Dry lettuce thoroughly before storing it.
A salad with lunch or dinner -- or both -- is a great way to increase your vegetable intake and meet the daily minimum recommendations for fruits and vegetables. But, people often find that their lettuce goes limp and soggy or browns several days after it is washed and stored. You can prevent that with a few simple steps. While preparing for storage, be sure that you wash your lettuce in ice-cold water, which helps restore any lost crispness.
Instructions
1. Place washed lettuce in a salad spinner and spin it thoroughly. Dry lettuce leaves will keep several days longer.
2. Dry the lettuce gently with paper towels in the absence of a spinner. Lay down several sheets of paper towels that are still connected. Lay the lettuce leaves on the paper towels and roll up the paper towels, similar to rolling up a sleeping bag. Unroll the paper towels and blot individual leaves gently, if necessary, to remove any remaining water.
3. Place three dry sheets of paper towels, still connected, on the counter and lay the dried lettuce leaves on them. Roll up the paper towels very loosely, ensuring that you don't crush the lettuce leaves.
4. Slide the bundle into a gallon-sized resealable plastic bag. Press out air from the bag with your hand and seal it.
5. Store the lettuce in the refrigerator, unrolling the paper towel and removing leaves as needed. Press out air from the bag each time you reseal it. The lettuce should last for about a week.
Tags: paper towels, lettuce leaves, Press from, several days, sheets paper