How to Buy and Store Green Vegetables
One of the best ways that I have used to keep lettuce is to put it into the refrigerator covered with a couple of pieces of wet paper towel. It seems that the wet paper towel allows the lettuce to keep longer and the lettuce gets even crisper, a couple days after the lettuce has been in the fridge. The paper towel keeps it fresh – and the best part is that this technique does not stop at lettuce! I use wet paper towel to keep celery and even green onions at their best!
When selecting lettuce, look for greens deep in color which are the most fresh and contain the most nutrients. The lettuce should never be wilted.
When selecting green onions choose firm onions that do not bend in the middle. The same goes when choosing asparagus. Asparagus should be stored within the supermarket with the stems in water – this ensures they are fresh.
The important thing when storing vegetables is to ensure that air flow is reaching all of the vegetables.
One important aspect of keeping vegetables fresh is to ensure that the refrigerator is set at the right temperature. Too cold will freeze the vegetables and cause them to lose nutrients, and more important, taste and keeping the temperature too warm can cause the vegetables to wilt.
When I bring vegetables home from the supermarket I take them out of the small bags that they are stored in when they are bought – and I remove them into Ziploc containers and Ziploc bags. There are specific bags useful for vegetables that have holes within the bags that enable the air to flow around the vegetables, keeping the vegetables fresh and crisp and ready to cook with.
It is important to eat the vegetables as soon as possible after shopping to gain the most nutrients from the vegetables. Leaving the vegetables in the refrigerator is fine, most last an average of three to five days after being purchased. Using these tips, the vegetables will stay fresh and be crisp and ready to make delicious meals from!
