How To Keep Prepackage Lettuce Salad Fresh

Accept you e'er gone into your fridge for lettuce so you have something green to serve with dinner and what yous discover is a package of brown, slimy, gross stuff that could easily have come from an episode of The Walking Expressionless??

No?? Me, neither. Never, ever happened here either. I've heard rumors of information technology happening to others … just never … OK, maybe once. Alright, more than once … FINE, information technology used to happen A LOT.

I've tried a lot of means to store lettuce and I'd basically given up. I finally ended upwards buying lettuce the 24-hour interval I planned on serving it. That helped prevent "goo bags" in my fridge but cut downwards on having that quick and like shooting fish in a barrel side salad or the fast and tasty dinner salad ala taco, steak or chicken — which is my go-to "life sucks, I hate cooking" final minute, everybody is starving, dinner idea.

That is until I constitute this commodity and video on the web showing how to store lettuce for a long fourth dimension using large mason jars and my vacuum sealer. I had just purchased a Kindle book, Salads To Go, on how to brand salads and store them for easy lunches in mason jars.

As luck would have it, I'd simply purchased some half-gallon mason jars for fermenting cabbage and decided to requite the vacuum sealed lettuce method a try. The only thing I all the same needed was a way to vacuum seal the jars. My FoodSaver didn't come with a Jar Sealer device, only information technology did have the Accessory Port. Make sure your FoodSaver has an Accessory Port — if yous have canisters or the Quick Marinator then your FoodSaver has the functionality to use the Jar Sealer. I found a FoodSaver Broad-Mouth Jar Sealer on Amazon inexpensively. It paid for itself after 3 bags of lettuce!

I can tell you that I've tried this method on a multifariousness of different lettuces and, so far, it only works with romaine lettuce. The softer leaf lettuces don't keep as well and we don't like iceberg lettuce.

I buy my lettuce at Sam's Guild and I get 6 heads of romaine in a package for nether $four.00. Normally, I'd end up with 2-3 of these heads of lettuce going dark-brown on me. But at present we are able to use up a whole package before it goes bad!

Using half-gallon jars I tin can get three heads of lettuce in each jar. In the summertime months the heads of lettuce are larger and I have to stuff the lettuce in pretty tightly. In the winter months, the heads seem a bit wimpy.

The instruction from the video I shared to a higher place says to wash the lettuce, spin it dry and put it into the mason jars. After the first couple of times using this method, I don't recommend doing that.

I found that my lettuce lasts even longer if I cut information technology up and put it into the mason jars dry correct from the bag. When it comes time to apply the lettuce, I'll take what I demand out of the jar and rinse/clean information technology before serving.

I likewise don't recommend putting whatever other type of vegetable in with the lettuce. If yous want the lettuce to last as long as it lasts for me, then continue the lettuce by itself.

I remove all the wilted and outside leafs, make 2 cuts with the grain and then showtime chopping from the top towards the bottom until all that'due south left is the stalk. I liked the proffer from the video to chop starting at the top and to leave the stem attached, it certainly makes chopping less messy.

Stuff lettuce into the jars until they are total or you run out of lettuce.

Side by side I take the lettuce filled mason jars over to my FoodSaver and vacuum out all of the air. To do this you'll need the FoodSaver Wide-Mouth Jar Sealer, a wide-mouth bricklayer jar hat and ring and the FoodSaver machine with Accessory Hose.

FoodSaver machines don't come up with the Jar Sealer — you have to purchase it separately. I've seen packages where they give y'all canisters and marinators, merely I've never seen one that includes the jar sealer. So y'all tin expect to accept to buy one or borrow ane. When you go to buy the Jar Sealer, keep in heed that there are two (ii) different lid sizes for bricklayer jars. Regular oral cavity and broad-oral fissure. If you accept or programme to purchase half-gallon jars or broad-mouth quart jars, you'll need the wide-rima oris jar sealer.

Half-gallon mason jars are actually hard to find locally — at to the lowest degree where I alive. I wasn't able to find any store that carried them in stock. But if yous have an Ace Hardware Store near you, that's where I recommend purchasing one-half-gallon mason jars. Mason jars are expensive to transport and it'southward always a take a chance to send annihilation glass through the mail. Especially since mason jars are not really packaged for shipping. It's pretty normal to receive them with some breakage. If you get them through your Ace Hardware Shop, you tin order either online or by calling the store and the jars are shipped to the store where you lot can choice them upward. You lot don't pay any shipping charges and any breakage is handled past Ace before you lot accept to plunk down your hard-earned cash. If you accept a local hardware store, they may be able to get them for you likewise. I tried our locally-owned hardware shop starting time and was unsuccessful.

Do NOT nether any circumstance use a recycled food jar (such every bit mayo or spaghetti sauce) or anything other than a Ball or Kerr canning jar. Recycled nutrient jars and other "novelty" jars are non fabricated to withstand the pressure of existence vacuum sealed and yous adventure the jar imploding. Ball and Kerr canning jars are made specifically for handling nutrient under pressure level.

Place your jar lid on the mason jar (but non the ring) and so place the Jar Sealer on, covering the lid and the mouth of the jar. Place the FoodSaver Accessory Hose in the top and press the Accessories Button. Almost machines volition plough themselves off once the vacuuming is completed.

Accept the Jar Sealer off and test the lid. It should not requite way under your finger. Now screw on the hat's ring and vacuum seal all remaining jars.

I use a very fancy labeling system … blue painter tape and a sharpie marker! LOL Any organization you make up one's mind to use, marking your jars with the date that yous first cut up and vacuum sealed the lettuce. This volition allow y'all to continue the oldest lettuce at the front end of the fridge if you use plenty lettuce that there are multiple seal dates.

Every fourth dimension you lot open a sealed jar of lettuce, you need to either use it all or re-vacuum what'south left. If y'all don't vacuum seal what's left, information technology will not terminal. Information technology's the vacuum that causes the lettuce to stay fresh for the long time menstruum.

I state that lettuce once vacuum sealed will easily last for 2 (2) weeks, simply I tin can tell you that I've had lettuce last over a month vacuum sealed. Your mileage may vary.

Proceed Lettuce Fresh for Weeks

Recipe type: Food Storage

ane package Romaine Lettuce from Sam'southward Club (6 heads)
2 half-gallon bricklayer jars
two broad-mouth lids
2 broad-rima oris rings
FoodSaver with Accessories Hose
FoodSaver Jar Sealer

Chop lettuce as desired for salad servings
Fill mason jars
Using FoodSaver with Accessories Hose and FoodSaver Jar Sealer, vacuum seal lettuce
Exam lid to confirm a good seal
Spiral ring onto jar
Place in fridge.
Re-vacuum seal afterward opening
Lettuce volition last for two(2) weeks or more

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