🔗 Share this article

Modeled after a well-known New York eatery, the groundbreaking technique converts usually thrown-out external lettuce leaves into a luxurious herbaceous emulsion. This is a brilliant way to reduce food waste while making a condiment flavorful and versatile.

Why Repurpose External Salad Greens?

These outer greens are the plant’s natural wrapping, guarding the tender inner lettuce. Although recycling vegetable scraps is a fundamental zero-waste habit, finding creative uses for these parts is even more beneficial. Turning surplus food into fertile compost avoids landfill accumulation, where it may release greenhouse gases, which is a powerful environmental concern.

This is rather innovative if you consider over it: produce decomposes and transforms into that perfect soil to nourish more crops, thus closing this loop and honoring nature’s cycle of growth.

Yet, with over thirty percent surplus food getting made than required, using precious ingredients efficiently is crucial. Minimizing leftovers not only conserves money but also supports the more sustainable lifestyle.

This Herb-Infused Emulsion Method

The adaptable recipe functions with any variety of lettuce and nuts. By using one whole egg, you eliminate the hassle to repurpose an leftover white. The result is an smooth, rich dressing that works beautifully with salads, grilled vegetables, seared chicken, pasta, or rice.

Yields 2

For the Green “Mayonnaise” (Yields about 200 grams)

• 100 grams unsalted butter
• 50g outer salad greens of two romaine or butter lettuce, rinsed and dried
• 20 grams shelled salted nuts – light-colored nuts like blanched almonds assist keep the bright green, but any nuts will do
• One medium whole egg

To Make the Side

• Two romaine or butter heads, split lengthways
• Cold-pressed olive oil, as needed
• Fresh lime juice or white-wine vinegar, as desired
• 1 small bunch fresh greens (like chervil), sprigs picked intact, stalks thinly minced

Instructions

First making the emulsion. Heat the butter in one medium saucepan, toss in the external lettuce leaves, cover and wilt for approximately a minute, stirring once or twice, till they have wilted. Pour this contents into a container of an immersion processor, include the pistachios and egg, then process until smooth. If needed, incorporate extra nuts to get a thick texture. Store in a airtight jar in the fridge for as long as 3 days.

To prepare the salad, drizzle each lettuce half with olive oil and acid, then season liberally. Coat with one zigzag pattern of the herb emulsion, then scatter with the greens. Arrange on two dishes and serve right away.