Cooking for one - The Lettuce Problem
 

I am not crazy about vegetables. I try to have a side salad with my lunches - usually mostly iceberg or romaine with dressing, maybe a little onion or tomato and cheese on top. I can't really manage a salad as my entire lunch so I don't eat a whole bowl of it, just a small handful of lettuce.

The problem is, lettuce goes red/brown very quickly. I have been buying the bags of pre-cut lettuce, but they only last a couple of days. Heads of lettuce aren't much better.

Anyone have any tricks for keeping lettuce longer?

Not really. Lettuce goes limp quite quickly. Buy smaller heads, or keep leftovers (dry, not wet) in a closed tupperware container in the fridge.

Iceberg keeps the longest. I sometimes get the packs of baby greens, but they go bad quickly.

Lately, my salads have been devoid of lettuce. Just cherry tomatoes, baby peppers, carrot sticks, celery, sometimes a radish or a baby cuke. I splash on some rice wine vinegar, or maybe some ranch dressing.

Now that it’s summer, a nice homegrown tomato sliced with some mozzarella slices and some olive oil and balsamic is a really filling salad.

Between the constant ecoli scares and the cost, and the short shelf life, I’ve been ditching the lettuce. I don’t really miss it.

I don't sell Tupperware, but they have containers called FridgeSmart containers that allow you to adjust the airflow based on what produce is inside.

A caprese salad is indeed a delightful thing. Had one today for lunch! And you are right about lettuce, goes limp quickly, not particularly beneficial as a vegetable (certainly not when slathered with lots of salty/sweet/fatty dressing).

Try Bibb lettuce with living roots in a clamshell container. Might be called Boston or Butter lettuce. Easy to clean the leaves and just enough for 2 salads. Also great for lettuce wraps. Iceburg has a lot of bitter parts I discard anyway. I'll pick up a Mediterranean salad and find it's good for a second day~ generally a mix of spring greens, baby spinach, artichoke hearts, olives, chickpeas and shredded carrots. Already done~ no work no waste. I'm not a fan of cooked vegetables but often make a platter of sliced red peppers, cucumbers, zucchini, radish and red pepper hummus. Campari tomatoes with homemade vinaigrette is good too.

Also, try and insure that your refrigerator isn't getting to a freezing temp with too much produce. (This is probably not an issue with the OP's delight of vegetables.) If the leaves freeze at all, they will thaw into slimy mush. The darker leaves in the mixed greens are particularly susceptible.

I do! I do!!
Seriously, I have been doing this for years and it works. I am single and I can make lettuce last at least a week ...sometimes longer.
First of all--iceberg? yuck other than a wedge salad.
Romaine and sturdy lettuces like frisee work best for this...soft leafy red lettuces are the first to spoil so you will only get an extra day out of them with this method.
Wash and completely dry your lettuce or use the prewashed in a bag. Put your lettuce (whole leaves are best but even torn pieces are ok) in a METAL bowl (like a mixing bowl) and cover with a piece of aluminum foil and seal/crimp all around the edge of the bowl. Put in fridge and take out pieces as needed and seal back up. If there seems to be dampness when you open the foil just put a piece of paper towel on top. So simple and I use this all the time. I swear that your lettuce will be super fresh a week later if you do this right. You're welcome.

What is Bogo in English ?

buy one get one (like 2 for the price of 1, but it requires customer to get two of them). When a store has a sign like (2/$5), then client can buy only 1 for $2.50.

I’m guessing: Buy One Get One free (BOGOF)

I don't have a problem with vegetables (except for mushrooms), so I haven't tried this with lettuce myself.

Buy a head of romaine, give it a fresh slice on the core end, put it in a wide mouth jar or vase with maybe an inch of (preferably filtered) water, and keep it on your counter. Pull off a leaf or two everyday. Give the bottom a fresh cut as needed and change the water every couple of days.

I keep my green onions sprouting this way. I imagine it'd work for romaine since it's long/tall in shape.

The Atlantic still cleaves our language into two. Dropping the “Free” part of “Buy One, Get One Free” provokes a minor form of anathema.

Cogollos de Tudela. First type of lettuce I ever ate for pleasure. Love nearly all kinds now.

Cloudship, since you’re not particularly keen on vegetables, have you tried using salt to remove that zingy “green” bitterness from cucumber? There are lots of ways to do it, but the simplest is to just cut cucumber into slices, sprinkle with salt and leave for between 1 and 2 minutes. Then rinse and give the cucumber slices a little squeeze. Then dress as you would usually. I personally struggle with a mound of cucumber, but after using a bit of salt to leach them slightly, eating through big quantities becomes a joy.

I now substitute baby spinach for lettuce. A bag of pre-washed baby spinach will be fresh for 4-5 days.

I used to do that. It works but does take up a lot of space. I found that the whole romaine stay fresh in my fridge for a month. It takes a month for me to eat a Costco size romaine package!! I just take a the leaves as I need them, rinse, shake dry, cut, add dressing and eat. I used to buy pre-washed veggies. In the last few years I have started washing pre-washed veggies. It no longer make sense to buy them. They seem to spoil quicker as well. These days, for me, it is all about how long I can stay away from the grocery stores.

Exactly. Not all Bogo’s are Bogof’s. Some are buy one, get one half off. I’ve even seen buy one, get 2 free. But most commonly you are forced to take a second for no additional price. That means filling your fridge or freezer, or eating too much of one thing in a short period of time. My solution is to take the extra and give it to a neighbor.

We've switched entirely to Bibb lettuce for our salads. It's tender, its tasty, and it stays fresh thanks to being harvested with its roots. I used the last of a head of lettuce last night that had been in our frig for 2 weeks. It was still fine. I'm eating a lot more lettuce now that I've switched to Bibb.

Von's has lots of sale items that are 2 for a sale price but if you only buy 1 it is full price .
people, try the metal bowl trick i mentioned for lettuce ...it is amazing.

I simply wash and dry the lettuce, veg or fruit and put it in one of the Lakeland bags and it stays fresh for quite enough time to eat before it goes off. Of course, you have to buy for your consumption - don't buy food for a family of six if there's only one of you. I get over a week from it all.

https://www.lakeland.co.uk/1094/20-L...Bags-25-x-38cm

English had enough issues before it sailed westward.

In any event, here's a salient photo for the bogo...

That's the problem. You can't buy half a head of iceberg lettuce. And I know they all claim it lasts as week, but I am lucky to get 3 days before it turns red.

Just eat more vegetables. They are good for you ;)

Try the metal bowl. I promise you. I don't get a commission on metal bowls or foil but everyone who tries it is blown away. Iceberg is not the least bit nutritious btw...romaine is so much better.

Have I said that I prefer lamb’s lettuce?

With shelter at home, we've been getting weekly farm boxes, some of them came with a lot of leafy greens. Wrapping the lettuces, chard, spinach, basil, mint, etc., in slightly moist paper towels and placing them inside unsealed plastic bags does the trick for us. If you first rinse the greens, shake out as much water as you can and there is no need to moisten the paper towels. That makes the green leafy vegetables keep for a week or even longer. How long obviously depends on how fresh the greens are when you store them.

Some of my local grocery stores will simply have the item ring up at 50% off while on BOGOF. That means you can buy one and receive the same benefit as a BOGOF.

Doesn't work that way at Publix or Winn Dixie. Cashiers at Publix are trained to send the bagger for your forgotten item. To get something for $2.50, the price has to be 2 for $5. Buy one $5 item, and you’ll pay $5. If it’s BOGO, you get a second for no additional money. I’m not sure why they would encourage waste, but that’s just how it works.

I'm glad mine are the ones that discount it by 50%. :D

Its headed for 97 today so we walked this morning at the semi- ghost town mall. There I saw a window sign I had never seen before: BOGOHO

I hope that means buy one, get one half off.

LOL, not quite how I'd advertise it, but...

Our lettuce, iceberg or romaine usually keeps ok for about 7-10 days. Might have to trim it a bit towards the end. If it starts to get bitter, a soak in cold water for an hour or so fixes it. What matters is how old it is when you buy it. We've had some go bad in a couple of days, while farmers market fresh lasts for 2 weeks easy.

It's obviously not a solution for everyone, but if you can afford a Sub-Zero fridge, get one. They seriously keep food fresh for 2-3 times as long as conventional refrigerators. I think it has largely to do with negative pressure, precise temperature control and tight door seals.