A reaction product mixture is obtained from a reaction of (a) a cellulose ether with (b) an aliphatic monocarboxylic acid anhydride or with a di- or tricarboxylic acid anhydride or with a combination of an aliphatic mono-carboxylic acid anhydride and a di- or tri-carboxylic acid anhydride in the presence of (c) an aliphatic carboxylic acid. A process for precipitating an esterified cellulose ether from this reaction product mixture comprises the step of contacting the reaction product mixture with water and subjecting the combination of water and the reaction product mixture to a shear rate of at least 800 s−1. The precipitated esterified cellulose ether can be recovered as a non-tacky product.