Does anyone have any tips on keeping veggies fresh

[prism_wolf]

...for longer periods of time? We can only go into the city to get a variety of greens every 2-3 weeks..... thanks.

Posted for Ambrosia in a new thread.

[prism_wolf]

That's a tough one. Usually...the absolute tops for keeping food is about two weeks. This involves keeping all the foods separate. Mustard greens go bad faster no matter what you do. Trim the stems and let the greens soak in a flower vase overnight,,,like you would do for cut roses. This will add some life...and moisture. Make sure all items are dry before refrigerating and place paper towels between the layers, changing them out every day or possibly every other day. Some people have said they had really good luck using a salad spinner, but I've never used one so personal experience ain't happening...;-) . Cutting your greens daily will help. If you need to cut for at least several days at a time, use a very sharp knife. The cleaner the cut the longer they last.

Those are the tips I know of. If you have room inside...or even a small garden area outside...I strongly suggest growing your own. Inside you could grow them all year long! You can use the expired UVB lights that needed replacing. They make excellent grow lights. Here's a link to help with ways how:
groups.yahoo.com/group/ExoticPetsGardening

[Brandon]

great idea on what to do with those old uvb's!!!! (Retired but still useful!)

[tovasshi]

Sometimes you can fill up a tperware container with veggies and filled the rest with water and stash it in the fridge. Change the water every week. Depending on the veggies in it, you can use the "broth" in place of water in your iguana's water dish. The veggies may get a bit waterlogged, which can be good if you have a dehydrated iguana or can't be sure if they drink water out the dish. You can also mix in their suppliments in the water so it get soaked up by the veggies.

Its best to experiment which veggies handle this kind of treatment, some handle it longer than others and some can't handle it at all.

[Tengtou]

You can wrap the veggies in bath towels and put them in the fridge. The towel help gets all the excess moisture out so it doesnt go bad. So they can add a weeks to the lifespan. Just be sure to soak the veggies in water every couple of days.

[prism_wolf]

Excellent tips everyone!

[chefwallybear]

You can also put the root end in icewater in the fridge. Wrap a wet papertowel oround the top and store. if youchange the ice and water/ towel daily you will achive max life of any produce. Yhis is what i do at my restaurant

[prism_wolf]

You're exactly what we needed! A real Chef to tell us how to get the max out of them. Thanks!

When you say ice water...do you just mean water that has been stored in the frig? Or do you put ice cubes in it and then put it in the frig?

[chefwallybear]

Put ice cubes right in the water. it ensures that the water stays @ exactly 32 degree.

[deanie]

So, if you would take this situation and work with it, would this also work for stuff that has been in the store for a couple of day's, leaves are a little limp [not trashed, but a little soft] put the base in the water and it will revive it?
That would have a great effect on how often I would have to shop and how much I would have to throw away.
woosusre!!!!, I am going to give this a try :0)

[IguanaKing]

Deanie, I would say that depends on why the leaves are limp. Many times, the leaves on greens in the grocery store are limp because the temperature of the produce coolers is too low. Once those cell walls in the leaves burst due to freezing, the plant is pretty much done. It won't hurt to give it a try though, because they may just be dried out as well.

[chefwallybear]

Most of the time the ol ice water trick will bring back herbs so try it and see what happens. Also KInda a off topic tip you can put cut lemon in the ice water and whatever you put in the water for revival/presurvation will take on the lemon flavor. I like to do it with with parsley im gonna garnish with.

[Tailwhip]

Keep your iguanas food in the fridge in an open Tupperware and mist once daily. "(Same way the do it at the grocery store)" If you bag you cant have it wet or it will make your room smell god awful when put out

[aimee1]

I saw this info-mercial on tv not too long ago for these Deb Meyer "green bags" They come in different sizes. You can buy them off ebay, that's what I did and I think that they keep my fresh fruits and veggies good for a few days longer, not much but they arn't expensive and they can be re used like 10 times each. It might be worth a try for anyone under your circumstances.

[petergunga]

I used to buy groceries for my ig and and make 2 or 3 huge salads. I would put the salads in separate tupperwares in the fridge. I found that they went bad after like a week and I would end up throwing a ton away. Then I tried chefwallybear's suggestion and it is fantastic. The premade salad thing is nice and convenient, but it really impares the vegetables' ability to stay fresh.