Eating a salad every day is a good thing, but sometimes you need a break from iceberg, red or green leaf, or romaine lettuces. Baby lettuces, also known as mesclun mixtures, are a good alternative, more delicate in texture and robust in flavor.
Within the potpourri of a salad mix, you’ll find young leaves of arugula, mizuna, oak leaf, tango, curly cress, candy apple red lettuce, red Russian kale, red mustard, tatsoi, frisee, radicchio, mache, lollo rosa, shingiku, brunia, komatsuna and other varieties, depending on the farmer.
Each mix is a little different, each one offering a textural and flavor profile that is unique. It’s always fun to pick each leaf from a mix and taste it to experience the flavor of individual items.
Always buy baby lettuces when they are really fresh. They are delicate and wither away in a few days, so locally grown ones have the edge here. Rinse in a bowl of water, never under a running tap that can bruise baby leaves. Dry them well; excess water will promote quick deterioration. Wrap them in a towel and store in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for up to a week.
What’s great about a salad of baby greens is that you need nothing more than a light dressing to enjoy its tasty goodness. Sometimes just a little olive oil and salt is all it takes for optimum flavor. Mesclun mixtures tend to wilt quickly when coated with dressings, so it’s best to dress them just before serving.
Nalo Greens is one of the best-known Oahu-grown mesclun mixtures. J.A. Farm and Hirabara Farm from Hawaii island are good, too, as are those from smaller farms throughout the state.
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Hawaii food writer Joan Namkoong offers a weekly tidbit on fresh seasonal products, many of them locally grown.
