YumSugar

How To Store Salad Greens

FitSugar — Mon, 25 Jun 2007 15:45:00 PDT

The vegetables of summer are amazing, making it so easy to eat healthy.

I love to buy baby lettuce and freshly harvested mesclun from local farmer's markets and vegetable stands. They taste amazing, and they're so crisp, but if you don't eat them within a couple of days, they can turn soggy and slimy.

Here's a great little trick I learned from a farmer friend on storing precious fresh salad greens:

Place greens in a plastic bag, close the top of the bag lightly with your fist, blow into the bag and fill it with air (carbon dioxide). Then seal the bag by twisting the top a few times before closing it firmly with a twisty-tie. Place it in the fridge and your greens are good to go.

Pretty simple, huh? The bag might take up a little bit more room in your fridge, but the loss of space is totally worth it. Your greens will stay bright, crisp and flavorful, so you can enjoy healthy salads all week long.

Fit's Tips: This tip works for all leafy greens - basil, parsley, cilantro, oregano, spinach, kale, and arugula.

Definition: Frisee

partysugar — Wed, 23 May 2007 13:01:18 PDT

Frisee
A green leafy vegetable with pale, delicate, slender leaves that range in color from light yellow-white to yellow-green. The feathery, mildly bitter vegetable is often used in salad mixes. Purchase crisp frisee with no signs of wilting, refrigerate in a plastic bag for up to 5 days and rinse clean just before using.

Definition: Mesclun

YumSugar — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 03:18:52 PST

Mesclun
A salad mixture of small, young salad greens. It can include lettuce, spinach, arugula, frisée, Swiss chard, mustard greens, endive, dandelion, sorrel. The name mesclun comes from Southern French mescla "to mix." It is also commonly known as mixed salad.