As summer time approaches, Brits are gravitating towards a fresh and crisp leafy green salad, but there's nothing worse than going into the fridge and finding a soggy or wilted mess in a bag. The shelf life for cut or torn lettuce is usually three to five days, but there is a simple trick that can make your greens last longer. 

Healthy living coach Nina Cherie Franklin, PhD, also known as That Salad Lady, shared that before storing your greens in the fridge, ensure that they are completely dry, reported All Recipes. The dried lettuce should then be placed in a sealed plastic bag or container to ensure freshness for up to ten days. The healthy living coach further explained how to ensure your lettuce remains dry. 

The coach suggests placing paper towels between layers of leaves to prevent browning, wilting, and spoilage. After testing out three methods to store lettuce, a reporter at The Kitchn said the container and paper towel solution had winning results.

They said: "Storing the greens in a container with paper towels was definitely the winner here. Being able to store tender greens for up to 10 days is really convenient and will allow me to buy bigger amounts, saving me both time and money since larger bags are usually a better value.

"The hard sides of the container really protect the greens from getting moved around or crushed like they would be in bags, and the paper towels help to absorb the excess moisture. And in my experience, the salad sold in clamshells always seems to last longer than those sold in bags, echoing what happened here."

Method 

Line a storage container with paper towels, then place the lettuce in an even layer on top. Cover it with another layer of paper towels before putting on the lid.

The reporter went on to add: "I had plenty of space in the box, so the lettuce wasn’t jam-packed in there. A hard-sided box also protects the leaves from getting knocked around or bruised by other foods they might sit against in the refrigerator.

The healthy living coach at All Recipes also said never to store salad on the bottom or back of the fridge. Salad makers should store them on the top shelves to prevent other foods from dripping onto them.

You should also avoid the back of the fridge. The colder temperatures can actually "freeze your lettuce and ruin your salad."