We’ve all been there: you buy a beautiful head of lettuce or a box of spring mix, a couple days squeak by, you open the fridge ready to make a salad and—ick! Where there was once something crisp and green, you now have slimy leaves and a smelly mess.
It happens to the best of us, but it doesn’t have to be the norm. When stored with care, you can keep leafy greens fresh for days and sometimes even weeks. From Swiss chard to arugula, here are our secrets on how to keep leafy greens fresh.
Here’s a tip you may not have heard before: Store your head of lettuce in aluminum foil!
Greens like lettuce need the right balance of humidity while still being able to breathe. When you store it in foil, it allows some CO2 to circulate but prevents moisture from building up.
As soon as you get your head of lettuce (such as Romaine, bibb, or iceberg) home from the store, wrap it well in foil so no part is exposed. Store in the fridge until you’re ready to use it, and only rinse and chop it then.
While it’s technically possible to rinse your lettuce and then store it, you’ll want to get it completely dry to prevent it going bad, and it’s difficult to be sure every drop of moisture is removed. Better to save bath time for later.
Be sure to put it in a part of the fridge that doesn’t freeze. Temps that are too cold will make the lettuce wilt, even in foil.
If you buy salad mix or loose leaves (like a box of baby spinach or a bag of arugula), your best option for keeping them fresh is a hard-sided container with something to absorb moisture.
First pick out any slimy leaves that may have come home with you. These release ethylene gas and can cause the other leaves to turn as well. If your greens are already in a plastic box, lay a paper towel or clean cloth napkin on top of the leaves, then close the lid and store it upside down in the fridge.
If your salad mix came home in a bag, lay a paper towel or cloth napkin on the bottom of a hard-sided container. Empty the bag into the container and place another cloth on top before closing. The tupperware protects those delicate leaves and gives them more space to breathe than if they were squashed down in a bag, and the towel absorbs moisture and keeps those greens fresh.
If hearty greens like kale and Swiss chard wilt before you have a chance to use them, don’t toss ‘em! You can revitalize those leaves. Trim an inch or so off the bottom of the stems and stick them in a jar of water like flowers. After a couple hours or a night in the fridge, they should be firm and crisp again.
Once they’re revitalized, you can store them in an airtight container with a towel in the fridge. Or, to make meal prep even easier, rinse, dry, de-stem, and chop your leaves. Then lay them out in one layer onto a clean cloth and roll it up like a burrito. Store in an airtight bag or container in the fridge until you’re ready to cook.
While we’re talking about leafy greens, we simply must mention the most foolproof secret to making salads delicious: herbs! Tossing herbs into your salads makes them immeasurably better. Dried herbs work, but there’s nothing better than the flavor and fragrance of the fresh stuff.
Once you get herbs home, treat them like flowers. Trim a few centimeters off the stems and store them in a jar with water. Cilantro likes it in the fridge, but mint and basil are more sensitive to cold. They’d prefer to live on the counter where they can listen to you sing as you wash the dishes and gossip about it after you go to bed.
If you buy a head of lettuce like Romaine or bibb, you can regrow another head for dinner in a few weeks! Cut the leaves off leaving one to two inches of the base of the plant intact. Fill a shallow dish with water and stick the lettuce stem in as if it were soil. Refresh and refill the water every few days and watch baby leaves emerge. Lil cuties.
If you’re about to go out of town or know you won’t be able to eat your greens in time, fret not. You can store leafy greens in the freezer for later.
Once frozen, you won’t be able to revitalize them for a salad, but you still have options. Heartier greens like kale and Swiss chard can be chopped and frozen for sauteing or tossing into soups. And any green can be blended with water, juice, or nut milk, poured into ice cube trays, and frozen. Later, toss a few cubes into your smoothie for an extra serving of veggies. We particularly love the unexpected spice of arugula alongside mango and yogurt in a morning smoothie!
Now that you have a fridge full of gorgeous greens, it’s time to make something with them. We love piling delicata squash, watermelon radishes, and white quinoa on top of baby kale in this Plant Based Superfood Salad. If arugula is more your speed, this Tomato Salad with Kidney Beans has a lemony kick balanced by creamy avocado. Or, if you’re craving a sophisticated showstopper, this Refreshing Citrus and Beet Salad looks straight out of a restaurant kitchen.
Dress it all up with homemade dressings—the ultimate way to save money, customize your flavors, and impress dinner guests. Here’s how we Dress to Impress.
