How can I reuse, recycle or use up floppy celery?
Several bloggers I follow take part in the “Food Waste Friday” meme, in which they post pictures of their food waste from the week and a few have featured the same thing over the last few weeks: floppy celery.
We don’t eat celery here very often (because my boyfriend John has … issues with it) but if it looks like I’m not going to eat it all before the floppy stage kicks in, I slice it into small rounds and freeze it to include in the mix next time I’m making stock. If John didn’t have his issues with it, I’d probably be happy to include no longer crisp celery in a stew/casserole – since it’ll soften up during cooking anyway. (I don’t tell him about putting it in stock, ssssh, don’t tell him!)
There is some debate on whether/how it should be fed to chickens – some people advocate chopping it up first so the “strings” don’t get caught in the chicken’s crop, others say they enjoy the challenge of breaking it up themselves. The similar yes/no debate seems to exist for rabbits and other small furry pets – just because like with people, some animals like it more than others – but all advocate that it should just be used as a treat in addition to other food, not in large quantities.
A good few people around the ol’ interweb also say you can revive soggy celery by leave it to stand in some ice water for a while – or more effectively, slice into smaller sticks and float them in a bowl of the same.
(If it’s too far gone for reviving or even cooking, it can, of course, be composted.)
What do you do with floppy celery sticks?
I chop it up and then put it in the food dehydrator, it dries easily and then it’s ready for soups, stews, etc. Much more flavorable than store bought.
oh oh oh dehydrator – what a great idea! never dawned on me (don’t know why!)
if its not too far gone simply cut off the ends and sit it in a glass/bowl of water it perks right up and is ready to go.
The dehydrator is a great idea. Celery is among the many greens and regected vegetable parts (broccoli, celery ends, spinach, certain edible and tasy weeds) that I cook up, put into the blender, water and all, and then freeze in ice cube trays for stealthy inclusion into sauces and soups. My kids balk at the sight of some veggies in the kitchen, but don’t know how much them they’ve eaten. I just tell them they had seconds.
All you need to do is: chop the end of a full stock of celery off and stick it into a glass or cup of water that won’t fall down in the fridge. Leave it over night and you’ll have crisp celery again. What to do when it’s crisp again?? Peanut butter, Ranch, Hummus, Ketchup, Whatever! Celery is good for your colon, eat it!
Broth and soup stock
My guinea pigs and rabbits never had a problem eating celery, no need to worry about any strings. And they love it!