Celery Seed

Celery seed is produced by the same biennial plant that gives us celery stalks, celeriac and leaf celery, but it is harvested from plants allowed to flower and set seed in their second year. The tiny fruits, only about one millimetre long, are tan to dark brown with fine pale ridges and a very pungent aroma.

The flavour is intensely savoury, warm and slightly bitter, like a concentrated essence of celery with a touch of parsley and lovage. Celery seed is sold whole, ground and mixed with salt as celery salt. The strongest seed for culinary use comes from the smallage or wild celery type, rather than from large-stalked table varieties, which are usually more bland.

Wild celery, known as smallage, grows in marshy and salty ground across Europe, western Asia and parts of North Africa and southern Asia. The plant was gathered for food and medicine long before it was domesticated, and cultivated celery was selected from it, probably in the Mediterranean region.

The English word celery comes through French from Italian from the Greek selinon, meaning parsley or celery. Garlands of wild celery leaves and seeds have been found in ancient Egyptian tombs, indicating early cultural importance. The Latin species name graveolens means strongly scented.

Celery was an important plant in the ancient Mediterranean world, but at first it was a medicinal and ritual herb more than a vegetable. The Greeks crowned victors at the Nemean Games with celery wreaths, and ancient Egyptians placed celery in funerary garlands. Early physicians recommended the seeds for a range of complaints.

In medieval Europe celery was grown as a bitter herb and used in medicine. Breeders in Italy and France gradually developed milder, thicker-stalked forms in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and celery became a fashionable vegetable. The seeds, however, always remained a separate commodity, produced mainly in India, where most of the world's culinary celery seed is harvested, and in China, France and the Netherlands.

Celery seed turned into a flavouring for pickles, sauces and brines, and into celery salt, which became a mainstay of American bars through the Bloody Mary and the Chicago-style hot dog. In traditional Indian and Ayurvedic medicine, the related ajmoda seed has been used for digestion and joint complaints.

Celery seed is used in pickling brines, coleslaw, potato salad, tomato juice, soups, stews, sausages and spice blends such as celery salt and Old Bay-style mixes. It is a classic ingredient in Bloody Mary cocktails and bread and biscuit seasonings, adding savoury depth without the stringy texture of fresh celery.

Whole seeds are used in pickles and slow-cooked dishes, while ground seed or celery salt is stirred in at the end of cooking. In traditional medicine, celery seed has been used as a diuretic and for joint pain, and in teas and extracts. The seed oil is used in flavourings and in perfumery.

In traditional medicine celery seed has been used for arthritis, gout and as a diuretic. Early laboratory and small human studies on extracts have suggested mild effects on blood pressure, uric acid and inflammation, but the research is limited and not conclusive.

In the amounts used in cooking, celery seed is a flavouring rather than a significant source of nutrients. It supplies small amounts of calcium, iron and magnesium. Celery salt is high in sodium, which is a consideration for people watching their salt intake.