I'm making chicken soup with celery and carrots. I just noticed that the celery floats on top. Does anyone know why?

ChefJune added almost 2 years ago

I've been making chicken soup for decades and have never seen the celery float on top. Did you cut it up into little pieces? I always leave my stalks (leaves included) whole.

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isabelita added almost 2 years ago

Thanks for the quick answer. I chop the celery fairly large (bite size)I like to eat chunks, and I must say this is the first time I notice that the celery floats. Could it be the water content in the celery? The celery is very fresh. I'm at a loss.

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ChefJune added almost 2 years ago

Celery is about 90 percent water. We don't eat the veggies cooked in the soup, except for the carrot. If I want celery in the soup, I would add the chopped celery about 15 - 20 minutes before the soup is done.

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inpatskitchen added almost 2 years ago

I've noticed that if I don't saute the carrots, celery and onions first the celery and onions will float to the top for a while, but then after simmering a bit everything seems to come together. And I do agree that it probably has something to do with the water content in the celery.

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Sam1148 added almost 2 years ago

I"m guessing the celery, while it has water content, has zero salt compared to the broth.
Fresh water floats on denser salted water. After a bit, the salt of the broth will go in the celery and it'll sink.

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Droplet added almost 2 years ago

Celery being crunchy has many "compartments" similar to a life vest, so it floats.

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