Guest guest Posted April 9, 2009 Report Share Posted April 9, 2009 Hi, everyone - I've been juicing a ton these days and have been loving it. The problem I have is I would love to be able to keep my produce fresh and crisp for more than a day or two. Going to the grocery store every other day is not my idea of happiness! So I'm looking for methods that prolong freshness in fruits and veggies, for example, do those green plastic produce drawer bags work? Is there a more sustainable product anyone knows of? I don't like buying plastic, not to mention disposables. I'd love any and all advice. Thank you! Marla Rose Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 9, 2009 Report Share Posted April 9, 2009 Hi Marla, Farmers' markets in Chicago start in about 4 weeks; local produce always lasts longer. I have found that the produce from Costco, of all places, tends to be the freshest, followed by Trader Joes. Robin --- On Thu, 4/9/09, Marla Rose <marla wrote: Marla Rose <marla Keeping veggies fresh: advice sought... Thursday, April 9, 2009, 9:04 AM Hi, everyone - I've been juicing a ton these days and have been loving it. The problem I have is I would love to be able to keep my produce fresh and crisp for more than a day or two. Going to the grocery store every other day is not my idea of happiness! So I'm looking for methods that prolong freshness in fruits and veggies, for example, do those green plastic produce drawer bags work? Is there a more sustainable product anyone knows of? I don't like buying plastic, not to mention disposables. I'd love any and all advice. Thank you! Marla Rose Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 9, 2009 Report Share Posted April 9, 2009 For greens, I rinse them and then wrap in a clean flour sack type towel. I just picked up a cloth bag called a Greens Keeper that is basically the same thing (because I got tired of my other towels sometimes getting stained from the juice from spinach and such). With the kitchen towels, if I let the lettuces drain a lot so they weren't dripping anymore, I would dampen the towel a little before wrapping them in it. WIth the Greens Keeper bag, it's not as 'thirsty' as my towels, so I have to just let them go in fairly wet, but not soaking, or else the bag gets soaked, I just blot it on another towel if it gets too wet. Basically, you rinse the veggies, let some water drain off so you don't have huge puddles coming off of them, and the moisture that is left on them gets onto the cloth. It kind of self regulates after that to keep it crisp, but not soggy and icky (like spinach seems to like to do). If the towel dries out, you can just wet, wring out and re-wrap the greens. Missie On Thu, Apr 9, 2009 at 9:04 AM, Marla Rose <marla wrote: > > > Hi, everyone - > > I've been juicing a ton these days and have been loving it. The problem I > have is I would love to be able to keep my produce fresh and crisp for more > than a day or two. Going to the grocery store every other day is not my idea > of happiness! So I'm looking for methods that prolong freshness in fruits > and veggies, for example, do those green plastic produce drawer bags work? > Is there a more sustainable product anyone knows of? I don't like buying > plastic, not to mention disposables. > > I'd love any and all advice. Thank you! > > Marla Rose > > -- http://mszzzi.zoomshare.com http://www.flickr.com/photos/mszzzi/ ~~~~~(m-.-)m Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 9, 2009 Report Share Posted April 9, 2009 Hi Marla, We get most of our veggies from a local community-supported agriculture (CSA) program, so it's really fresh when we get it - that seems to be key. Also, some stores like Trader Joe's note what day their produce was packaged, so you can get the newer ones. And my other trick is not wash veggies before you put them in the fridge - moisture starts the decomposition process immediately. You can also change the humidity level in your crisper drawers in some fridges, you could try turning the humidity down a bit. And I have some cloth bags to store veggies in, but not sure if they work since I haven't tried them yet - I keep using them to replace plastic bags at the grocery store for veggies and bulk nuts and stuff, so they're never available for fridge use. I should do that someday. :-) Best of luck! Lorraine On Behalf Of Marla Rose Thursday, April 09, 2009 7:04 AM Keeping veggies fresh: advice sought... Hi, everyone - I've been juicing a ton these days and have been loving it. The problem I have is I would love to be able to keep my produce fresh and crisp for more than a day or two. Going to the grocery store every other day is not my idea of happiness! So I'm looking for methods that prolong freshness in fruits and veggies, for example, do those green plastic produce drawer bags work? Is there a more sustainable product anyone knows of? I don't like buying plastic, not to mention disposables. I'd love any and all advice. Thank you! Marla Rose Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 9, 2009 Report Share Posted April 9, 2009 Lorraine - Thanks so much for the ideas. I will check the humidity level. I also do a CSA and farmer's markets but live in a climate with a shorter growing period: there are year-round CSAs, but they get their produce from pretty much anywhere. It is much easier here in the warmer seasons. Also, thanks for the advice on not washing until using the produce: I don't do that ('cause I'm lazy, I guess) but that's good to know. Thanks again, Marla > Hi Marla, > We get most of our veggies from a local community-supported agriculture > (CSA) program, so it's really fresh when we get it - that seems to be > key. Also, some stores like Trader Joe's note what day their produce > was packaged, so you can get the newer ones. And my other trick is not > wash veggies before you put them in the fridge - moisture starts the > decomposition process immediately. You can also change the humidity > level in your crisper drawers in some fridges, you could try turning the > humidity down a bit. And I have some cloth bags to store veggies in, > but not sure if they work since I haven't tried them yet - I keep using > them to replace plastic bags at the grocery store for veggies and bulk > nuts and stuff, so they're never available for fridge use. I should do > that someday. :-) > Best of luck! > Lorraine > > > On > Behalf Of Marla Rose > Thursday, April 09, 2009 7:04 AM > > Keeping veggies fresh: advice sought... > > > > > > Hi, everyone - > > I've been juicing a ton these days and have been loving it. The problem > I > have is I would love to be able to keep my produce fresh and crisp for > more > than a day or two. Going to the grocery store every other day is not my > idea > of happiness! So I'm looking for methods that prolong freshness in > fruits > and veggies, for example, do those green plastic produce drawer bags > work? > Is there a more sustainable product anyone knows of? I don't like buying > plastic, not to mention disposables. > > I'd love any and all advice. Thank you! > > Marla Rose > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 9, 2009 Report Share Posted April 9, 2009 Robin, Oh, yeah, I'm all over the farmer's markets in the summer. Oak Park's starts two weeks earlier than in the past, I think. I don't buy much from TJ because they insist on wrapping everything in the dreaded plastic. Thanks! Marla > Hi Marla, > > Farmers' markets in Chicago start in about 4 weeks; local produce always lasts > longer. I have found that the produce from Costco, of all places, tends to be > the freshest, followed by Trader Joes. > > Robin > > --- On Thu, 4/9/09, Marla Rose <marla wrote: > > Marla Rose <marla > Keeping veggies fresh: advice sought... > > Thursday, April 9, 2009, 9:04 AM > > Hi, everyone - > > I've been juicing a ton these days and have been loving it. The problem I > have is I would love to be able to keep my produce fresh and crisp for more > than a day or two. Going to the grocery store every other day is not my idea > of happiness! So I'm looking for methods that prolong freshness in fruits > and veggies, for example, do those green plastic produce drawer bags work? > Is there a more sustainable product anyone knows of? I don't like buying > plastic, not to mention disposables. > > I'd love any and all advice. Thank you! > > Marla Rose > > > > > > > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 9, 2009 Report Share Posted April 9, 2009 I found it at the Dominicks near us, I think they were near the organic produce, or somewhere in that area.For years I just used clean kitchen towels. Missie On Thu, Apr 9, 2009 at 1:39 PM, Marla Rose <marla wrote: > > > Thanks, Missie! > > Where did you get your Greens Keeper? > > M > >> For greens, I rinse them and then wrap in a clean flour sack type >> towel. I just picked up a cloth bag called a Greens Keeper that is >> basically the same thing (because I got tired of my other towels >> sometimes getting stained from the juice from spinach and such). With >> the kitchen towels, if I let the lettuces drain a lot so they weren't >> dripping anymore, I would dampen the towel a little before wrapping >> them in it. WIth the Greens Keeper bag, it's not as 'thirsty' as my >> towels, so I have to just let them go in fairly wet, but not soaking, >> or else the bag gets soaked, I just blot it on another towel if it >> gets too wet. >> >> Basically, you rinse the veggies, let some water drain off so you >> don't have huge puddles coming off of them, and the moisture that is >> left on them gets onto the cloth. It kind of self regulates after that >> to keep it crisp, but not soggy and icky (like spinach seems to like >> to do). If the towel dries out, you can just wet, wring out and >> re-wrap the greens. >> >> Missie >> >> >> >> On Thu, Apr 9, 2009 at 9:04 AM, Marla Rose <marla wrote: >>> >>> >>> Hi, everyone - >>> >>> I've been juicing a ton these days and have been loving it. The problem I >>> have is I would love to be able to keep my produce fresh and crisp for >>> more >>> than a day or two. Going to the grocery store every other day is not my >>> idea >>> of happiness! So I'm looking for methods that prolong freshness in fruits >>> and veggies, for example, do those green plastic produce drawer bags >>> work? >>> Is there a more sustainable product anyone knows of? I don't like buying >>> plastic, not to mention disposables. >>> >>> I'd love any and all advice. Thank you! >>> >>> Marla Rose >>> >>> >> >> > > -- http://mszzzi.zoomshare.com http://www.flickr.com/photos/mszzzi/ ~~~~~(m-.-)m Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 9, 2009 Report Share Posted April 9, 2009 I had another thought. Why don't you freeze them? They will hold the nutrients and last longer. --- On Thu, 4/9/09, Missie <mszzzi wrote: Missie <mszzzi Re: Keeping veggies fresh: advice sought... Thursday, April 9, 2009, 2:42 PM I found it at the Dominicks near us, I think they were near the organic produce, or somewhere in that area.For years I just used clean kitchen towels. Missie On Thu, Apr 9, 2009 at 1:39 PM, Marla Rose <marla (AT) veganstreet (DOT) com> wrote: > > > Thanks, Missie! > > Where did you get your Greens Keeper? > > M > >> For greens, I rinse them and then wrap in a clean flour sack type >> towel. I just picked up a cloth bag called a Greens Keeper that is >> basically the same thing (because I got tired of my other towels >> sometimes getting stained from the juice from spinach and such). With >> the kitchen towels, if I let the lettuces drain a lot so they weren't >> dripping anymore, I would dampen the towel a little before wrapping >> them in it. WIth the Greens Keeper bag, it's not as 'thirsty' as my >> towels, so I have to just let them go in fairly wet, but not soaking, >> or else the bag gets soaked, I just blot it on another towel if it >> gets too wet. >> >> Basically, you rinse the veggies, let some water drain off so you >> don't have huge puddles coming off of them, and the moisture that is >> left on them gets onto the cloth. It kind of self regulates after that >> to keep it crisp, but not soggy and icky (like spinach seems to like >> to do). If the towel dries out, you can just wet, wring out and >> re-wrap the greens. >> >> Missie >> >> >> >> On Thu, Apr 9, 2009 at 9:04 AM, Marla Rose <marla (AT) veganstreet (DOT) com> wrote: >>> >>> >>> Hi, everyone - >>> >>> I've been juicing a ton these days and have been loving it. The problem I >>> have is I would love to be able to keep my produce fresh and crisp for >>> more >>> than a day or two. Going to the grocery store every other day is not my >>> idea >>> of happiness! So I'm looking for methods that prolong freshness in fruits >>> and veggies, for example, do those green plastic produce drawer bags >>> work? >>> Is there a more sustainable product anyone knows of? I don't like buying >>> plastic, not to mention disposables. >>> >>> I'd love any and all advice. Thank you! >>> >>> Marla Rose >>> >>> >> >> > > -- http://mszzzi. zoomshare. com http://www.flickr. com/photos/ mszzzi/ ~~~~~(m-.-)m Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 9, 2009 Report Share Posted April 9, 2009 Hey, Robin - I've thought about that but a) our freezer is perpetually at zero vacancy and b) I think this would work fine with juicing fruits but I'm not sure about juicing greens and such. I also do use them within a few days and don't know if I want to deal with defrosting. I will look into it, though. Thanks again, Marla > I had another thought. Why don't you freeze them? They will hold the > nutrients and last longer. > > --- On Thu, 4/9/09, Missie <mszzzi wrote: > > Missie <mszzzi > Re: Keeping veggies fresh: advice sought... > > Thursday, April 9, 2009, 2:42 PM > > I found it at the Dominicks near us, I think they were near the > organic produce, or somewhere in that area.For years I just used clean > kitchen towels. > > Missie > > On Thu, Apr 9, 2009 at 1:39 PM, Marla Rose <marla (AT) veganstreet (DOT) com> wrote: >> >> >> Thanks, Missie! >> >> Where did you get your Greens Keeper? >> >> M >> >>> For greens, I rinse them and then wrap in a clean flour sack type >>> towel. I just picked up a cloth bag called a Greens Keeper that is >>> basically the same thing (because I got tired of my other towels >>> sometimes getting stained from the juice from spinach and such). With >>> the kitchen towels, if I let the lettuces drain a lot so they weren't >>> dripping anymore, I would dampen the towel a little before wrapping >>> them in it. WIth the Greens Keeper bag, it's not as 'thirsty' as my >>> towels, so I have to just let them go in fairly wet, but not soaking, >>> or else the bag gets soaked, I just blot it on another towel if it >>> gets too wet. >>> >>> Basically, you rinse the veggies, let some water drain off so you >>> don't have huge puddles coming off of them, and the moisture that is >>> left on them gets onto the cloth. It kind of self regulates after that >>> to keep it crisp, but not soggy and icky (like spinach seems to like >>> to do). If the towel dries out, you can just wet, wring out and >>> re-wrap the greens. >>> >>> Missie >>> >>> >>> >>> On Thu, Apr 9, 2009 at 9:04 AM, Marla Rose <marla (AT) veganstreet (DOT) com> wrote: >>>> >>>> >>>> Hi, everyone - >>>> >>>> I've been juicing a ton these days and have been loving it. The problem I >>>> have is I would love to be able to keep my produce fresh and crisp for >>>> more >>>> than a day or two. Going to the grocery store every other day is not my >>>> idea >>>> of happiness! So I'm looking for methods that prolong freshness in fruits >>>> and veggies, for example, do those green plastic produce drawer bags >>>> work? >>>> Is there a more sustainable product anyone knows of? I don't like buying >>>> plastic, not to mention disposables. >>>> >>>> I'd love any and all advice. Thank you! >>>> >>>> Marla Rose >>>> >>>> >>> >>> >> >> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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