Celery’s robust texture makes it a fine candidate for stir-frying, and its stringiness can be mitigated by slicing against the grain to break up the fibres. Douchi aka: salted black bean is not to be confused with the kind of black beans you’ll find in a tin and use for Central/South American cooking. You’ll find these sold in a bag or cannister at larger supermarkets and at Asian grocers. The best part about buying some is that since they’re salted and fermented, they last for ages in the pantry! Indeed, they’ve found remnants in crocks at archaeological digs from thousands of years ago (about as old as the bag in the back of my pantry). These black, shrivelled soy beans have been imparting salty-savouriness to Chinese cookery – particularly Cantonese dishes and those from Sichuan and Hunan province for over 2000 years. If you’re a fan of funk, and big flavour, you can add a teaspoon or so of black bean to steamed dishes like mapo tofu or veg and black bean stir fries like this one, along with other usual suspects like garlic and ginger. The saltiness is mellowed with soaking and through cooking, but just remember to hold back on correcting for seasoning until you’ve tasted the final result.