Re: Secrets to cut preparation time????

September 16, 2002

Jammer and all: here's a tip that I happened to coincidentally find this

morning on another newsletter that I subscribe to:

Ready for Salad?

I save money by making my own version of ready-made bag salads

(without the bag) and by making them last longer. My salads

stay fresh for 7 to 10 days and provide quick meals/snacks for

one person or the whole family. For the main salad, I use lots

of fresh lettuce, fresh leaf spinach, chopped carrots, celery,

bell peppers, green onions, fresh cilantro or parsley, chopped

nuts and whole cherry tomatoes, etc. I don't add veggies that

are " juicy " like cut cucumbers, avocados or sliced mushrooms.

(These will go bad quickly and shorten the life of the salad.)

I save them to use as toppings, served buffet-style at

mealtime. Now here is the secret to stretching the " life " of

the salad. Season the main salad with the juice of a fresh

lemon or lime. The acid in the fruit imparts a tasty zing and

extends the life of the greens themselves. A second and

equally important tip is to only use a large glass or

stainless steel bowl for storing the salad in the fridge,

never plastic. (Use a dinner plate for a lid.) I have tried

all the different types of plastic bowls, both expensive and

cheap, and none keep the greens as fresh as this simple method

which I have used for two years.

O.

on 9/14/2002 12:08 PM, ran7972002 at Jammer7@... wrote:

> I have to admit that I haven't given the " perfect day " a go yet.

> After reading the list of foods in a good nutritional day, I figure

> the preparation time has got to be enormous. A while back I was

> trying to have a salad every day and what I did was made enough to

> last me about 3 or 4 days at a time. That way, I could just reach in

> the huge bowl and grab a handfull or two when I needed it. That way,

> at least I wasn't washing, cutting and preparing something every

> day. I the back of my head though, I always figured that the longer

> the all ready cut up veggies were in the fridge, the less nutritious

> they were becoming. What are YOUR tips and tricks to cut prep time

> but still get the ON? I hate preparing food and I'm alone in the

> little experiment!!!

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