FOOD NEWS
The Easy Hack To Turn Soggy Lettuce Into Bright, Crisp Greens
BY SIMONE GERBER
Nothing is worse than opening your fridge to find that your lettuce has gone limp and wilted. Luckily, there’s a simple trick involving lemon water that can revive this vegetable.
As lettuce sits on the shelf in your fridge, it steadily loses the water stored in its cells, which causes the leaves to shrink and become soft and shriveled.
By submerging lettuce in cold water, these cells reabsorb the lost moisture, making them firm and crunchy again. Lemon juice helps by adding a bit of acid to the water.
Acidity helps the lettuce absorb more moisture than it would with just plain water. To try out this technique, fill a bowl with cold water and add a few squeezes of lemon juice.
Soak the lettuce for a few minutes, or until it gains a fresher appearance. You can then cut the leaves off the head and dry them well in a salad spinner.
If you don't have a salad spinner, try chef Ina Garten's trick. Envelop the wet leaves in a dry dish towel, hold the towel by the corners, then whirl it around to shake off the water.