How to Boil Lettuce

Lettuce is much more than a primary salad ingredient or an accessory placed on your sandwich or burger. Cooking lettuce gives it an entirely new texture that can be used in soups, stews or for many easy Asian side dishes. Boiling separated lettuce is faster than boiling a whole head of lettuce at once, though you can do either. The lettuce quickly absorbs any flavors you add to the water in boiling, adding a new dimension of flavor to the final dish.

Boil lettuce in a vegetable soup for an extra healthy dose of greens. (Image: Valeriy Kryvsha/iStock/Getty Images)

Step 1

Set a pot half filled with water on the stove top.

Step 2

Turn the burner on "high," bringing the water to a running boil, in which the water has a continuous stream of bubbles rising to the top.

Step 3

Add 1 tsp. of salt to the water and stir. It will dissolve quickly in the hot water.

Step 4

Separate the lettuce leaves. Wash them under water to remove any dirt from between the leaves.

Step 5

Place the lettuce in the water for approximately 30 seconds. The lettuce becomes limp and loses form.

Step 6

Remove lettuce from heat and drain.

Tip

Mix 3 tbsp. of oyster sauce with 1 tbsp. of peanut oil and pour over lettuce for a simple side dish.