Butter lettuce is the perfect size for two big salads or a couple of nights of small side salads. Frisée also belongs to the radicchio/endive/chicory family, but the kind you'll find in grocery stores typically features very green, curly leaves perfect for tossing in a fresh vinaigrette. —Senior video producer Jeffrey Bloomer, A carefully composed salad is a beautiful thing, to be sure. ), What People Want from a Healer in the Midst of a Pandemic, A Middle School Math Teacher Planning Lessons and Lunch, The Columbus, OH-based Forager Who's Become a TikTok Star, A Food Justice Advocate and Mother Talks Breastfeeding and Herb Gardens, Bryant Terry's Sautéed Cabbage and Roasted Potatoes, Vivian Howard's Baked Pimento Cheese and Sausage, Ways to Use Lettuce Besides Salads and Sandwiches. For this there are no greater greens than endive, frisée (aka “curly endive”), and their bitter cousins like escarole and chicory. Lettuce, White Boston (Butterhead) (100% Heirloom/Non-Hybrid/Non-GMO) Lactuca sativa. There are bright green leaves, deep purple-red and a calico mixture of the two. Though it is true that lettuce is among of the most calorie-free foods in the garden, it contains high levels of antioxidants and dietary fiber needed for healthy immunity and digestion. It gets more flavorful the longer it soaks. Butter lettuce has a small, round, loosely formed head with soft textured leaves ranging from green to pale green in color. “It theoretically holds its nutrients for the longest amount of time,” Hunnes explains. What Are the Different Types of Lettuce Salad. All you have to do is tear the leaves into smaller pieces and you're done! Arugula makes salad something to crave rather than something to consume. Though lacking in much caloric energy like the other lettuces, it is also one of the more flavorful lettuces for a gourmet setting. Both have a soft “buttery” texture and a sweet, mild flavor. Habitually, unthinkingly, organically toss a handful of this right-on roughage with your favorite homemade vinaigrette (or into a soup or rice pilaf or whatnot—it’s all delicate enough to wilt), and any plate becomes a source of vitality and pride.—Associate editor J. Bryan Lowder. Can You Guess Your State's Most Distinctive Food ? You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io, How to Crimp Pie Crust Like a Professional. What Are the Different Types of Lettuce Salad? None. But mostly, I view edible leaves as a means to an end: nutrition, weight maintenance, general virtuousness—the kinds of salutary things a friend of mine captures in the quip, “Girl, you need a salad and nap!” It’s in that spirit that I recommend a boxed mix called “Power Greens,” comprising baby spinach, red and green chard, and baby kale. Arugula. Darker types are also much touted for their alleged health benefits, from preventing stokes and some types of cancer to boosting the mood and immunity. Slate relies on advertising to support our journalism. KALE. As we gathered the butter lettuce recipes that we found for you today, we wondered if this leafy green's versatility is the reason it has so many names: butter lettuce, Boston lettuce, Bibb lettuce -- all the same! Apparently butter lettuce is also the same as Boston lettuce, but I don’t know about all that. And to those critics who would say spinach is boring? To anyone who regularly consumes salads containing lettuce that is not kale, I ask: Do you hate nutrients? Description. It's all the same variety. Butterhead or butter lettuce goes by a handful of names. Here's another veg that goes by multiple names, including leaf chicory and Italian chicory. —Audience engagement editor Evan Mackinder, The role of a salad green is to be a sturdy matrix of crunch that can stand up to an assertive vinaigrette. Or wilts with perfection in your three-egg omelet? Bibb, on the other hand, is sweet and extra small (a head is the size of a fist)! A common misconception is that all of these lettuces are lacking in nutrients. Here’s why we buy it anyway: • The leaves have a sweet flavor that can make an amazing, beautiful salad with just a simple vinaigrette—no other toppings needed. If you value our work, please disable your ad blocker. —Science editor Susan Matthews, Are there fancier lettuces than iceberg? Part of HuffPost Food & Drink. Boston and Bibb (also called limestone) lettuce are the two most well known of the butterhead family. In essence, butter lettuce looks fancy. The others go by names like Perella red, deers tongue, Tom Thumb and Little Red Riding Hood. And if you're not a fan of the somewhat bitter taste, roasting the leaves with a little olive oil might be the way to go. I like the flavor -- it pairs well with every kind of dressing, and because the leaves are small, only needs minimal preparation. Jaclyn London, MS, RD, CDN, Nutrition Director, Food Safety Alert: Shredded Romaine Lettuce Recall, 15 Things All Dads of Daughters Should Know. Butter lettuce is a variety of green lettuce that also goes by Bibb lettuce, and is closely related to Boston lettuce. Some call it bibb or Boston lettuce. It is a member of the butterhead family, so-named based on the velvety, butter-like texture of the leaves, particularly those at the heart or internal center of the head. Butterhead lettuce: This type includes Boston and Bibb lettuces, which are characterized by a loose head and grass-green leaves. What is it? • The leaves are the perfect size for a sandwich, and they’re almost never limp or weak. That’s all there is to it. Also called rocket or Italian cress, this peppery-tasting salad green balances out lemony dressings and even goes great in pesto, on top of pizza, or stuffed in a sandwich. Within the cultivar are various other subspecies too. You'll often see it in "baby lettuce," mesclun, and spring mixes because of its tenderness. All butterhead lettuces are extremely tender, with smooth, loosely-coiled leaves. When unwashed and stored in a plastic bag in the fridge, you can keep it for up to two weeks — twice as long as most other types of lettuce. Its flavor profile is perfectly augmented by the sweetness of balsamic vinegar, particularly white balsamic, and it also pairs brilliantly with a thickly grated parmesan (the best cheese for salads). Sure. The green tend to be a little more tender, but both prove just as buttery and satisfying on the palate. We use the whole head (again, less waste). 1) Living Lettuce: Living lettuce is sold with its roots still attached, which reportedly help preserve the nutrients in the leaves by providing a constant source of moisture. Bibb, Boston, Butter… It goes by many names. All butterhead lettuces are extremely tender, with smooth, loosely-coiled leaves. All contents © 2020 The Slate Group LLC. Though lacking in much caloric energy like the other lettuces, it is also one of the more flavorful lettuces for a gourmet setting. Which means we’re really getting our money’s worth because we’re not wasting food. Any other butter/Bibb/Boston fanatics out there? This type of lettuce is rich in vitamins K, B, C and A and is an excellent source of sodium, calcium, potassium and magnesium. A head is usually a lightweight little fellow, sometimes no bigger than a grapefruit. "Fifty percent of Americans don’t eat enough fiber, nor do we consume recommended amounts of potassium, calcium, and magnesium, minerals that are found in, you guessed it, leafy greens and lettuce," she says. Let’s put an end to the glorification of greens and return to our roots: spinach.