Are bagged salads really so unhealthy?

[Kumquatsquash]

I eat a bag of salad a day. Those huge family sized bags from Lidl and Aldi. I've just read that because the leaves are washed and gassed with chlorine that they have almost no nutritional value. It also said they contain far more pesticides and preservatives to keep the leaves looking fresh for longer. Then there's the plastic bag they come in, the water used to wash them, the carbon footprint or transport, etc

It's almost impossible to eat healthy nowadays. I gave up almond milk because the industry is killing off the bees. All vegetables that don't cost a fortune are grown in artificial light and sprayed with round up apparently. On a positive note, if I have to start growing my own organic fruit and veg I'll finally lose weight as I can kill plants by just looking at them.

That's a US article, no? Mot sure chlorinated food is allowed in uk yet.

January isn't the season for lettuce. Try a winter slaw or kale leaves, or roasted root veg.

For better quality try a fruit and veg delivery box. Lots of wholesalers are doing this during lockdown. Or oddbox.

I know you said that you are not blessed with green fingers but could you start small and see if even one lettuce makes it? I am also good at killing things but I grew a few herbs on my window sill last year that didn't die so not all hope is lost.

@Kumquatsquash

I just googled and saw those Duchy salad bags. We don't have a Waitrose round these parts, and even if we did I couldn't afford them!

I guess I'll have to develop a taste for turnips and swede. I did try growing my own cherry tomatoes last summer. I really recommend it if you'd like to waste £100 and about 15 hours of labour for a handful of mediocre tomatoes.

This was our experience- 1st attempt, money thrown at grow bags, greenhouses. I expected more given the beautiful summer we had, but no, 5 piddly green tomatoes

Try a farmers’ market or a delivery box scheme — seasonal, much less packaging and local, and you can check what’s organic or not. We’re eating from a friend of a friend with a smallholding who usually supplies restaurants but is delivering locally now. (Admittedly, it’s not the most inspiring time of year...)

We don't have bagged salad in the winter as we get most of our veg from a veg box. We have cucumber, tomato, coleslaw, peppers, grated carrot through the winter (some from Spain yes but easier to ship).
They do their own bagged salad in the summer. We do still wash it as the odd slug comes along for the ride.

Oh and I recommend perpetual spinach as an easy grow winter green.

Buy organic lettuce (romaine, litttle gem etc), the taste is far superior.

I agree. You can't eat nuffink these days without someone whipping the joy out of it.

Are salad leaves grown inside or outside? (I'm totally clueless but willing and interested in growing something!)

We make a salad from diced red and white cabbage, cress, iceberg. Cress is easy to grow on the windowsill.

We grow lots of cherry tomatos but they just don't have the same flavour as the expensive supermarket ones. Taste insiped but yet our garden it hot enough for grapes.

Of course they still have nutritional value. This site at the moment

As coach Greg said while pouring some sugar free syrup over his salad it may give you cancer, but at least you'll die shredded.

You’re buying it bagged though .... buy the lettuce and make your own. Cos lettuce is pretty nice I think...Sainsbury’s Taste the difference cherry tomatoes are delicious. Yes they all come in plastic from the supermarket but you won’t be going through one a day. A better alternative would be to buy what’s actually in season now - kale etc and make soups or winter salads with those. We have a veggie box from Riverford who have been stellar throughout all the lockdowns.

It's not the best time of year for veg but savoy and pointed cabbage are both lovely, seasonal Nd home grown as well as cauliflower and, dare I say it, Brussel sprouts. Probably kale, too, but I can't stand the stuff. All budget friendly, too, and definitely grown outdoors, in mud.

Don't give up on your salad leaves, if you enjoy them, but don't rely on them as your be all and end all.

@Palavah

That's a US article, no? Mot sure chlorinated food is allowed in uk yet.

January isn't the season for lettuce. Try a winter slaw or kale leaves, or roasted root veg.

For better quality try a fruit and veg delivery box. Lots of wholesalers are doing this during lockdown. Or oddbox.

I think bagged salad in the UK is chlorinated to preserve it. The problem with chlorinated chicken from the US is not the chlorine per se it's the poor welfare standards and hygiene that make it necessary.

Oh, and leeks. Love them.

I’m not keen on leafy type salad, don’t like iceberg, etc.

I try and make alternative salad . So yesterday I chopped up a load of raw broccoli really small, grated a carrot, chucked in a tin of sweet corn and mixed in some coconut yoghurt. Was really nice.

I do another with pomegranate seeds, quinoa, chopped up peppers and mint leaves and lemon juice.

You can grow salad leaves outside, but the slugs love them.

They do better on trays on the windowsill IMO. A good starting point is that in spring the shops often sell “cut it yourself” salad leaves in growing trays that are ready to cut.

What so people do with swede? All I do is various mash.

@Kumquatsquash

In season you can get lots of different whole lettuces even in supermarkets (decent sized ones eg Sainsbury's) but it's winter. Farmer's markets are your best bet in summer or grow your own.

@Icenii

Swede I put in stew mostly, otherwise mashed alone, sometimes mixed with potatoes for a lower calorie mash to top shepherds pie

I gave up almond milk because the industry is killing off the bees
You can buy organic almonds and make your own if you have a blender or food processor. Very easy and far superior to any of the cartons of almond milk. I know organic almonds are expensive but you only need a handful to make the equivalent of a carton.

My DS was a dish washer in an Italian restaurant. He said that when the side salad came back into the kitchen untouched they would scrape it back into the salad container 🤢🤮

@Icenii

What so people do with swede? All I do is various mash.

Boil it with carrots and mash it with butter and black pepper 😋