When most people think of celery, they imagine it as a raw snack or an aromatic base in soups and stews. But in Chinese cooking, celery is often used in stir fried dishes or salads as one of the main ingredients. For example, Beef and Celery Stir Fry, Dried Tofu and Celery Stir Fry, Tofu and Celery Salad, Celery and Peanut Salad and Ground Beef Stir Fried with Celery.
Celery is great for stir-fried dishes. It retains its satisfying crunch while soaking up the savory notes of garlic, ginger, and fermented black soybeans. The result? A dish that’s both refreshing and deeply flavorful.
Fermented black beans, often used in Chinese cooking, add a salty, umami-rich layer that balance beautifully with the natural brightness of celery. This stir fry works well as a side dish or a light vegetarian main with steamed rice.
Mise en place
When you’re ready to cook, your table should have:
- Sliced celery: I like to slice celery thinly on a bias, so it’s quick to cook through yet it retains a crisp texture. The biased cut increases surface area to soak up more flavor.
- Minced aromatics: Plenty of ginger and garlic to pair with the pungent fermented black beans.
- Fermented black beans: I like the fermented black beans from The Mala Market. They are very delicious without being too salty.
- Dried chili peppers: They add a smoky aroma to the oil but won’t make the dish very spicy. For a spicier taste, cut one or more of the peppers in half and release the seeds into the oil.
- Mixed sauce: A very simple sauce that contains oyster sauce, sugar and cornstarch. The cornstarch thickens it so the sauce coats the ingredients better.
How to cook celery stir fry
- Cook the aromatics, fermented black beans and dried chili pepper to infuse the oil.
- Stir and cook the celery until starting to turn tender. Then pour in the sauce and mix well.
That’s it!
Now you can serve it as a side dish, or one of the main dishes if serving a multi-course dinner along with rice.
Other quick side dishes
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Celery Stir Fry with Fermented Black Beans
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1/2 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 1/2 tablespoons peanut oil (or vegetable oil)
- 4 cloves garlic , coarsely chopped
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- 3 dried chili peppers
- 2 tablespoons fermented black beans
- 1 lb celery , sliced on the bias into 1/2” (1 cm) pieces
Instructions
- Mix the water, oyster sauce, sugar, and cornstarch together in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Heat oil in a large pan over high heat until it shimmers. Add the garlic, ginger, dried chili pepper, and fermented black beans. Stir and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds or so.
- Add the celery. Stir and cook until it starts to turn tender, 3 to 4 minutes. If the pan starts to get too dry, pour in a small amount of water or Shaoxing wine to deglaze. Stir the sauce again to dissolve the cornstarch completely, and pour it into the pan. Stir and cook until the sauce thickens and coats the ingredients, 1 minute or so. Transfer everything to a plate. Serve hot as a side dish.
Notes
- To make the dish gluten-free: use a gluten-free oyster sauce.
- To make the dish vegetarian: use a vegetarian oyster sauce (also called mushroom sauce).
Nutrition
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