Storing Lettuce

I buy the head of lettuce, wash it, tear the leaves and use a spinner to dry, I also store the lettuce in the spinner and keep it in the fridge, and it can last 2 weeks, I LOVE it! The spinner does take up some room in the fridge, but I ALWAYS have fresh, clean, great tasting lettuce ready to use, it's awesome!

The pre-cut bags of lettuce spoil so fast and don't seem fresh so I buy
a head of lettuce and peel off layers when I need to make a salad.
You can even buy bibb lettuce and other kinds to change it up.
Then add all of your own fixings (get creative: corn, red peppers, strawberries, spinach, cranberries, sliced almonds etc.)

Well, usually the salad mix isn't the freshest to begin with, the additional handling and processing can do a number on it, so it starts to rot earlier.
I also love Costco, but I only buy durable produce there or things I am going to freeze. Lettuce is just not worth it, unless your family goes through A LOT.
If you must buy it there I would consider switching to romaine hearts (I think they come in a 6 pack). I usually buy those as three packs at the store. I take them out of the bag, give them a rinse and wrap each in a moist paper towel. They usually last for about two weeks in the crisper drawer.

Pre-cut lettuce dries out faster than full heads because the leaves lose moisture from every cut side. I buy lettuce at farm stands and farmers markets in season, cut out the core for compact heads or strip whole leaves from other heads like Romaine and leaf lettuce. I wash in veggie wash, rinse thorough and dry on a tea towel. If I'm in a hurry, I spread the leaves out on a clean towel, and roll it up loosely to get the excess water out. Or I spin then in a salad spinner. I store the DRY leaves in a green veggie bag and it lasts well. I use some of the leaves in sandwiches and the rest in salads. The few minutes it takes to rip up leaves for a salad is more than offset by the frustration of disposing of a whole rotting pre-cut bag! It's only cheaper if you use it all. I also have a compost bin so at least I am recycling things into my garden!

buy head's of lettuce! hit the core on the counter to crush it. Then pull the core out (DO NOT CUT IT!) Run cold water in the core hole until its filled with water, turn it upside down on a towel to let the access water run out. Store the damp head in a bag or a sealable container with a wet paper towel. If you tear the leaves it will also last longer than cutting it with a knife when getting what you need to use.

Don't buy it at Sam's either!! We eat lots of salads in our house, and what usually stays freshest the longest is when I buy a head of lettuce and store it open in the fridge. I usually cut it up as I need it. If I end up making a big salad and eating off it all week, it seems to go bad faster. I always heard if you cut it, it will go bad faster. Try buying some of your produce from Aldi, they tend to be way cheaper, and I find the quality is very good too.

Bagged lettuce will spoil quicker because it has been pre cut. Put the salad in a ziplocbag along with a paper towel and leave the bag slighly unsealed.

What will last a lot longer is if you get a head of lettuce and rip off the end(root nub) and then put that in a ziploc with paper towel and leave slightly unsealed.

Put it to the test...do a little experiment. We had a produce man come and talk to my woman's group and he gave us simply produce tips for preserving.

I use a vacuum sealer container. Not the soft bags, but the hard containers. I buy the big box of lettuce and then split it into thirds. One third is kept in the box it came in, the other two-thirds into the vacuum containers. I can get over a week longer by storing them this way. Not sure how much after that, since we've usually eaten it by then.

Diane B. has given spot-on advice!