On Jan 10, 12:11�pm, Becca > wrote:
> Bob Terwilliger wrote:
> > Miche wrote:
>
> >> Put the iceberg lettuce in the middle of a teatowel. �Pull the corners
> >> together. �Go outside and whirl the towel around (big arm circles).
> >> Quickest and most efficient way to get the water out that I have ever
> >> used.
>
> > About four years ago, I wrote this:
>
> > Once when I was on temporary assignment to Virginia I had to do without a
> > salad spinner, the corporate apartment *did* have lots of clean bed linens.
> > You can put wet salad greens into a pillowcase, take it outside, and swing
> > it around your head to dry the greens; I think it actually works BETTER
> > than
> > a salad spinner. (Lots more centrifugal force.) �Who cares what the
> > neighbors think when they see you whirling a greens-laden pillowcase
> > around?
> > If you see them watching, you can act like you're doing some kind of
> > martial
> > arts training: �Stamp and kick your feet, swing the pillowcase in
> > figure-eights, and every now and then belt out a hearty "Hi-YAH!" �You'll
> > soon see them treating you with new respect. :-)
>
> > Bob
>
> In 1998, I wrote this, and it was a response to Miche:
>
> Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking
> From: Becca >
> Date: 1998/08/30
> Subject: Salad spinner, salad spinner, salad spinner
>
> Miche and Dave wrote:
>
> �> Here's how I dry lettuce:
>
> �> Take washed leaves and place them in the centre of a clean tea-cloth
> (dish
> �> towel). �Pull the corners together. �Go outside or someplace you can
> �> safely throw water around. �Spin your arm around and around so that the
> �> water is thrown off the lettuce by centrifugal force (think windmill
> �> here).
>
> �> Done.
>
> �> Miche
>
> I did it that way, until disaster struck during a dinner party. �One
> corner of the towel slipped from my grasp and salad greens went in a
> beautiful arc across the room, a big leaf of lettuce hitting a guest
> square in the middle of her forehead. �After that, I picked up one of
> the cheapo plastic crank-type spinners, and I like it. �I also use it to
> spin water out of canned tuna, it does a great job of that.

Except for the few outer leaves there's no reason to wash iceberg
lettuce. Iceberg grows from the center out... there is no more reason
to wash the inner portion of a head of iceberg than there is to wash
the inner portion of a head of cabbage. Banging the core out and then
filling the head with water is dumb. When tight headed leafy
vegetable is growing even the heaviest rain doesn't enter the head...
it's actually cleaner inside than before you wash it. When you slice
an apple or orange do you wash the slices, of course not, well it's
just as inane to wash inside a head of iceberg lettuce.