What is celery and what is it for?

Celery belongs to an extensive and notable plant family, characterized by a marked spicy, intense, aromatic and exotic flavor: the umbelliferous or apiaceae, with plants as popular as carrot, parsnip, fennel, parsley, dill or cumin, and others as powerful as hemlock.

The benefits and properties of celery are related to purification. In cooking it is mainly used to accompany salads and winter soups.

Celery properties

Celery is considered more of a food Diet regulator and balancer than nutritious. The reason is that 92% of its weight is water, its caloric intake is very low, between 15 and 20 calories, and it has great satiating power.

Celery is not a vegetable that stands out for its macronutrient content. These are scarce, as are their discrete amounts of vitamins (mainly C and B9), when compared to those of other vegetables.

They only reach a certain importance potassium and magnesium, sfollowed by calcium or iron and is not even rich in fiber.

What stands out about the properties of celery is that it is rich in essential oil with selinene, cimol and limonene and also contains coumarins, a glucoside, apiin, apigenin, vitamin C and mineral salts (iron, phosphorus, manganese and calcium).

It also contains polysaccharides based on pectins that protect the entire digestive tract, as well as several antioxidants – including lunuralin, bergaptane and psoralen – that help prevent different health problems.

What are the health benefits of celery?

Diuretic, purifying and heart-healthy

Due to its potassium and sodium content and the relationship between them and the essential oil apiol, it constitutes a good diuretic, and due to its ability to alkalinize the blood, it stimulates purification of the organism, eliminating uric acid and other toxic waste.

This, together with the action of apigenin, a substance with vasodilatory properties, makes it suitable for preventing high blood pressure and other cardiovascular disorders.

Digestive and antiflatulent

Celery, rich in fiber, is also an excellent regulator of intestinal transit. Prevents constipation, promotes good digestion, It stimulates gastric juices and makes you feel hungry and like other related plants, it combats gas, abdominal bloating, meteorisms and aerophagia.

In this case, you can try a strongly carminative formula, which includes celery, fennel, green anise and caraway fruits, plus marshmallow root, one tablespoon of the mixture per cup. Boil it for 3 minutes and infuse it for 10. You should drink three cups a day, after meals.

To treat hypertension

The therapeutic diet experts They recommend celery salt as a substitute for sea salt for hypertensive people. It is obtained from ground seeds, and gives salads and other dishes a pleasant flavor, which does not make you long for the presence of salt.

As a herbal remedy, they recommend herbal tea with celery (leaves and stems), hawthorn, valerian and a flavor corrector, star anise, more or less in equal parts. Two tablespoons of the mixture per half a liter of water. Boil it for two minutes, let it rest and strain it. The ideal is to drink it in small doses during the day.

An ally of women

Its content of vitamin C and folic acid helps normalize menstruation, Whether it is excessive or scarce, it helps relieve the symptoms of menopause, cleanses the mucosa of the lungs and remineralizes the body.

To fall asleep

Thanks to its sedative effects, it also tones the nervous system. Celery juice with honey at night is a good resource to help you sleep.

Contraindications of celery

Despite the many properties and benefits of celery, it is not always convenient. It should not be consumed in case of acute kidney conditions, during pregnancy or if you suffer from disorders such as cystitis. Some people may also suffer allergic reactions in the form of itching on the palate, tongue and lips, rhinoconjunctivitis or cough.

Celery in the kitchen

This vegetable, preferably winter, has two varieties: green celery, with a refreshing flavor, and white celery, with a more delicate flavor. In both cases it is a very aromatic plant -perhaps less than the wild variety-, hence the specific name graveolens with which Lineo baptized it, and which refers to its serious and penetrating smell.

Celery has endless applications in the kitchen, but first It is advisable to know how to prepare it: First, it is necessary to clean the dry or damaged ends and wash the leaves in water, rubbing them with a brush to remove traces of earth or dry leaves.

It is exquisite with tomato, carrot and green leafy vegetables, both lettuce and cabbage, turnip greens or chard.

Potatoes, onions, leeks, artichokes, turnips, cucumbers, pumpkin, zucchini or beets also go well together. Not so with peppers, especially red ones, nor eggplants, mushrooms or asparagus, although there are flavors for everything.

And among protein foods, it is delicious with rice, pasta, quinoa, lentils, chickpeas, tofu, seitan and even tempeh.

Do not keep it in the refrigerator for more than 7 days, because after that period the loss of healthy compounds accelerates.

Nutritional value of celery

Every 100 g of celery provides:

• Calories: 16 calories (11.7 kJ)
• Omega 6 fatty acids: 79mg
• Fiber: 1.6g
• Vitamin A: 449 IU
• Vitamin C: 3.1 mcg
• Vitamin K: 29.3 mcg
• Folates: 36 mcg
• Sugars: 1.8g
• Potassium: 260mg
• Calcium: 40mg
• Water: 95.4g