celery salt
A blend of ground celery seed and table salt -- mostly salt by weight, with just enough ground celery seed to give a savory, slightly herbal edge. A quick way to add a background celery note to a dish without chopping and cooking actual celery, common in chowders, Bloody Marys, and classic American seasoning blends.
Buying guidance
Sold in the spice aisle; check the ingredient list if the celery-to-salt ratio matters, since salt is always the dominant ingredient by a wide margin, same as garlic salt.
Substitutions
- Celery seed plus table salt -- roughly 1/4 teaspoon celery seed plus 3/4 teaspoon salt per teaspoon of celery salt, for direct control over the ratio.
- Finely diced celery, cooked into the dish -- adds real celery flavor and texture rather than just a hint of it, though it changes the dish more than a seasoning would.
- Omit and season with plain salt -- loses the celery note but keeps the seasoning level simple.
Tips & common mistakes
Using it as a 1:1 swap for celery seed alone oversalts a dish, since it's mostly salt -- and it also stacks with any other salt already in a recipe, which is easy to forget when a dish already calls for salt on its own.
Storage
Keeps indefinitely at room temperature in a sealed container -- salt doesn't spoil, though the celery seed in the blend can lose potency and turn slightly musty after a year or two.