I used to think like this. It’s mainly because my only encounters with celery were teachers who thought celery and peanut butter was a good “snack” for kids. Gr

I used to think like this. It’s mainly because my only encounters with celery were teachers who thought celery and peanut butter was a good “snack” for kids. Gross. But in cooking, it’s great. The purpose of celery is to break up the rush of flavor that sauce brings. For example in a stir fry, meat and rice tend to take on the flavor of the sauce (or even become enhanced by it). Celery does not. Sauce doesn’t stick to it. Celery adds dynamics to a dish by adding a pause to the flavor. And in the context of a mouth full of meat and sauce and rice and peppers, celery gives it all meaning by being none of that.