Store Greens Like This For A Clean, Crisp Salad Every Time

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Leafy greens encompass dozens of types of lettuce that you can combine or enjoy alone in countless salads. Unfortunately, these delicate greens have a short shelf life, especially if you don't store them correctly. To help you avoid mushy, soggy, sad lettuce leaves, we consulted Chef Megan McCarthy, the edible garden chef at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. She's also the founder of Healthy Eating 101, and an ambassador for The Foundation for Fresh Produce. Hopefully, her tips for storing greens will increase the appearance, flavor, and texture of salads on your weekly meal plan.

According to Chef McCarthy, storage starts with washing and drying your greens thoroughly. "I like to spin my greens dry in a salad spinner, or you can wrap them in paper towels and store them in a loosely sealed plastic bag or container in the refrigerator," McCarthy says, adding, "Try not to put too much into the storage container to prevent wilting." Stored this way, she says most greens will stay fresh and crisp for anywhere from three to five days.

Washing lettuce rids it of gritty debris, but residual moisture is the enemy of crisp lettuce. A salad spinner like this one by Oxo Good Grips is the most efficient tool for washing and drying large quantities of lettuce. Plus, you can use the salad spinner for other veggies, too! The paper towels will absorb any extra moisture the salad spinner doesn't eliminate as the leaves sit in the fridge. If the leaves are packed too tightly, air won't be able to circulate around them to keep them dry.

Chef McCarthy's salad spinner suggestion is a great way to prep for storage. But it's also good advice for preparing future salads. Rip or cut the leaves into bite-sized pieces before washing them to fit more leaves in the spinner. Plus, it'll save you prep time when you're ready to make a salad. Air circulation will assist the paper towels in keeping lettuce crisp and dry. Hence, Chef McCarthy opts to loosely seal a plastic bag. A plastic container with paper towels is the optimal storage method, extending certain types of lettuce's lifespans to up to 10 days. If you're planning on leaving the greens in storage for more than three or four days, you might need to swap the moist paper towels for dry ones. 

That said, it's best to plan on using your greens within a few days of purchase for salad that's both fresh tasting and crisp. When you pull that container of stored lettuce out of the fridge to make a salad, we've compiled plenty of salad making hacks to optimize taste and texture. Not all leafy greens are crisp and crunchy like iceberg; some are soft and delicate like butter lettuce and spinach, while others are thick and sturdy like kale. Combine different types of salad greens to achieve a more complex textural contrast or bring crunch with veggies, nuts, seeds, or croutons. When adding heavy veggies to your lettuce, check out this salad layering tip that prevents heavy ingredients from sinking to the bottom.