Celery is a vegetable that can be eaten whole or added to other food like soups. Celery is green in color when it is fresh and is considered a good vegetable to eat when you plan on losing weight. Like most veggies, you are given no “best by” or expiration dates when you purchase celery, so it makes one wonder how long you can store celery and if you can still eat it once it has gone bad.
You can get sick from eating old celery. If you find that your celery has grown old and spoiled, it is best to throw it out as eating it can cause food poisoning as well as other illnesses.
Continue reading to learn more about why you should not eat old celery and how long celery can last when stored.
What Does Old Celery Look Like?
Fresh celery is green. It is also firm and is not brownish. Old celery, on the other hand, is the opposite. Old celery can be brownish or a very dark green coloration. Old celery is also more floppy than fresh celery.
Is It Safe to Eat Old Celery?
It is not safe to eat old celery. Eating old celery can cause for you to vomit, have diarrhea, and experience other symptoms that are linked to food poisoning.
What Happens If You Eat Spoiled Celery?
It is not advisable to eat celery that has spoiled. Celery can be grouped with many other fruits and vegetables that can give you food poisoning when you eat it after it has spoiled. Spoiled celery has also been known to cause you to get E. Coli, Salmonella, and Listeria to name a few illnesses.
Eating spoiled celery can cause for you to contract food poisoning. This will often cause for you to vomit, have diarrhea, and have stomach aches. In order to avoid experiencing this, it is best to check your celery before you eat it. If it has signs of spoilage, it is best to throw the celery away.
What to Do If You Have Eaten Old and Spoiled Celery?
If you have ever accidentally eat old and spoiled celery, you should make sure you are not experiencing any symptoms of food poisoning or other illnesses that may come with the consumption of spoiled celery. If you still worry after you have eaten old and spoiled celery, you can check with a doctor to ensure you have not contracted any illnesses.
Related Questions
How long before celery goes bad?
Celery has a shelf-life that depends on the type of celery you are eating. Fresh celery has a shelf-life of around 3 to 4 weeks if stored correctly. Packaged celery can last for around two to three days. Cooked celery can last for up to one week. These shelf-lifes are dependent on the proper storage of the celery.
How to tell if celery has gone bad?
You can tell celery has gone bad by looking at its appearance, smelling it, and tasting it. It is actually very typical of celery to bruise and discolor, and it is typical of celery to lose its firmness. If this happens, you can still eat the celery as long as you trim off the parts that have browned.
Spoiled celery will have a rotting feel to it, and it will not taste good. You will also find that spoiled celery will be very limp and have a slimy texture. It can also smell bad.
How do you properly store celery?
In order to make celery last, it is important to store it properly. Before storing your celery, you want to give it a good wash and make sure that you pat it dry. You want to store your celery in the refrigerator in order to ensure that it will last. You want to make sure that the stalk is attached to the base.
You can also store your celery in the freezer where it can last for a few months. When storing celery in the freezer, you can store it in freezer bags.
Why is my celery turning brown?
You can sometimes find brown patches on your stalks of celery. These brown patches are cause by pink rot which is a common fungus that will affect celery. If you find a few of these patches, you can still eat your celery as long as you cut these patches off.
Final Thoughts
Like most foods, celery can suffer from spoilage. When celery spoils, you will notice a change in color, texture, and smell. It is not okay to eat spoiled celery as it can make you sick. Your celery can last for a few weeks as long as you store it properly, but it is best to throw it out once it spoils.
