How to store celery so it stays crisp and crunchy was long a problem for me. I tried leaving the celery in the plastic bags that I bought it in, I tried green bags, I tried putting it in the refrigerator without a bag and nothing worked.
I learned that celery gets limp as it loses moisture. And that’s why it works to put limp celery in a glass of water to re-crisp it. But, I thought, there had to be a way to store celery so it didn’t get limp in the first place.
And I finally learned how to store celery so it stays crisp and doesn’t rot: Wrap it tightly in aluminum foil. That keeps it from dehydrating and becoming limp. Leave the cut end just barely poking out of the foil — when it’s in the foil, I’ve had a problem with moisture accumulating in the foil and the celery rotting.
I’ve tried using a plastic bag instead of foil — seems to me that it would do the same thing — and for some reason it doesn’t work nearly as well. If I leave the bag open, the celery still dries out and gets limp. And if I close it up, I get condensation and rot. In contrast, celery will last three weeks or more in foil.
You can also store celery this way without refrigeration. It will last one to two weeks, although the celery is more prone to dehydration and may need to be re-crisped.
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Lorry Reynish says
To be stored in the fridge?
The Boat Galley says
Same trick works in or outside the refrig.
Nicki Pendergast says
Helpful
Ken Roach says
Do you refrigerate it in the foil, or leave it in cool-ambient temps like we would with onions and potatoes ?
This is a neat hint !
Carolyn Shearlock says
I usually refrigerate it, primarily because I can usually only find celery that has already been refrigerated. If it’s never been refrigerated, it’ll do okay outside the refrig in a cool place, but it’s only when I can get it at a farmer’s market that I can find some that hasn’t been refrigerated. For more info on storing veggies without refrigeration: https://theboatgalley.com/storing-veggies-refrigeration/
Sylvia says
Carolyn, You are an amazing woman! You just keep searching
until you get something right. I was just looking at my celery the other
day wondering what is the best way to store.
You have been very helpful as we refurbish our boat to get
ready to circumnavigate the globe.
I hope you and yours have a wonderful holiday season.
Sylvia
Carolyn Shearlock says
Thanks Sylvia! Many of “my” tips come from readers — I try to give credit to them but every so often I lose the information and feel horrible that I’m not giving credit. Where possible, I do try the tricks before writing them up — both to confirm that they work and because it makes my life better, too!
Ginny says
I find this to be true on our s/v Jabiroo II, I also do it with carrots and peppers. Recently I have purchased produce containers from Tupperware and am very impressed with them. I wash my produce then store them in these containers and my romaine and kale is getting 12-14 days with no slimy stuff!
Edie Rosner says
I always use aluminum foil to store my veges in the refridgerator. I can keep peppers forever it seems and carrots, as well as others. I dont have good luck with celery in foil so I will definitely try this..thanks for the info.
Angie says
i used to laugh when my mom would wrap celery in aluminum foil. She has since passed away and I can just hear her saying “see, I’m not a fool,”. Oh her voice resonates in my ears!
Richard says
If you store it in a ziplock plastic bag, just put a folded paper towel in the bag. The paper towel absorbs the excess moisture and the celery won’t go bad.
Chrystal Henthorne says
Works with lettuce in the Fridge….not sure about outside the fridge.
Christy Pyatt says
Marie Sultana Robinson check it out!
Kimberly Krause says
I cut the bottom off and stick the stalk in a glass of water. It rehydrates it in a couple hours. Might not be the best solution for a boat…but it works if you forgot to do the aluminum foil bit and you do end up with rubbery limo celery.
Denise Arsenault says
I’ve been doing this for some time now and I also wrap my lettuce and cheese in foil. It’s surprising how long it will last
Beth Allen McLeod says
Awesome! I didn’t know that! Thanks!
Mary Caruthers says
I did this, decided I did not want aluminum touching the food, so put parchment paper inside before you do the aluminum or paper towel. The paper towel has to be changed out though do to it collects moisture and becomes wet. So I switched to parchment paper… It works
Gerben Van Duyl says
Ruki
Simone Shepherd says
I have been doing that home for quite a while and it’s amazing how well it works
Donald Barker says
Naaa – we rather like to see it go all black in the fridge!
Karen Belinda says
Celery Trivia, especially for ICW cruisers…. At one time (still?) Sanford, Florida was the Celery Capitol of the World !