We eat a lot of salads in our house, but it seems like we are always reaching for the same old ingredients. Last week I was craving a large bowl of leafy greens, but unfortunately the lettuce in our fridge had gone bad. We still had a whole lot of other green “things”, so I decided to throw together this Thai Celery Salad, using celery and cilantro as the base.
Given my low spice tolerance, I typically wouldn’t have even added the chili, but I had half of one sitting at the bottom of my fridge so I just thought, “to heck with it!” Surprisingly, I was able to tolerate it, and it really enhanced the flavors!
After I made this, I searched around the web for other celery salad recipes. I found some really delicious looking ones that included apples, so next time I run out of lettuce I think I will try that combination (and likely leave out the carrots and chili).

Try this spicy and flavorful Thai Celery Salad. Celery, cilantro, and scallions make a delicious and healthy base for this vegan dish.
- 4 celery stalks, ends trimmed and sliced on a diagonal
- 1 scallion, thinly sliced and green parts only
- 1 teaspoon jalapeno or fresno chili, thinly sliced and seeds removed
- 1/3 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves, tough stems removed
- 1/4 cup grated carrots*
- 1/8 cup chopped roasted peanuts
- 1 Tablespoon avocado or canola oil
- 1 Tablespoon fresh lime juice
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce**
- 1/4 teaspoon sugar
- salt and pepper
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In a large bowl toss together the celery, scallion, cilantro, carrots, and peanuts.
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In a small bowl whisk together the avocado oil, lime juice, fish sauce, sugar, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss the dressing with the celery mixture. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
*If you don't want to pull out your food processor or box grater, you can use a vegetable peeler to create thin strips of carrots.
** For a vegetarian/vegan alternative to fish sauce, combine 1/2 teaspoon of either low-sodium soy sauce or coconut aminos + 1/2 teaspoon lime juice.
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Megan K
This looks delish! I love celery, so I can’t wait to try this recipe. Thanks Rachel 🙂
Rachel (littlechefbigappetite)
Yay! Let me know how you like it Megan!
Alicia V
It’s not vegan if it has fish sauce.
Rachel (littlechefbigappetite)
You’re absolutely right. I just added a note to the recipe.