t be able to get the crunchiness of celery after freezing it. Thus, you will have to directly use it in your recipes while they are hot.
This way the flavors of celery will get dissolved in the dish more appropriately. Thus, no matter which type of freezing method you are using, you can directly use frozen celery in your recipe. However, do not refreeze celery at any cost.
Freezing celery will destroy its crunch but it will still preserve its flavor. But, if you refreeze thawed celery then you might get bland remains of celery that lack both flavor and aroma. Therefore, eliminate the chances of refreezing celery.
By the end of this blog, you are now aware of three fun ways to freeze celery for different time intervals. Depending upon the amount of celery you have in stock with you and the duration for which you wish to use them, you can pick a method that suits you the most.