This is one of the best ways to store and keep our fresh lettuce crisper. We use a couple of little tricks and that is how to keep lettuce fresh and crisp even for weeks.
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Ever wonder the best way to store fresh lettuce? We are here to share how we store fresh lettuce and it stays crisper longer.
We live on a Ranch 14 miles from the nearest small Grocery store and 40 miles from the nearest warehouse store. So I have to find ingenious ways to have all my favorite fresh foods like fruits and veggies fresh. I really don’t wish to have to travel to “Town” every few days for fresh produce.
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One of the big issues was lettuce. I crave a fresh salad at almost every meal and limp, lifeless lettuce is not appealing to anyone. So I have learned to do these few simple steps. And now I always have fresh, crisp lettuce in the refrigerator, weeks after buying it.
What you will need to keep Fresh Lettuce Crisper:
Before we worry about keeping our lettuce crisper, we need to make sure it is clean. When lettuce is not properly clean it can cause food-borne illness. But even though that threat is low, it’s always a great idea to wash lettuce thoroughly. Also, Lettuce that has been wet from a good washing needs to be stored very dry to maintain crisp lettuce.
- A Salad Spinner is a must in our house. We wash all our greens thoroughly and spin them dry so that the leaves are not damaged and our keeps our fresh greens and fresh lettuce crisper longer.
- Paper Towels help keep the lettuce away from its container or other veggies in your refrigerator. By Wrapping the lettuce in towels, it creates air pockets and absorbs excess moisture. And the lettuce will not brown as quickly and keeps the lettuce fresh.
- Gallon Size Ziplock Bags– we use them to package several heads of romaine lettuce at a time.
- Lettuce containers– There are several on the market, we don’t use them but we have friends that do and love them. So you might wish to check into them
How to Keep Lettuce Fresh:
Buy a large package of Romaine lettuce from the warehouse store, or your local grocery and follow these simple steps.
First, separate all the fresh lettuce leaves and place in a clean sink of fresh cold water. Then remove the lettuce leaves from the water and let drain on a kitchen towel for a few minutes. Then place them in your salad spinner. Salad Spinners are not that expensive and will save you money in the long term.
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Go ahead and spend extra time spinning the lettuce drier and it really will pay off. I have two packages of fresh lettuce in my fridge right now that I purchased almost 3 weeks ago and it’s still crisp and fresh. Yep, Salad Spinner!
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Place the leaves on a dry paper towel, I used the length of two paper towels. Gently roll up the lettuce inside the towels and place in a plastic ziplock baggie
Make sure all the air is out of the bag and place in the crisper section of your refrigerator. You could do one bundle in each baggie or place several in each bag. We have done it both ways and it works.
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Now I have fresh lettuce for the next few weeks.
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Michelle
Friday 12th of December 2014
Great advice...I was washing the mix we got from our CSA and after it dried putting it in a plastic bag with a paper towel. But now that the season is over, I haven't been doing it! Your advice is perfect and I think I could do a better job of preserving with wrapping it up!
Susan F.
Saturday 6th of December 2014
I buy lettuce in bulk too - glad to know I can wash it all at one time!
Julie Corbisiero
Friday 5th of December 2014
What a great tip for lettuce and we too have a salad every night. Thanks for sharing that.Julie
Mimi Baker
Thursday 4th of December 2014
That is just the coolest tip! I had no idea you could keep lettuce longer that way. I don't buy lettuce very much since I'm the only one who eats it and it usually goes bad before I eat it all.
Dan from Platter Talk
Thursday 4th of December 2014
Fantastic info, thanks for sharing this one!