Cheap Eats :: Make your own bagged salad

I mentioned in my "Meal-planning 101" post that you should never bother with buying bagged salad or lettuce. Good quality lettuce is expensive when purchased bagged and the quality suffers so much before you ever even open it. Buying lettuce, chopping, washing and storing it yourself is super duper simple and best of all...it's cheap!

At Winco, I buy a head of Romaine lettuce for $1.48. When I get it home, I get out my handy dandy Lettuce Knife (pictured) and prepare to chop. The lettuce knife is plastic and serrated. It's said that using a plastic knife keeps the lettuce from oxidizing and turning brown at the edges. I have used both a lettuce knife and a regular metal one and have noticed very little difference. So, if you don't have one, don't let that deter you from trying this.

Equipment Needed:

• Cutting Board
• Salad Spinner or large bowl and strainer
• Plastic Lettuce Knife or a good sturdy knife
• A gallon zip-top bag
• A paper towel or napkin 

 

I chop before I wash. It's much easier that vice versa. Lay you head of lettuce on the cutting board and begin chopping at the base.

Throw that bit away, compost it...or use it to regrow your head of lettuce.
Continue chopping it in one inch slices all the way up!

 

Dump the lettuce in your salad spinner and fill the bowl with the coldest possible water from your tap. The cold water with refresh your lettuce and make it bright and crispy. I let mine soak for awhile...usually while I cook dinner.

Once you let it soak strain it and empty the water from your spinner. I spin my lettuce twice to get it as dry as possible. If you don't have a spinner, you can let it sit out in the strainer or dry it with paper towels...though a salad spinner is a worthy investment and can be bought on the cheap.

Dump the dried lettuce in the gallon sized zip-top bag, toss in your paper towel or napkin and seal it up, removing as much air as possible from the bag.

And that's it! My salad lasts up to a week or more in the fridge. I've had it last 2 and a half weeks before with only slight browning at the edges (which doesn't effect the taste very much at all).

Never buy that bagged crap again!