Why doesn't salad stuff keep ?

JohnG · 31-03-2008, 7:57 AM

I've stopped buying salad stuff for the time being as it always seems to go off so quickly and I end up throwing it away. I always buy it from supermarkets and always check there's plenty of use by date left but still it doesn't keep. This applies to lettuce, tomatoes and cucumber and while we're at it potatoes. I buy potatoes and within a few days they are sprouting.
Should I be looking elsewhere for my salad and veg ? I don't want to have to eat salad 3 days on the trot when I buy some just so it doesn't go off !

**Leej** · 31-03-2008, 8:05 AM

I would say look somewhere else. I've never had a problem with lettuce, tomatoes or cucumber not lasting a good length of time, sometimes weeks. I keep it in the fridge.

JohnG · 31-03-2008, 8:33 AM

I've tried Asda (they seem to go off quickest), Tesco and Morrisons and had problems with them all. I used to buy a full lettuce but found I was throwing a lot away as it rotted from the centre, so then started buying the bags but they seem to go off even quicker.

nheather · 31-03-2008, 8:39 AM

Agree with the bags of lettuce - don't last long at all - I'd say that if it lasts beyond 2 days are you are doing well.

Full lettuces last longer.

But lettuce is the only salad stuff I have problems with. All other salad stuff lasts long enough.

Cheers,

Nigel

JohnG · 31-03-2008, 8:42 AM

Do you all buy your tomatoes and other stuff loose or pre-packed ?

la gran siete · 31-03-2008, 8:44 AM

Romany lettuce keeps better than others- usually 2 weeks in a fridge

Dony · 31-03-2008, 9:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by la gran siete

Romany lettuce keeps better than others- usually 2 weeks in a fridge

yeah...but everytime you open the fridge they have moved on to a different shelf leaving behind a mess!!!!....or was that the Romany gypsies....

Duncan G · 31-03-2008, 9:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by la gran siete

Romany lettuce keeps better than others- usually 2 weeks in a fridge

Why would you want to keep it for two weeks though?

JohnG · 31-03-2008, 9:17 AM

I'm getting the feeling that it's only me who's having these problems !

Dony · 31-03-2008, 9:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnG

I'm getting the feeling that it's only me who's having these problems !

don't think you are......my wife used to get annoyed at this too.

A couple of changes she made was to buy fruit and veg not from the supermarkets, but in the local farm shop.

The prices are slighly higher, but she feels this ifs off-set because the produce is normally bigger.

Also, instead of the produce being packaged in plastic bags, all fruit and veg is packed in paper bags. She believes this to be the biggest help in keeping the food fresh.

Finally, all veg is kept in either a container in the fridge, or a veg basket.

JohnG · 31-03-2008, 9:28 AM

I don't mind paying extra if it's going to keep better and be better quality. I'm not sure we have any of those farm shops but there is a market on Friday and Saturday so I might be better going there ?

RichardK · 31-03-2008, 9:30 AM

I'd suggest trying organic. I always used to avoid buying organic, but one day I wanted some potatoes, had no choice but to buy organic ones. What I found was that they lasted for weeks before even starting to sprout, and once they did start they sprouted more slowly.

I don't know what the reason for the difference is, but now I only buy organic potatoes and my guess is that you'd find similar with other vegetables.

WibXL · 31-03-2008, 9:38 AM

We've found that Sainsburys fruit and veg tends to last longer than Morrisons for some reason. Might be worth checking that your fridge is cold enough if it happens no matter where you shop.

JohnG · 31-03-2008, 9:48 AM

I'd not thought of buying organic, so might give that a try. We also have a Sainsbury nearby so might have a look there as well.

DJT75 · 31-03-2008, 9:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnG

I'd not thought of buying organic, so might give that a try. We also have a Sainsbury nearby so might have a look there as well.

The only problem being what costs 89p in Morrisons, is £1.49 in Sainsbury

funkyspider · 31-03-2008, 9:53 AM

The bags of lettuce never last long.

However, I feel divine intervention is required for your problem

So lettuce pray

Sorry I'll get my coat

GasDad · 31-03-2008, 9:57 AM

You say your potatoes go off quickly as well ?

Are you keeping them in the dark - if for some reason you keep them in the fridge, is your fridge light actually turning off?

James

WibXL · 31-03-2008, 10:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DJT75

The only problem being what costs 89p in Morrisons, is £1.49 in Sainsbury

Depends on what you're after and IMO the Sainsburys stuff tastes better. There's always the Tesco price checker if you want to compare prices before you make the trip.

EDIT: that Tesco price checker compares prices with Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Sainsburys.

johntheexpat · 31-03-2008, 10:07 AM

I think you have to look at the root cause of this. The lettuce that is sold in sealed bags is stored under a special atmosphere that helps to inhibit deterioration. It doesn't stop it, but slows it down to a controlled level. so when you buy your lettuce it has been knocking around for a while and is on its way out, albeit slowly and to a fairly precise timetable. So the supermarkets can say with a fair degree of certainty that this product will be fit for human consumption until such and such a day. You coma along and buy this product, open the bag and the controlled conditions are gone. The salad resumes its decay at the normal rate, but from a position further along the 'decay path' that normal. Thus while a fresh salad may last a few days when picked from the ground, pre-packaged will not.
It's good for the consumer because the product will stay OK for longer unopened and so makes planning ahead easier. It's certainly good for the supermarkets because it enables their supply chains to function optimally, knowing the shop has a few days grace with the product.
Its a pain because a lot of people don't eat the whole packet in one go and get irritated when the remaining salad goes to a sloshy mess before you can plan your next meal.
It allows the supermarket to present you with good value - weight for price.
Its expensive because you buy more than you need and waste some.
A similar kind of story for potatoes. They are sometimes stored for months and months in pitch black chill chambers, ready to be introduced to the shops as fresh produce. But potatoes have this nasty habit of wanting to 'chit' after a period of time. This is inhibited by the storage conditions, but once they are back out into the light and warmth, oh boy do they go for it. As soon as they are removed from the dark cold storage facility, they go mad for chitting.
So when you get them 'fresh' they are at the end of the waiting period and off they go. Chit, chit, chit,.......

Dony · 31-03-2008, 10:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by funkyspider

However, I feel divine intervention is required for your problem

So lettuce pray

.....

....

la gran siete · 31-03-2008, 10:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by funkyspider

So lettuce pray

Sorry I'll get my coat

\
NOO, stand in a corner

la gran siete · 31-03-2008, 10:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Duncan G

Why would you want to keep it for two weeks though?

I eat a lot of salads but sometimes I buy too much therefore a lettuce that lasts two weeks gets the

JohnG · 31-03-2008, 10:56 AM

I keep my potatoes in a cool dark cupboard, maybe i should try the salad compartment in the fridge in future.

vader100 · 31-03-2008, 11:03 AM

with potatoes I keep them in a fabric bag (the bag absorbs any moisture) in a dark cupboard, they last for weeks.

All salad stuff i keep in the fridge, generally use it within a week,no problems.Mushrooms,always keep in a paper bag in the fridge,stops them going slimey.

Biggest problem I have is with fruit especially small oranges,satsumas and the like. Find some going mouldy within 2-3 days sometimes.

dan1979 · 31-03-2008, 11:23 AM

There's no great mystery here, the stuff sold in large supermarkets isn't very fresh. If you've ever grown anything yourself you'll know how long stuff can last and how much different it tastes when it's actually fresh.

Most of it is imported then transported to central depots then transported out to stores. There can be a lot of sitting around and it's a few days old by the time it gets to a shelf.

Organic won't be any different, it still has to travel. The best option you have is a farmers market, farm shops can be good but it's not guaranteed the stuff was actually grown on the farm so you have to check. I have a local street market and whilst it's still imported you definitely gain a couple of days in freshness over the big stores.

On the subject of bagged salads, you do know they're washed in water than has 20 times the chlorine level of your local swimming pool, then packed in those protective atmosphere bags to hide the fact that it's starting to rot

funkyspider · 31-03-2008, 11:37 AM

And thats all from todays womans hour. Next week we shall be discussing hair removal methods.

Not really contributing much to this thread am I.

However google came in handy, although the claim that you are filling the bag with carbon dioxide is a bit far fetched, but it might be worth the OP doing a comparison with this method and their usual storeage method - Brainiac styleee
http://www.fitsugar.com/336887

Actually, thinking about it when you buy bags of chopped lettuce from asda they are filled with air, so maybe there is something in this claim as the producers obviously do it for a reason and the only one I can think of is to improve shelf life. Only seems to be with lettuce though, other green leaf salad like spinach, rocket etc aren't.

Jenn · 31-03-2008, 11:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnG

I keep my potatoes in a cool dark cupboard, maybe i should try the salad compartment in the fridge in future.

It's not the cupboard, it's definitely the potatoes.

I have the same problem where they start chitting a few days after I've bought them. They are in a cool dark cupboard.
I know it's the potatoes because my husband grew some last year and we had about 5kg that I kept in the same cupboard and they lasted for weeks (well we ate them all before they even started to chit so they may have lasted even longer).

For salads I've started to buy the Romaine lettuce hearts. Probably not as good value for money as a whole standard lettuce but you get 2 hearts so I use one for one meal and the other for another (only two of us so one heart is plenty enough for each meal). I find they can last about a week then.

Tomatoes, I buy them in packs as they haven't been picked and put back by hundreds of customers so won't be as bruised (which makes them go off quickly).

WibXL · 31-03-2008, 11:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by funkyspider

However google came in handy, although the claim that you are filling the bag with carbon dioxide is a bit far fetched, but it might be worth the OP doing a comparison with this method and their usual storeage method - Brainiac styleee
http://www.fitsugar.com/336887

Might be ok if you live on your own but I'd prefer not have my salad breathed on by somebody else, especially not any of my family

I could see it working if your breath had very little oxygen in it but I thought that exhaled breath still had a large amount of oxygen in it due to the fact that the lungs remove very little from the air?