Homestead mailing list

[Mark Stutzman <mark AT transvantage.com>]

So, it's common knowledge that once lettuce bolts, it becomes bitter.  
If one breaks off a leaf, a milky white liquid oozes out immediately.  
Tasting this liquid - very bitter.  This got me wondering if this liquid 
was root cause of the bitterness, and whether it could be leached out.

Since I had a bed of mixed leaf lettuce which had gone to seed, and was 
scheduled to be pulled out so the bed could be replanted, I did an 
experiment:  I removed all the decent-looking leaves, and soaked them in 
cold water for a couple of hours.  It seems to have worked - the soaked 
and rinsed leaves are surprisingly palatable.

Has anyone done this before?  A quick google search turned up nothing on 
the subject.

-mark