You heard me right!  You can put your salad in the refrigerator in a pillowcase. Sounds strange, but it works! My mom wasn’t the best cook on the block, but she was always eager to learn from other women who were. I remember her coming home from helping my aunt cater a wedding and showing me how to use a pillowcase for a salad. This was way before salad spinners or vegetable crisper bags were on the market. It was simple and so fun that I’ve used this method ever since.

Why it works

Why use a pillowcase instead of a salad spinner? No cost for one thing (if you already have a pillowcase, but not a salad spinner). Also, you can make a much larger salad with a pillowcase (a huge salad, in fact). And the lettuce does end up more crisp than it will in a plastic bowl (even if that bowl does have a draining basket).  The fabric draws away the moisture from the salad greens and allows the lettuce to breathe. I’ve never tried those salad crisper bags, but with a pillowcase handy, there was never a need to.

One little tip before you begin: Wash the pillowcase in laundry soap that doesn’t contain fragrance, and don’t use fabric softener. This will keep your lettuce tasting like lettuce and not the laundry.

Directions

  1. Wash your greens and shake off any excess water (or let drain in a colander if you have the time).
  2. Chop or tear the lettuce into bite-sized pieces.
  3. Put lettuce inside the pillowcase.
  4. Shake the pillowcase to help the lettuce get dry. You can even take the pillowcase outside and swing it around if you’d like. (Fun chore for the kids!)
  5. Close the top of the pillowcase and place it in the refrigerator to continue to dry and crisp. (I left mine open for the photo, but you want it closed.)
  6. You can crisp salad greens this way in about 20 minutes, or you can store it in the fridge for several hours. Once it’s close to dinnertime, just pour the lettuce into a salad bowl, add whatever else you’d like to your salad, and enjoy!

This is a guest post by Renee from Scotts Valley, CA.

 

A Trick to Keeping Salad Crisp