70 people have already signed up for the 10 Day Produce and Protein Challenge. How exciting! Sorry for all of the comments stuck in moderation last night. We are actually camping right now (Yes, I am blogging while I am camping. How uncool is that?). So there may be a slight delay in updating comments and replying this weekend.
This upcoming week, and the ten days of the challenge I will be sharing tips and recipes relevant to those doing the challenge or those who just love to eat good food.
Today I thought I would share a short video showing how I sped up the process of washing, drying and cutting lettuce. It made my life a lot easier. It’s one of those simple tips that make a big difference in your bottom line of time spent in the kitchen.
What about you? Have any tips on how to speed up the process of making a salad? I’d love to have you share too.
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I keep a sectioned container of salad toppings cut and reading to go along with a bowl of lettuce. It is good for a few days in the fridge and makes it so easy to pull out a “side salad!”
Nice and fast — thank you. The water you use to wash the lettuce can easily be poured on plants instead of thrown away, too, which is so important in these days of water shortages, droughts, and concerns about the future of potable water!
Great tip- so where did you get the salad bowl and strainer you were using in the video?
Plus my own tip: I purchased the Debbie Meyer Green Plastic Containers and they work great. My vegetables last over a week without going bad. And the containers hold up well. i have been using them for two years now.
http://www.amazon.com/Idea-Village-Always-Fresh-Containers/dp/B002672G8E/ref=pd_sim_k_3
I’m in the market for a salad spinner. What kind/brand do you use?
Hi Lady Dorothy,
I am going to be sharing about that this upcoming Monday!
Hope this doesn’t interfere with Kimi’s upcoming post but I use a pampered chef one- it is pricey but also has a small container for berries. I love it!!!! I have used other brands before and this one is my favorite.
Like your video! My suggestion that works so well is to to have my three teenage girls do it (hee, hee)! But it looks like you already have one in training (way to go)! I have given a salad spinner as a gift, but not gotten one for myself; I think I’ll get one now.
THANKS!
Great video! Fun music too!
This isn’t really a speedy tip at all – but it has helped me when the lettuce is a little wilty. This is from Martha Stewart (somewhere).
If you fill up a sink with cool water & put your lettuce in there for 15 minutes to soak & then drain it, it rehydrates nicely. Martha’s method from there is to drain & then wrap up in dishtowels & leave in the fridge until ready to use.
I personally don’t own a salad spinner, but maybe it’s time. Although I will probably try the tip I saw about putting the greens in a clean pillowcase & then clipping it closed and using the spin cycle in the washer for a few seconds. I really don’t have room anywhere to put a spinner. If that doesn’t work out, then maybe the spinner is the way to go.
Kudos on finding such a beautiful and well-behaved assistant!
I use my salad spinner to wash/spin lettuce in bulk, and then leave the whole thing (minus the water of course) in the fridge to use as needed. It generally stays fresh for a long time, but I know, the idea is to eat it quickly.
I love your salad spinner. Where can I get one like yours? What type/brand is it?
I have two containers stacked in a corner of my refrigerator, one is filled with a mixture of lettuce varieties that I’ve washed and prepared, and the other is filled with all the other salad ingredients that will keep once they are cut.
http://sunandsalt.blogspot.com/2011/04/salad-days.html
I finally got a new salad spinner much like the one in your video. Such a dream to use compared to my last tiny one. Great video; great assistant!
I came across this idea earlier this summer. I just got a replacement hose for my food saver and I haven’t gotten to try it yet but it looks like a great idea!
http://www.salad-in-a-jar.com/skinny-secrets/salad-in-a-jar
I buy large containers of lettuce/spring greens from a wholesale club. Its very time consuming to use a salad spinner with that much lettuce. I wash it in a large bowl, rinse it and put the lettuce in a lingerie bag. The bag goes in the washer set on the spin cycle. The lettuce is then ready for containers to put in the refrigerator. Very quick and easy!
Wow, you and I are on the same wavelength. I started a post on this exact method last week. Now I guess it would be redundant, but your video is better anyway!
Oh, also, the only thing I have to add is: if you cut the lettuce with a knife it will brown on the edges fairly quickly. If you rip it with your fingers instead, it will easily keep several days without any browning.
Sarah, That’s a good point. Another reason why this method works well when you are going to be eating the salad right away.
Kimi,
Thank you so much for this method for washing lettuce! It has revolutionized my kitchen routine! We are eating more salads now because I am not procrastinating the job of preparing the lettuce. In trying this method, I used a special lettuce knife my friend bought me as a gift (trying the knife for the first time as well). She said it would not make the lettuce go brown and she was right! Four days later my lettuce was still very fresh looking. It was like having the pre-washed and prepared lettuce from the store, only it stayed fresh longer. The knife is Progressive brand and I think this is the URL for it on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Progressive-Green-Serrated-Lettuce-Knife/dp/B0017YROB6
I forgot to mention that I also added a splash of apple cider vinegar to the wash water. I do that because it’s what my mom has always done. I think it is supposed to reduce bacteria and pesticide residues. I just use the regular kind for washing–not the raw kind.
yeah that is pretty uncool, go hang out with your family
Wow Patty! For the record this trip wasn’t exactly a family vacation. We were coming along on a youth camp with our church as my husband was helping lead worship for it. But in the end, you don’t know me, or my family life, or how much time I invest into my family, so I don’t really think that you need to comment on it.
Oh, pish posh. Ignore Patty’s negative remark. Maybe *she* should get offline and spend time NOT being rude to people she doesn’t know.
Don’t worry about Patty’s ultra-rude remark Kimi! And you shouldn’t feel the need to justify yourself or your actions to someone like that (although I can certainly understand wanting to). She is obviously on some different wavelength!
I think you’re doing a fantastic job here and I have no doubt you’re a wonderful wife and mom! I love your blog and eagerly look forward to each new post! 🙂
Oh Patti. Are you really that desperate for attention? How sad.
Kimi- I appreciate the time that you do take to help all us out here in cyberspace. You, like the rest of us, do what you do because, not in spite, of your family.
Thank you.
I love it that you have your daughter on the vid with you.
Apparently she’s very accustomed to “quality” kitchen time with Mama! 🙂
Thanks so much for this video…….sometimes I think of making a salad as a huge production and that keeps me from eating them regularly. I have a fabulous OXO stainless steel salad spinner so really, I have no excuse now! I’m going to do better!\
Ikea has a great salad spinner and for the price….
It has a solid bowl on the outside so I can put the greens or other food in, rinse with water or submerge it, lift it out into the basket, pour the water and silt out, and then spin – and without fear of breaking a rope. When I do sprouts, It still needs a thin liner, but the solid bowl will still catch what gets away.