I think I’m with the majority when I admit that I am not such a big lover of celery- in fact, there was a time that I truly hated it. This bitter, earthy, fibrous stem, which I often see eaten as a salad in England or commonly used to flavour a stock or soup is not a kitchen staple for me.

In China however, I have observed a multitude of recipes incorporating celery into numerous dishes ranging from pickles and dumplings to desserts and beverages. Changde has been a real inspiration for my celery dish given my lack of motivation and creativity to utilise this ingredient into pretty much anything.

If it wasn’t for you @progressivechef, it definitely would not have been on my to-do list to rustle up a dish featuring celery as the master component! So thank you for the challenge.

Celery broth

This dish came to me quite easily because I’m familiar with transforming celery into a broth or stock- it’s the only thing I would usually bother to make with this vegetable! But to make it a little more celery-orientated I bulked up the celery, roughly 150g in 2 liters of boiling water, added a leek instead of an onion for a milder input and a carrot for that slight sweet undertone, plus salt to taste. I cooked the broth for 1 hour.

Foamed Celery

I am truly loving foams! So light and airy, but filled with the intensity of any flavour you wish to compliment the other flavours on the plate. Celery having such a pungent flavour, would be such an interesting flavour in a fluffy, delicate foam.

Boil celery in milk- bring 500ml milk and a handful chopped celery to the boil then allow to simmer for 15 minutes. Whisk in an egg white and remove from the heat. Continue to whisk to achieve a creamy, light mixture with a delicate foam covering the surface. This foam can be kept aside until the plating stage.

Celery and beef dumplings

Or as they’re commonly known here in China, ‘jiaozi’. These little dumplings, commonly filled with chives, mushrooms and minced meat are a sheer delight to munch on any time of the day, either as a snack with some vinegar or as a light meal, immersed in a subtle broth.

I actually went to a friend’s grandmother’s house as it’s currently Qingming festival- festivals here basically mean 3 things: holidays…food…and more food! With the use of a translator on my phone, me and grandma spent at least 2-3 hours in the kitchen making these little balls stuffed with minced meat and chives.

I then preceded to ask if I could steal some of the dough we had made so that I could create my own celery-stuffed version- she seemed to find this hilarious and shortly afterwards filled a large freezer bag to the brim with the dough rounds we had spent the whole morning rolling and stuffing.

For the dough, mix 125g flour with 40ml water and knead then leave aside to rest.

Whilst the dough rests, prepare the stuffing by combining in a bowl, 1 tbsp sesame oil, 50g minced beef, 40g chopped celery, a handful of fresh chives, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1tsp crushed ginger, 1 tsp rice wine vinegar and 1 tsp soy sauce.

Take the dough and split into roughly 20 pieces. Roll out into circles roughly 3 inches in diameter and place 1 tbsp stuffing into the centre. Fold over in half and pinch the edges to seal the dumpling.
Cook in boiling water or a steamer for approximately 15 minutes and serve immediately.