WEBVTT - Savor Classics: Celery 0:00:09.000 --> 0:00:12.320 Hello, and welcome to Saber production of iHeartRadio. I'm Annis and. 0:00:12.280 --> 0:00:15.640 I'm Lauren Vogelbaum, and today we have a classic episode 0:00:15.640 --> 0:00:17.400 for you about Celery. 0:00:18.520 --> 0:00:22.599 Yes, any particular reason this was on your mind, Lauren. 0:00:22.800 --> 0:00:25.240 Yeah, you know, I was, you know, filing through our 0:00:25.280 --> 0:00:30.120 backlog and Celery is, you know, with with the holidays 0:00:30.160 --> 0:00:33.839 upon us. Celery is an ingredient in a lot of 0:00:33.920 --> 0:00:40.040 those kind of classic holiday dishes. And furthermore, it has 0:00:40.080 --> 0:00:45.559 such an interesting history of being incredibly fancy, which is 0:00:45.760 --> 0:00:49.879 low key why it's incorporated in some of these fancy 0:00:49.920 --> 0:00:54.600 holiday dishes like holiday feast dishes. And also it is delightful. 0:00:54.720 --> 0:00:57.560 It's just or I mean, I think it's delightful. Y'all 0:00:57.560 --> 0:01:00.240 are allowed to think whatever you want. But the your 0:01:00.240 --> 0:01:05.680 fanciness that Celery achieved in its history, it's great. 0:01:06.520 --> 0:01:09.880 It is one of my favorite things we talked about 0:01:09.920 --> 0:01:14.040 in this episode was Celery dishes. Yeah, the vases and 0:01:14.120 --> 0:01:18.720 the dishes. Yeah, oh yes, And I do I love 0:01:18.760 --> 0:01:23.520 that Celery kind of occupy is the space of historically 0:01:23.560 --> 0:01:28.280 being fancy. Let's display it, let's put it in this 0:01:28.360 --> 0:01:33.440 dish to now where it is still involved in a 0:01:33.440 --> 0:01:36.360 lot of our holiday dishes, but it's also sort of 0:01:36.560 --> 0:01:41.319 like like we see it as something we don't want 0:01:41.360 --> 0:01:43.039 to eat too much, especially. 0:01:42.640 --> 0:01:46.399 As kids, Like yeah, like, oh that's healthy and kind 0:01:46.400 --> 0:01:51.560 of gross. Yeah, I personally I like the flavor of celery, 0:01:51.600 --> 0:01:53.520 but some people really do not. 0:01:55.160 --> 0:01:58.680 Like all right, Yeah, sure, I like it, and I 0:01:58.760 --> 0:02:01.320 especially I feel like I've been going on and on 0:02:01.360 --> 0:02:03.600 about this in our recent episodes, but I love soups 0:02:03.600 --> 0:02:07.640 and I love it. It absorbs flavor really well. Yeah. Yeah, 0:02:07.840 --> 0:02:11.680 soups adds a nice little touch. Yeah, yeah, a little crunch. 0:02:12.600 --> 0:02:14.560 I did like it with peanut butter as a kid. 0:02:16.840 --> 0:02:20.320 But yeah, people have strong opinions about celery, which we love. 0:02:20.440 --> 0:02:22.400 We love strong pinions absolutely. 0:02:22.680 --> 0:02:29.000 Oh yeah, but yeah, I suppose that without further ado, 0:02:29.040 --> 0:02:42.799 we should let former Annie and Lauren take it away. 0:02:43.040 --> 0:02:45.200 Hello, I'm welcome to food Stuff. I'm Annie Rees. 0:02:45.120 --> 0:02:49.120 And I'm Lauren vocal Bomb, and today we're talking about celery. 0:02:50.160 --> 0:02:55.560 Everyone clicks away, Nope, no stick around. It's really interesting. 0:02:56.040 --> 0:02:59.320 Is it's surprisingly fascinating. The history is great. 0:02:59.760 --> 0:03:01.400 Yeah, yeh. That's one of the reasons we're talking about 0:03:01.400 --> 0:03:05.280 it because, as you may know, we recently went to Ashville, 0:03:05.360 --> 0:03:10.560 North Carolina. We went to the Biltmore House and I 0:03:10.600 --> 0:03:14.160 can't personally remember those, but people told us afterwards that 0:03:14.200 --> 0:03:17.720 there were fancy Celery dishes in the Biltmore House. 0:03:17.840 --> 0:03:19.640 Yeah, and we needed to know more. 0:03:19.960 --> 0:03:20.800 I got too. Yeah. 0:03:20.840 --> 0:03:24.080 Also, yeah, I can't find any records of these fancy 0:03:24.080 --> 0:03:27.560 Celery dishes online, any photos or anything like that. But 0:03:27.919 --> 0:03:30.760 for the first guests that the Biltmore entertained in eighteen 0:03:30.840 --> 0:03:33.960 ninety five over Christmas, celery was high on the list 0:03:33.960 --> 0:03:36.080 of supplies to have on hand, along with a honey, 0:03:36.080 --> 0:03:39.800 black walnuts, chestnuts, eggs, fish, and lobsters. 0:03:40.800 --> 0:03:44.920 It's an interesting assortment of things. Yeah, huh, all right, 0:03:45.240 --> 0:03:47.720 well let's ask the question, then, shall. 0:03:47.480 --> 0:03:53.320 We yees start as we usually do? Celery? What is it? 0:03:54.960 --> 0:03:58.880 The healthy part of your order of wings, a vehicle 0:03:58.920 --> 0:04:01.640 for peanut butter in the case of ants on a log? 0:04:02.040 --> 0:04:05.920 Oh sure, something stepped inside your Thanksgiving turkey, A garnish 0:04:06.120 --> 0:04:09.080 for a bloody mary in, your favorite old bass seasoning, 0:04:09.720 --> 0:04:14.120 one of the Holy Trinity, and the French mirepoist. 0:04:14.520 --> 0:04:15.400 All of those things. 0:04:15.560 --> 0:04:18.680 Yes, also super producer Dylan's. 0:04:18.440 --> 0:04:21.400 Second least favorite food I get behind cucumber. 0:04:22.520 --> 0:04:24.240 We'll have to find out the third and that will 0:04:24.279 --> 0:04:25.679 be coming. 0:04:26.080 --> 0:04:28.720 Yeah. Celery is the thing that I use a lot. 0:04:28.880 --> 0:04:30.920 Is I've said before in the show I can't have 0:04:31.200 --> 0:04:35.279 I shouldn't eat like onion or bell pepper. So a 0:04:35.279 --> 0:04:37.440 lot of the time when I start, if I'm cooking 0:04:37.440 --> 0:04:41.480 a dish, my base layer of vegetation is chopped celery 0:04:41.480 --> 0:04:44.080 and carrot to give everything a little bit of a flavor. 0:04:44.360 --> 0:04:46.719 Yeah. Yeah, I like celery. I feel like it's a 0:04:46.720 --> 0:04:48.240 good absorber. 0:04:48.680 --> 0:04:52.080 Yeah, and it adds water. It's nice and flavorful in 0:04:52.120 --> 0:04:55.440 a way that I personally like. It's okay to not 0:04:55.560 --> 0:04:57.400 I know many people who dislike celery. 0:04:57.600 --> 0:05:01.320 Yeah, I would have to say most people I know 0:05:01.360 --> 0:05:02.120 are not fans. 0:05:02.600 --> 0:05:04.640 I don't like eating it raw, but I think it anyway. 0:05:06.360 --> 0:05:10.760 Celery is an aromatic green or green yellow vegetable in 0:05:10.800 --> 0:05:15.520 the species Apium grevail lends. Different varietals of celery have 0:05:15.600 --> 0:05:20.560 been developed for three distinct culinary parts, dulce for the 0:05:20.600 --> 0:05:24.159 firm stalks that we often encounter here in the United States, 0:05:24.560 --> 0:05:28.359 secle linum for the more tender stalks, and leaves. Primarily 0:05:28.360 --> 0:05:31.440 for the leaves, this is also called smallidge or confusingly 0:05:31.760 --> 0:05:34.880 wild celery. Although it's not truly wild, but it is 0:05:34.920 --> 0:05:38.720 the closest to the original wild celeries, and to make 0:05:38.760 --> 0:05:43.279 things even easier, not true. Truly wild celeries are also 0:05:43.400 --> 0:05:47.800 sometimes called smallidge. Yeah thanks humans. 0:05:48.279 --> 0:05:52.440 Yeah that confused to me for a good minute. It's okay. 0:05:53.240 --> 0:05:56.679 The third variety is Rapacium, grown for the white root 0:05:56.839 --> 0:06:01.480 and is also called celariac, though bariac isn't really a root, 0:06:01.680 --> 0:06:04.400 it's actually a bulbous stem that grows half in and 0:06:04.440 --> 0:06:05.600 half out of the ground. 0:06:06.640 --> 0:06:09.719 A lot of clarity here, yeah, yep. 0:06:11.000 --> 0:06:14.120 The stalks are prized for their crunch and their fiber, 0:06:14.320 --> 0:06:17.599 the leaves for their tenderness, and the celariac for its 0:06:17.880 --> 0:06:22.200 starchy creaminess. Another culinary part of the celery plant, though, 0:06:22.240 --> 0:06:25.120 is its seeds, commonly ground and used as a spice 0:06:25.240 --> 0:06:28.000 or as the celery part of celery salt. 0:06:28.480 --> 0:06:31.200 Ah yeah, yeah, makes sense. 0:06:31.520 --> 0:06:36.080 And all of these parts have a fresh, herbal, green, savory, 0:06:36.160 --> 0:06:39.840 nutty sweet sort of flavor. All can be eaten fresh 0:06:39.839 --> 0:06:43.240 and raw, but generally maybe aside from the seeds become 0:06:43.279 --> 0:06:45.880 kind of like melty soft when they're cooked, The stalks 0:06:45.880 --> 0:06:49.200 and leaves can disappear into almost nothing, and the root 0:06:49.880 --> 0:06:52.240 scare quotes root behaves a little bit like like a 0:06:52.240 --> 0:06:53.320 parsnipper carrot. 0:06:54.360 --> 0:06:58.520 Also want to include this quote from the New World Encyclopedia. 0:06:59.360 --> 0:07:03.000 Celiac is not as popular as other root vegetables, especially 0:07:03.120 --> 0:07:06.280 in the Western Hemisphere, very possibly because of its garish 0:07:06.279 --> 0:07:11.240 appearance before cleaning. It has been described as a vegetable octopus. 0:07:12.000 --> 0:07:16.040 What if you've never seen one? That the true roots 0:07:16.240 --> 0:07:19.360 of this root grow down off of the bottom half 0:07:19.440 --> 0:07:21.440 of the bulb and an, yeah, it looks a little 0:07:21.480 --> 0:07:26.280 bit squidty. Really yeah, Oh that's so cool, kind of 0:07:26.360 --> 0:07:31.720 kind of cthulhuy. Yeah, there's a fun there, and I'm 0:07:31.760 --> 0:07:33.480 going to come up with it later. Excellent. 0:07:33.720 --> 0:07:37.520 The family that celery belongs to, belafers is chalk full 0:07:37.680 --> 0:07:42.560 of poisonous plants, including water hemlock, which is what killed Socrates. 0:07:43.400 --> 0:07:46.440 It's also the family that gives us parsley, human parsnip, 0:07:46.480 --> 0:07:47.840 and coriander. 0:07:48.520 --> 0:07:56.360 So net positive net positive. Celery or Celery's wild ancestors anyway, 0:07:57.360 --> 0:08:01.080 is native to the Mediterranean, but nowadays it's grown in 0:08:01.600 --> 0:08:06.520 North America and temperate Europe. Small adge is grown in 0:08:06.560 --> 0:08:09.440 the Mediterranean and Asia, and you can find wild types 0:08:09.440 --> 0:08:12.200 all over from Algeria to New Zealand to India and 0:08:12.360 --> 0:08:16.120 in the US, California is the biggest producer. And I 0:08:16.160 --> 0:08:18.680 read a lot about seasonality when it comes to celery. 0:08:19.000 --> 0:08:22.320 It's best in the US in November to December. Yeah, 0:08:22.360 --> 0:08:24.760 and that's one of the reasons it probably shows up 0:08:24.800 --> 0:08:26.600 in a lot of holiday dishes and soups around here. 0:08:26.680 --> 0:08:28.280 Yeah, it's a cool weather crap for sure. 0:08:28.520 --> 0:08:30.800 Yeah, but this means that the rest of the year, 0:08:31.920 --> 0:08:34.680 a lot of us are probably eating bad celery. 0:08:34.440 --> 0:08:37.320 Either bad celery like subpar clery or celery that has 0:08:37.320 --> 0:08:38.360 been shipped so far. 0:08:38.640 --> 0:08:41.280 Right. Yeah, that came up whole lot when I was 0:08:41.320 --> 0:08:43.880 researching this, and it's kind of made me want to. 0:08:44.080 --> 0:08:45.800 Like rethink my celery consumption. 0:08:46.120 --> 0:08:50.640 Yeah, yeah, kind of. Yeah. Nutrition wise, it's pretty healthy 0:08:50.760 --> 0:08:52.800 six calories per stock, but that's before you load it 0:08:52.880 --> 0:08:55.200 up with ranch or peanut butter or what have you. 0:08:56.200 --> 0:08:58.559 It's got a good amount of fiber and vitamin C. 0:08:58.880 --> 0:09:02.800 Also vitamin's kne plus A, folate, and potassium. Celariac adds 0:09:02.800 --> 0:09:05.520 a bit of protein and vitamin B six to the mix. 0:09:05.840 --> 0:09:08.840 Celery seed is probably not something you're going to eat 0:09:08.960 --> 0:09:10.960 enough of to really make a difference either way, But 0:09:11.280 --> 0:09:13.120 as you would expect from a seed, it's got some 0:09:13.160 --> 0:09:15.640 fat and some protein, plus calcium and iron. 0:09:16.280 --> 0:09:19.280 A small subset of people are allergic to celery and 0:09:19.760 --> 0:09:23.760 it can provoke as severe a reaction as peanuts. 0:09:24.360 --> 0:09:27.000 I haven't heard of this. Apparently it's big and the 0:09:27.040 --> 0:09:29.079 allergy is most common in Central Europe. 0:09:29.520 --> 0:09:30.439 Yeah. 0:09:30.840 --> 0:09:35.120 Also, celery stalks, leaves, seeds, and root have all been 0:09:35.160 --> 0:09:41.280 investigated intensely for possible medicinal uses because well, A, there's 0:09:41.480 --> 0:09:44.720 historical context, but b it contains just a lot of 0:09:44.760 --> 0:09:49.160 compounds that have been earmarked as potentially beneficial, like lots 0:09:49.160 --> 0:09:53.120 of antioxidants which can prevent oxidative damage to your cells, 0:09:53.160 --> 0:09:56.240 which can help prevent stuff like cardiovascular diseases and cancer. 0:09:56.840 --> 0:09:59.960 Then there's apgenin, which has been shown to reduce inflamm 0:10:00.400 --> 0:10:05.040 and promote immune system balance in mice. It also may 0:10:05.120 --> 0:10:07.160 stimulate the growth and development of nerve cells in the 0:10:07.160 --> 0:10:12.480 brain also in mice. Celery seed extracts have been shown 0:10:12.520 --> 0:10:16.800 to help lower blood pressure in hypertensive rats. And there's 0:10:16.800 --> 0:10:20.640 a flavonoid called lutelin that in the lab has been 0:10:20.640 --> 0:10:26.040 shown to make cancer cells more susceptible to chemotherapy, chemicals. 0:10:26.320 --> 0:10:28.400 There's a lot going on there, there is. 0:10:28.880 --> 0:10:33.080 But wait, there's more. What there's some human evidence. Finally 0:10:33.120 --> 0:10:36.080 we get to humans. Yes, that extracts of celery may 0:10:36.240 --> 0:10:40.200 help relieve menstrual discomfort and can work as a mosquito repellent. 0:10:40.600 --> 0:10:42.319 Oh man, I could have used that a couple of 0:10:42.320 --> 0:10:46.319 weekends ago. I think I got seventy plus mosquito bombs. 0:10:46.320 --> 0:10:48.960 Oh my goodness, I mean I mean bugspray also works, 0:10:49.160 --> 0:10:49.800 is the thing? 0:10:50.280 --> 0:10:52.240 Don't fall asleep outside kids? 0:10:52.520 --> 0:10:56.120 Oh no, don't well, at least not. 0:10:56.160 --> 0:10:58.920 Without planning to. Yeah, that's better. 0:10:59.040 --> 0:11:02.440 Yeah, and it's like you'd have to like that salary 0:11:02.520 --> 0:11:05.600 all around me. No, you really have to, like like 0:11:05.600 --> 0:11:09.040 like coak either. Yeah, like like get an extract and 0:11:09.080 --> 0:11:11.240 rub it on your skin. It's not just what I 0:11:11.280 --> 0:11:14.160 have smelled of celery. It's not like garlic for vampires. Yes, 0:11:14.160 --> 0:11:17.839 you would have smelled of celery. Dylan would have hated you. 0:11:17.960 --> 0:11:22.160 Dylan could never hate It's true. It's true. 0:11:22.200 --> 0:11:26.880 He's agreeing. But yeah, the jury is still way out 0:11:27.080 --> 0:11:29.800 on all of this. And that goes double or even 0:11:29.840 --> 0:11:33.000 double plus for for anything else that celery is used 0:11:33.040 --> 0:11:36.480 to treat. If you want to incorporate more celery into 0:11:36.520 --> 0:11:39.040 your diet, Go for it, but check with the doctor 0:11:39.080 --> 0:11:43.280 before taking it or it's extracts in medicinal amounts. It 0:11:43.320 --> 0:11:45.680 can also interfere with some drugs, like those that increase 0:11:45.720 --> 0:11:49.240 your sensitivity to sunlight and some sedatives. So yeah, just 0:11:49.880 --> 0:11:52.240 before you take anything in medicinal doses, maybe check with 0:11:52.240 --> 0:11:54.079 the doctor. Oh yeah, make sure you're doing it right. 0:11:54.360 --> 0:11:59.040 You're not medicinal podcast, not at all. Nope, we're more 0:12:00.000 --> 0:12:02.880 food and pun category. If that was a category and 0:12:02.960 --> 0:12:06.320 I tubes, that's where we would be. Yes, it would 0:12:06.320 --> 0:12:09.520 be the only one. Well no, no, not at all, No, 0:12:09.559 --> 0:12:11.319 not at all, But wou'd be would. 0:12:11.160 --> 0:12:12.640 Be among great companies. 0:12:12.679 --> 0:12:14.600 We would be among excellent companies. 0:12:14.840 --> 0:12:16.560 I would serve them my best celery. 0:12:16.720 --> 0:12:21.360 Oh my gosh. The average American does eat about six 0:12:21.400 --> 0:12:22.480 pounds of celery a year. 0:12:23.280 --> 0:12:26.400 Can I assume a lot of that is cooked into 0:12:26.400 --> 0:12:28.760 other things? Maybe aside buffalo wings? 0:12:28.760 --> 0:12:31.600 I don't know, side buffalo wings or peanut butter related. Sure, 0:12:31.679 --> 0:12:33.360 I eat a lot of ants on logs, which is 0:12:33.400 --> 0:12:35.280 an excuse to eat more peanut butter. But I do 0:12:35.360 --> 0:12:39.680 eat the celery and celery juice is apparently a really 0:12:39.760 --> 0:12:41.400 big trend right now. I did not go down this 0:12:41.480 --> 0:12:42.079 rabbit hole. 0:12:42.520 --> 0:12:45.480 I think it's for all those potential medicinal benefit things. 0:12:46.640 --> 0:12:51.160 I gotta say, celery juice, I'll try it, but as. 0:12:51.000 --> 0:12:53.680 An ingredient and other vegetable juice. Still and agrees with 0:12:53.720 --> 0:12:57.640 you so hard he's out there to shake in his head. 0:12:57.720 --> 0:12:59.400 Just Nope, I've intrigued. 0:13:00.400 --> 0:13:02.600 But it sounds more like something i'd want to base 0:13:02.679 --> 0:13:06.400 a chicken in than something that I'd got to drink myself. Yeah, 0:13:06.559 --> 0:13:06.960 I don't know. 0:13:07.400 --> 0:13:10.280 It is bright green. It's like brighter green Celery is, 0:13:10.320 --> 0:13:12.199 at least in pictures I saw, which makes me a 0:13:12.240 --> 0:13:13.240 litt little suspicious. 0:13:13.280 --> 0:13:19.840 Yeah, anyway, I see you photoshop Instagram, Lauren does she 0:13:19.960 --> 0:13:21.599 sees right through you. 0:13:21.360 --> 0:13:27.479 You speaking of suspicious things, Celery does have some suspicious 0:13:27.480 --> 0:13:30.360 things in its history, which we're going to talk about. 0:13:30.760 --> 0:13:32.480 But first we're going to take a quick break for 0:13:32.520 --> 0:13:34.040 a word from our sponsor. 0:13:43.360 --> 0:13:47.000 And we're back. Thank you sponsor, Yes, thank you. Celery, 0:13:47.120 --> 0:13:50.520 as you might imagine, is way old, really old, really 0:13:50.559 --> 0:13:54.640 really old. But the evidence is really hard to come by. 0:13:54.720 --> 0:13:58.640 Oh yeah, archaeologists found some celery seeds and four thousand 0:13:58.640 --> 0:14:03.800 BCE Sweden, which should that possibly people were trading with it. 0:14:03.960 --> 0:14:08.360 Maybe By fifth century CE, a different type of celery 0:14:08.440 --> 0:14:12.320 called small adge was present in China. And thank you 0:14:12.400 --> 0:14:15.240 Confucius for writing things down about smallage. 0:14:15.559 --> 0:14:16.120 Very helpful. 0:14:16.240 --> 0:14:20.600 Yes, future podcasters tip our hats to you. Ancient Egyptians 0:14:20.680 --> 0:14:23.160 gathered up celery, but more for the seeds, which they 0:14:23.280 --> 0:14:27.000 used for seasoning, and ancient Greeks preferred it more for 0:14:27.440 --> 0:14:30.359 medicinal purposes, but they did use it culinarily. 0:14:31.120 --> 0:14:34.080 Those wild celeries, the smallage types that were around at 0:14:34.080 --> 0:14:36.840 the time, were much more bitter than today's celery. 0:14:37.040 --> 0:14:40.960 Oh. Yes. In ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, and ancient China, 0:14:41.080 --> 0:14:48.120 celery was used as a medicine, particularly for hangovers and afrodiazyx, 0:14:50.080 --> 0:14:54.240 also to control hysteria. Oh yep, the bank goodness, Yes, 0:14:54.680 --> 0:14:58.560 I'll remember that next time. The Greeks and Romans used 0:14:58.560 --> 0:15:02.360 the leaves as part of the crowd worn by victorious athletes, 0:15:02.400 --> 0:15:06.160 and we know that too, thanks to plenty. Is it plenty? 0:15:06.520 --> 0:15:09.840 I've forgotten it's plenty, yes ha. 0:15:10.760 --> 0:15:15.400 King Tut's tomb contained a celery leaf wreath, and celery 0:15:15.440 --> 0:15:21.680 appeared in Homer's eighteen fifty BCE, the Odyssey Parsley, Celary's 0:15:21.680 --> 0:15:24.400 close relative has a much more defined history as an 0:15:24.400 --> 0:15:28.480 ancient food stuff. It was also kind of related. We 0:15:28.600 --> 0:15:32.280 used to prevent intoxication, so can't wait to do some 0:15:32.320 --> 0:15:36.280 research on Oh yeah, personally, and because we love a 0:15:36.320 --> 0:15:40.200 good superstition around here. The ancient Egyptians thought that under 0:15:40.360 --> 0:15:46.080 certain circumstances, celery brought you very bad fortune. I couldn't 0:15:46.120 --> 0:15:48.000 find what those circumstances were. 0:15:48.200 --> 0:15:50.480 Or what type of bad fortune it might be, so. 0:15:52.040 --> 0:15:57.520 Beware, beware. Vaguely. In ancient Greece, celery was viewed as 0:15:57.640 --> 0:16:03.240 wholly a byproduct of the blood of Cadmulos and was 0:16:03.240 --> 0:16:06.280 associated with the cult of death, in part because of 0:16:06.320 --> 0:16:08.720 the dark leaf color, and because of that it was 0:16:08.760 --> 0:16:11.400 common to bury the dead with a wreath of celery. 0:16:12.560 --> 0:16:15.680 Celsus describe celery se pills that were used for pain 0:16:15.720 --> 0:16:20.800 relief in thirty CE, and the oldest written instance of 0:16:20.840 --> 0:16:24.720 the word celeeri, the French root of the modern word celery, 0:16:25.200 --> 0:16:29.840 is from ninth century CE and a poem espousing its 0:16:29.960 --> 0:16:32.960 medicinal value, and it sounds like quite the poem. 0:16:33.720 --> 0:16:36.720 It's one of those plant words that is basically always 0:16:36.720 --> 0:16:41.440 just meant celery, like pretty straightforwardly, with no other root words. 0:16:41.920 --> 0:16:45.200 That is, the English word small age meanwhile, comes from 0:16:45.240 --> 0:16:51.360 a combination of small and another French word for celery, USh, 0:16:51.400 --> 0:16:54.720 which roots from the Latin for b and indicates that 0:16:54.760 --> 0:16:59.920 bees totally dug celery and parsley flowers. Oh bees, there's 0:17:00.000 --> 0:17:02.760 still one of my favorite. Oh yeah, we've talked about 0:17:02.760 --> 0:17:04.240 on this show, and a time I can talk about 0:17:04.240 --> 0:17:05.600 a bee we are in. 0:17:06.920 --> 0:17:11.520 It seems as though for a long time celery was 0:17:12.040 --> 0:17:17.200 seen as medicinal only, not a food thing you would eat. 0:17:17.280 --> 0:17:18.159 Not on purpose now no. 0:17:18.600 --> 0:17:21.800 An Italian text from the fourteenth century CE described celery 0:17:21.920 --> 0:17:27.760 as quote rank course and poisonous. Oh. Celery appeared in 0:17:27.800 --> 0:17:30.680 gardens in Italy and northern Europe in the sixteenth century, 0:17:30.720 --> 0:17:33.639 but it was certainly still viewed as a curative and 0:17:34.000 --> 0:17:37.879 not a food. In sixteen twenty three, France produced the 0:17:37.920 --> 0:17:41.040 first written record of celery as a food thing, but 0:17:41.119 --> 0:17:44.879 primarily as a flavoring, which is what it was relegated 0:17:44.880 --> 0:17:48.880 to for about a century. But by the mid seventeenth 0:17:48.960 --> 0:17:52.520 century French and Italians might eat celery with a little 0:17:52.520 --> 0:17:56.359 bit of dressing, and most likely this was a smaller, tougher, 0:17:56.920 --> 0:18:01.399 probably more better celery. It wasn't until the late seventeenth 0:18:01.440 --> 0:18:04.639 and early eighteenth century that Gardner started to hone growing 0:18:04.680 --> 0:18:07.200 techniques to improve upon celery. 0:18:07.560 --> 0:18:11.479 Yeah, they'd cover the celeries growing leaf stocks with soil, 0:18:11.760 --> 0:18:14.720 which created these paler, less better stocks. 0:18:15.440 --> 0:18:18.639 Yes, and this made the flavor less overpowering and better 0:18:18.640 --> 0:18:23.320 for salads. But this also made celery more expensive, which 0:18:23.440 --> 0:18:27.439 means that, yes, this new and improved celery was a 0:18:27.600 --> 0:18:30.920 rich people food. It was also seen as a food 0:18:30.960 --> 0:18:34.120 to beef up other dishes, which I find interesting since 0:18:34.160 --> 0:18:38.240 it still sort is seen that way. Yeah, and also 0:18:38.440 --> 0:18:40.480 maybe as part of a hanger or cure, which again 0:18:41.040 --> 0:18:45.000 it is still sort of see that way. In eighteenth 0:18:45.000 --> 0:18:49.320 century Sweden, wealthy families stored celery in their cellars during 0:18:49.320 --> 0:18:52.399 the winter. And now that rich folks were enjoying celery 0:18:52.400 --> 0:18:54.399 and the flavor was less punch you in the face, 0:18:54.960 --> 0:18:57.880 it spread pretty quickly. By eighteen oh six, there were 0:18:57.880 --> 0:19:02.560 four varieties in the United States. By the late eighteen hundreds, 0:19:02.800 --> 0:19:06.040 Dutch immigrants to Michigan were growing celery in the area, 0:19:06.160 --> 0:19:11.800 earning Kalamazoo Michigan, the nickname celery City. Turns out, though 0:19:12.080 --> 0:19:14.479 some of that strong flavor lingered, and in the nineteenth 0:19:14.520 --> 0:19:16.639 century US and Europe it was believed you needed to 0:19:16.720 --> 0:19:19.879 bleach the green bits to get rid of the bitterness. 0:19:20.000 --> 0:19:21.160 Oh wow, yeah huh. 0:19:21.840 --> 0:19:23.920 But let's go back to that rich people and cellary thing. 0:19:23.920 --> 0:19:24.760 Oh yeah, this is great. 0:19:25.440 --> 0:19:27.480 This is another reason why it might be part of 0:19:27.520 --> 0:19:29.879 holiday meals because it was seen as a luxury saved 0:19:29.880 --> 0:19:33.639 for special occasions. It was a centerpiece of the meal, 0:19:33.800 --> 0:19:37.240 and like literally it was served in a glass celery 0:19:37.320 --> 0:19:41.000 vase so diners could take in the full beauty as 0:19:41.040 --> 0:19:45.520 they ate. No self respecting well to do Victorian household 0:19:45.640 --> 0:19:48.840 would be caught without a celery vase, and from about 0:19:48.880 --> 0:19:52.000 the eighteen thirties to the nineteen hundreds, celery appeared in 0:19:52.160 --> 0:19:57.680 numerous recipes, often as a standalone. The star Plain Celery 0:19:57.760 --> 0:20:00.800 in quotes Plain celery was an item on a menu 0:20:01.240 --> 0:20:04.720 at many luxurious hotels. It was served in the first 0:20:04.720 --> 0:20:08.240 class cabin of the Titanic. There was also a celery dish, 0:20:08.359 --> 0:20:13.160 like a dish specifically designed for celery to display its beauty, 0:20:14.680 --> 0:20:18.480 and this was along with your celery vas which was 0:20:18.760 --> 0:20:20.200 it kind of looked like a butter dish. 0:20:20.400 --> 0:20:22.600 Yeah, like longer, yeah for celery. 0:20:22.680 --> 0:20:23.800 Yeah. 0:20:23.920 --> 0:20:27.200 The people would soak the celery and chilled water before 0:20:27.240 --> 0:20:30.320 serving to make it as crisp as possible. Once you 0:20:30.440 --> 0:20:34.240 put it into your celery vas and you just eat 0:20:34.240 --> 0:20:35.919 it plain, like dipped in salt. 0:20:36.960 --> 0:20:41.399 I want to become a really just strange dinner party. 0:20:41.480 --> 0:20:44.400 Hose we're going to bring back the celery vas. Gonna 0:20:44.400 --> 0:20:46.960 have your pineapple, Yes it's the pineapple, gonna have my 0:20:47.080 --> 0:20:51.159 tomato plant, and it's gonna have a sign like don't poisonous. 0:20:51.640 --> 0:20:56.960 I love it. But alas the market got oversaturated with 0:20:57.040 --> 0:21:01.080 celery vases, oh no, they were like not cool anymore. Man. 0:21:03.000 --> 0:21:06.040 From eighteen eighty nine's The Steward's Handbook and Guide to 0:21:06.119 --> 0:21:09.560 Party Catering, the tall celery glasses set upon the table 0:21:09.600 --> 0:21:13.480 formed the handiest and handsomest medium, but having become so 0:21:13.720 --> 0:21:18.200 exceedingly common, they are discarded at present at fashionable tables, 0:21:18.640 --> 0:21:21.800 and the celery is laid upon very long and narrow dishes. 0:21:22.960 --> 0:21:29.200 Exceedingly common. Celery was still popular, though, and in England 0:21:29.240 --> 0:21:32.719 it became common to have celery along with your cheese. Course. 0:21:33.400 --> 0:21:36.080 Celer was also seen as a good palate cleanser. 0:21:36.240 --> 0:21:41.439 After fish was basically always served with palate cleansing relish trays. 0:21:41.480 --> 0:21:44.240 And this is probably where that tradition of celery being 0:21:44.280 --> 0:21:48.280 on the side of that fanciest of foods, buffalo wings, 0:21:48.320 --> 0:21:49.320 probably comes from. 0:21:49.920 --> 0:21:52.280 I do like it alongside buffalo wings. I feel like 0:21:52.280 --> 0:21:55.600 it gives a nice Maybe it is palate cleansing. It's 0:21:55.600 --> 0:21:57.800 something that's very opposite of what I'm eating. 0:21:57.760 --> 0:22:00.520 Right right, and it's sort of like a nice break. Yeah, 0:22:00.560 --> 0:22:02.640 and you dip it in the blue cheese sauce. It's 0:22:02.680 --> 0:22:08.880 like a cool to the hot right ah. Oh. Other 0:22:08.920 --> 0:22:10.720 than as a palate cleanser, sort of the opposite of 0:22:10.720 --> 0:22:12.960 a palate cleanser, I suppose it was also frequently served 0:22:12.960 --> 0:22:17.440 al gratin baked into like celery cheese casseroles. 0:22:17.040 --> 0:22:19.959 And around this time China started to cultivate a leafier 0:22:20.000 --> 0:22:23.920 type of celery better for soups, now sometimes called Chinese celery, 0:22:24.160 --> 0:22:27.560 while the Europeans cultivated a much crunchier variety. 0:22:27.760 --> 0:22:30.880 And by the early nineteen hundreds, celery stuffed with cream 0:22:30.960 --> 0:22:33.760 cheese was served in the West as either a salad 0:22:33.800 --> 0:22:39.560 course or a very formal dinner cheese course. Formal dinner 0:22:39.720 --> 0:22:44.479 cheese course. Times have change, they certainly have. Yes, By 0:22:44.520 --> 0:22:47.440 the middle of the twentieth century it was more or 0:22:47.520 --> 0:22:49.760 less I mean it had gone through that thing that 0:22:49.840 --> 0:22:51.440 kind of like aspects and a lot of other things 0:22:51.480 --> 0:22:54.120 went through where it became. It went from being very 0:22:54.160 --> 0:22:58.399 fancy to we're trying to be fancy to have it 0:22:58.440 --> 0:22:59.160 in your lunch. 0:22:59.000 --> 0:23:06.840 Kids, right, Although I have noticed semi recently, maybe more 0:23:06.880 --> 0:23:09.800 a couple of years ago, but that like a puade, 0:23:09.960 --> 0:23:14.120 celery was pretty popular, or celery roots specifically probably yeah, yeah, 0:23:14.440 --> 0:23:17.679 at fancy places. So I mean it's delicious if you 0:23:17.720 --> 0:23:19.840 know you're into that sort of thing, yeah, and if 0:23:19.840 --> 0:23:22.200 you're not, no judgment, no judgement. 0:23:22.240 --> 0:23:23.840 Eat what you like, Eat what you like. 0:23:24.720 --> 0:23:33.000 But that is our crash course on celery. Hmmm, I 0:23:33.040 --> 0:23:33.400 don't know. 0:23:33.960 --> 0:23:34.800 You're still working on it. 0:23:34.800 --> 0:23:40.760 That's okay, Yeah, I'll come. There's a Cuthulu celery stock 0:23:41.960 --> 0:23:42.479 in there. 0:23:43.000 --> 0:23:46.399 The Celery Stalks at Midnight was the name was the 0:23:46.520 --> 0:23:50.080 name of a children's book from the nineties in the 0:23:50.160 --> 0:23:53.840 Binicula series, What Yeah. 0:23:53.200 --> 0:23:54.800 You Were Like a coofy Salary. 0:23:55.680 --> 0:23:59.960 The Panicular series was about this rabbit that the cat 0:24:00.080 --> 0:24:02.919