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This is how I keep lettuce fresh and make it last for weeks!
We eat a lot of salads in our family, so our reason for keeping lettuce fresh may differ from yours. Perhaps you don’t use lettuce as often, so you want to keep it fresh for when you do. Or, like us, your family eats a lot of salads and you need that lettuce to be crispy the whole time.
It seems like when you buy a large amount of lettuce from the store, at least one of them is doomed to die (or at least start the process) before you get a chance to use it. Often, those bad leaves tend to spread their love to other heads of lettuce as well, and then it’s a race against the clock to eat that lettuce. Always a good time!
Well, let’s fix that. Here are the instructions for how to keep lettuce fresh for weeks.
I buy Romaine lettuce (& spinach) most of the time; I believe it to be a better nutritional choice over Iceberg lettuce. They say the more colorful the veggie or fruit, the better it is for you, right?
Washing and Storing to Make Lettuce Last for Weeks
I cut the end off of the lettuce before I wash it. Taking a second to look at the crown of the lettuce is something I always do, I just find that it is beautiful.
To keep lettuce fresh for weeks, I first soak the lettuce leaves for 2 minutes in a large bowl with a mixture of 10 cups of water and 1/4 cup of distilled 5% white vinegar.
*Note: It is ok if you need to walk away to do something else, but I wouldn’t let the lettuce sit in the vinegar bath for an hour.
I get asked all the time if I reuse the water. No, for lettuce and strawberries I do not. Once you wash them, you will see how dirty the water is.
Next, I rinse the leaves off to get any loose dirt or bugs that might still be on the leaves.
To spin or not to spin…
Just this past year, I purchased the best salad spinner from OXO. It speeds up the process, but for years I did it without a spinner. Follow the next step, even if you don’t have a spinner. Both methods work just fine.
Lay the lettuce out on a towel to dry for a couple of hours. Flip them around once or twice during the drying time to make sure they are thoroughly dry on all sides.
After the lettuce leaves are completely dry, I store them in this glass container, which works much better at storing produce than plastic. I found the best glass container that holds a full head of lettuce.
I was averaging 6 weeks with this container when I was testing it out. You can choose to put it in a ziplock bag with a piece of paper towel, but it won’t last as long.
Put a paper towel or cloth at the bottom of the container to collect the moisture. I try to put them down so any remaining water will drain off of the leaves. Look at them like they are umbrellas and not boats as you lay them in the containers. There is no need to change out the paper towel after placing them in the container.
The Benefits of Knowing How to Keep Lettuce Fresh for Weeks...
It is worth the extra effort to know we have fresh lettuce anytime we want a salad. I prep our salad veggies as well, so they are always ready to go for a quick lunch. We store those in separate mason jars and the stored salad mixtures will keep for about a week.
Follow me on Instagram @thecrosslegacy for more salad recipes and vegetable prep and storage inspiration.
Happy washing!
Washing and Storing Lettuce
Equipment
- Paper towel
Materials
- ¼ cup 5% distilled white vinegar
- 10 cups Water
Instructions
- Cut the end off the lettuce head.
- Pull the lettuce leaves apart and soak in water/vinegar solution for 2 minutes.Move lettuce to a colander and rinse leaves to remove remaining dirt/bugs.
- If you have a salad spinner, spin to remove excess water and move to a towel to finish drying. If you do not have a salad spinner, place the lettuce leaves on a towel and occasionally rotate to ensure they completely dry.*think umbrellas vs boats when drying your lettuce. Having the "spine" facing up helps will help your lettuce dry faster.
- Place a paper towel at the bottom of the glass container and place lettuce in container.*think umbrellas vs boats when storing your lettuce. Having the "spine" facing up helps to remove any extra moisture and keep your lettuce from browning.
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