Claudia is a “Good Mom.”\u00a0 She buys spinach for her family because it’s so tender, tasty and full of nutrients.\u00a0 But getting her family to help wash it is like climbing Mt. Everest.\u00a0 Week after week, spinach goes to waste in their household.<\/p>\n
Ray doesn’t like washing spinach any more than Claudia’s crew.\u00a0 But neither will he shell out the extra dollars for the pre-washed variety.<\/p>\n
So even though Ray and Claudia’s family all like spinach and would love to eat more, they end up with none. Not a happy ending in spring, when spinach is the star of the seasonal show.\u00a0 What to do?<\/p>\n
Getting Past the Money Thing<\/span><\/strong> The money thing is understandable.\u00a0 You’re standing in the vegetable aisle.\u00a0 Bunch spinach is $1.99.\u00a0 Next to it are packages of pre-washed spinach for $2.99.\u00a0 In the context of the grocery store, a dollar is a lot.\u00a0 So right then and there, it seems foolhardy to pay for the packaged spinach.<\/p>\n That would be fine if we went ahead and bought the $1.99 bunch.\u00a0\u00a0 But all too often we don’t, which is why it’s worth examining the money thing a little more closely.<\/p>\n From the safe perch of this blog, well outside the grocery store context, the perspective is a little clearer:\u00a0 \u00a0It’s a dollar we’re talking about<\/em>.\u00a0 The difference between eating spinach and reaping its many benefits and not eating it at all is a single dollar. Maybe you eat spinach two or three times a month.\u00a0\u00a0 That’s $3 for the entire month.\u00a0 Need I say anything about the cost of a single latte?<\/p>\n The 5-Minute Thing<\/strong><\/span> Assuming you can face down the money thing, there’s another big problem with the pre-washed spinach:\u00a0 its packaging.\u00a0 What happens to that plastic shoe box after fulfilling its single job of delivering your pre-washed spinach?\u00a0 Of course we can “just throw it away.”\u00a0 But as Julia Butterfly Hill<\/a> so simply and poignantly puts it:\u00a0 “There really is no such place as “away.” \u00a0This is what keeps Claudia from reaching for the packaged spinach at the store\u2014and what leaves her with a washing problem and rotting spinach.<\/p>\n It’s no surprise that no one in her family wants to wash spinach.\u00a0 It’s inconvenient and takes time and in our frenzied culture, that is sufficient cause for panic if not disdain.\u00a0 But just like the money thing, it helps to stop and think:\u00a0 just how much time is at stake?<\/p>\n I forced myself to quantify my time fears recently while staring at a leftover plastic spinach box.\u00a0 Just how much does <\/em>it take to wash a bunch of spinach?\u00a0 Out of curiosity, we timed it for the Washing Spinach video for this month’s Vegetable-a-Month Club.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0[[LINK]]<\/p>\n Spinach washing takes 5 minutes. \u00a0\u00a0So we’re talking about 5 minutes<\/em>.<\/p>\n There’s some real data instead of just more vague time fears. \u00a0So when I am torn between packaged and bunch spinach I ask myself, can I afford 5 minutes out of 16 waking hours for clean air?\u00a0 Are pure water and fewer toxins in our dirt worth 5 minutes?<\/p>\n The Best of Both Worlds<\/span><\/strong> Happily, there is a solution that takes some of the environmental sting out of buying pre-washed spinach.\u00a0 Some stores have bulk bins of pre-washed spinach.\u00a0 The price isn’t much better than the boxed stuff, but at least you can take it home in a recycled plastic produce bag.\u00a0 While I would still wash it (who knows how many hands have touched it), washing spinach in this form doesn’t take any longer than any other vegetable.<\/p>\n Farmer’s market spinach is often sold in bulk bins, too, and when sold in this form it is very often pre-washed.\u00a0 It must definitely be given a final wash at home but again, this doesn’t take long.<\/p>\n Take the Aggravation out of Spinach Washing<\/span><\/strong> There’s one final way to tackle the spinach conundrum:\u00a0 Take the annoyance out of spinach washing!\u00a0 Then it isn’t a barrier to buying the less expensive, more environmentally friendly forms of spinach. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0First, if you’re in a hurry, instead of tearing the spinach, use a long serrated knife to cut it to the right size.\u00a0 Next, don’t get overly worried if a few stems find their way into your spinach.\u00a0\u00a0 Finally, get a large washing vehicle, like a salad spinner or a pasta pot with an insert.\u00a0 Then you don’t need to scrub the sink before washing.<\/p>\n