What Is Red lettuce and How Can I Use It?
Red lettuce is easier to cook with than it looks. Here's how to choose, use, and store it, what to substitute, and 34 recipes to get you started.
Key Points
- Red leaf lettuce: frilly looseleaf with green-to-burgundy leaves, soft and tender throughout.
- Mild and faintly sweet; the red comes from anthocyanins, like red cabbage and grapes.
- Great for soft salads and as a flexible sandwich or wrap liner; tear, do not chop.
- Overdressing collapses the structureless leaves; dress lightly and toss right before serving.
- Delicate and short-lived: keeps three to five days, and storing it wet turns it slimy.
What is red lettuce?
Red lettuce, usually red leaf lettuce, is a looseleaf type with frilly, ruffled leaves that fade from green at the base to deep burgundy at the tips. It grows as an open rosette with no firm heart, so the leaves are soft and tender all the way through.
The flavor is mild and faintly sweet, with just a whisper of the earthiness you taste in darker greens. The red comes from anthocyanins, the same pigments in red cabbage and grapes.
It is the looseleaf cousin of green leaf lettuce. People reach for it as much for the color it brings to a bowl as for how it eats.
Ways to Use Red Leaf Lettuce
This is a soft-salad lettuce. The ruffled leaves catch dressing in their folds and pile up with loft instead of lying flat, so a bowl of it looks generous.
Tear it by hand rather than chopping. Cut edges of red leaf brown fast.
It shows up as the leafy base in mixed salads like Fresh Vegetable Salad with Miso Dressing and a Glazed Roasted Beets, Basil and Goat Cheese Salad, where the burgundy edges play off roasted color.
The flat, flexible leaves also work as a sandwich or wrap liner. A BLT Egg Wrap and BBQ Tuna Burgers both use them for a soft layer of green that bends without cracking the way a stiff romaine rib would.
Pairing and Common Mistakes
Red leaf is mild, so let it carry brighter company. Think tart vinaigrette, citrus, toasted nuts, crumbled goat or feta cheese, roasted beets, sliced apple, grilled chicken.
The biggest mistake is overdressing. These soft leaves have no structure to hold up a thick or heavy dressing and collapse into a wet heap, so use a light hand and toss right before serving.
The second is storing it wet. Surface water sitting on the frills turns them slimy faster than almost any other lettuce.
What to Use Instead
Green leaf lettuce is the obvious swap. Same soft looseleaf texture and mild taste, just without the color, so you lose the visual pop but nothing else.
Butterhead such as Boston lettuce works too, a little sweeter and more tender, with cupped leaves instead of frilly ones. For a sandwich or wrap liner, either of these bends the same way.
Reach for romaine lettuce only if you specifically want crunch and a sturdier leaf; it changes the character of a soft salad into something snappier.
Buying and Storing Red Lettuce
Choose a head with perky, springy leaves and vivid color. Skip any with slimy bases, dark wet patches, or wilted, translucent edges, which all signal age.
Red leaf is delicate and does not keep. Wrap the unwashed head loosely in a dry paper towel inside a bag in the crisper, where it holds three to five days at best.
Wash only when you are about to eat it, then dry the leaves well, since lingering water is what turns the frilly edges to slime. Limp leaves perk back up after a soak in ice water; the parent lettuce page covers that crisping trick in full.
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 NLEA serving (85g)Quick facts
Where to find red lettuce: Red lettuce is usually found in the produce section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.
Food group: Red lettuce is a member of the Vegetables and Vegetable Products US Department of Agriculture nutritional food group.
- In Chinese
- 红生菜
- British (UK) term
- Red lettuce
- en français
- laitue rouge
- en español
- lechuga roja
How much does red lettuce weigh?
| Amount | Weight |
|---|---|
| 1 cup shredded | 28 grams |
| 1 leaf inner | 2 grams |
| 1 leaf outer | 17 grams |
| 1 head | 309 grams |
| 1 NLEA serving | 85 grams |
Related
Vegetables and Vegetable Products
Recipes using red lettuce
There are 34 recipes that contain this ingredient.
Glazed Roasted Beets, Basil & Goat Cheese Salad
The earthy beets, spicy basil, creamy goat cheese and sour-sweet balsamic glaze make this salad with complimentary layers of flavors and textures.
BLT Egg Wrap
A quick and easy way to make a deliciously filling meal. A few simple and inexpensive ingredients will for sure satisfy your tummy.
Sesame Chicken Fingers
Super quick, and fuss-free. Loved the idea of using parmesan and sesame seeds, also added some garlic powder and black pepper to give the chicken fingers more flavor. I used equal amount of honey and mustard, the sauce was sweet enough for me. An easy and tasty snack that both kids and grown-ups love to have.
BBQ Tuna Burgers
Make these delicious and economical tuna burgers for your family. They are ready within 20 minutes and perfect for a supper on a busy weekday.
Fresh Vegetable Salad with Miso Dressing
This quick and easy salad is very flexible, you can put whatever your favourite vegetables in, and this miso dressing almost goes well with all the veggies.
Pineapple with Shrimp & Dill
Chilled pineapple and shrimp appetizer on lettuce leaves with a homemade dill remoulade sauce made with capers, anchovy paste, and hard-boiled eggs. Elegant and refreshing.
Scandinavian Fish Salad
Scandinavian herring salad with pickled fish strips, crisp apple slices, sour cream, Dijon mustard, and malt vinegar marinade. A classic Nordic appetizer served chilled on lettuce.
Drunken Chicken Salad
Chinese-style drunken chicken salad marinated overnight in sherry, then served cold on red lettuce with toasted sesame seeds, cilantro, and scallions. Elegant, refreshing, and make-ahead friendly.
Mighty Mexican Pizza
Mexican pizza on cornmeal-dusted personal crusts topped with seasoned ground beef, taco sauce, cheddar, and finished with cool lettuce, tomato, sour cream, and scallions. Pizza-night-meets-taco-night.
Summer Fruit Salad
Summer fruit salad with rice, strawberries, kiwi, grapes, banana, and pineapple tossed in a honey-yogurt-pineapple juice dressing. Light, low-fat, and ready in 25 minutes.
Grilled Catfish Salad
Grilled catfish salad with a cane syrup and herb butter marinade, served over mixed greens with blue cheese crumbles and creamy blue cheese dressing.
Fettuccine with Tuna Sauce
Fettuccine with tuna sauce, sauteed red onion, garlic, and torn red lettuce tossed together warm. A quick pantry-friendly pasta dinner ready in 25 minutes.
Stir-Fried Shrimp & Vegetables with Crisp Noodle
Stir-Fried Shrimp & Vegetables with Crisp Noodle recipe
Picnic Burritos
Picnic burritos with taco-seasoned mayo, sliced turkey, shredded cheese, and crisp lettuce - no cooking required, ready in 15 minutes. Make-ahead and fridge-stable up to 2 hours.
Simple Spinach Salad with Poppyseed Dressing
A vibrant spinach and leaf lettuce salad tossed with crispy bacon, chopped eggs, and a tangy-sweet poppy seed dressing. Perfect as a light meal or side dish, this salad balances fresh greens with savory and sweet flavors.
Prix De France Steak Salad
French-style steak salad with grilled flank steak, lemon-sauteed mushrooms, and red onion marinated in a herb vinaigrette with chervil, basil, and thyme.
Grilled Tenderloin Salad with Honey-Mustard Dressing
Grilled pork tenderloin salad with cantaloupe, fresh pineapple, Belgian endive, and toasted almonds tossed in a honey-mustard ginger dressing. A light, fruity summer main course salad.
Grilled chicken salad with olives & oranges
Grilled chicken salad with red leaf lettuce, juicy orange slices, ripe black olives, and a sharp red wine vinegar dressing scented with garlic and celery. A light, bright Mediterranean lunch in 18 minutes.
Flounder or Sole Fillets
Microwave flounder or sole fillets rolled with chives, dill, and mustard, wrapped in lettuce leaves. A light, quick fish dinner ready in under 10 minutes.
Tofu-Noodle Lettuce Wraps
Delicious and nutritious wraps are perfect party food especially when you have vegetarian friends or family members showing up.
Minted Orange Salade
Minted orange salad with blood oranges, mandarin segments, sweet bell pepper, and fresh mint on red lettuce. Dressed with olive oil and mandarin juice for a bright, refreshing side.
Crispy Wonton & Goat Cheese Salad
Crispy wonton stack with herbed goat cheese, mixed greens, hearts of palm, and cherry tomatoes tossed in Dijon vinaigrette. Restaurant-style composed salad starter.
Snow Pea, Cherry Tomato & Carrot Salad with Miso-Soy Sauce Dressing
Crisp vegetable salad with snow peas, cherry tomatoes, and carrots tossed in a savory miso-soy dressing with ginger and garlic. Fresh, crunchy, and ready in 15 minutes.
English Walnut Salad
English walnut salad tosses red lettuce, watercress, and arugula with whole walnuts in a walnut oil and olive oil vinaigrette with red wine vinegar. Nutty, peppery, and elegant.
Chinese Sesame Chicken
Add a kick to your chicken with this simple recipe that is just in time for those summer barbecues!
Bean Thread Salad (Yum Woon Sen)
This salad is very easy to make, and combines the sour, sweet and salty flavors typical of Thai cuisine.
Avocado & Mozarella Cheese Stuffed Tomatoes
Avocado and mozzarella stuffed tomatoes hollow out vine-ripe tomatoes and fill them with cubed avocado and fresh mozzarella tossed in basil-balsamic vinaigrette. Five-minute summer appetizer with caprese-salad bones.
Pickled Spinach
Tangy vinegar meets crisp spinach, juicy tomatoes, and smoky bacon in this quick 15-minute salad that's both refreshing and diabetic-friendly.
Cold Fruited Chicken
Cold fruited chicken salad with dried apricots, orange segments, grapes, and toasted almonds in a white wine-vinegar dressing. A light, low-calorie summer lunch.
Oriental Salad with Sesame Vinaigrette Dressing
Oriental Salad with Sesame Vinaigrette Dressing recipe
Chao Tom (Shrimp & Sugar Cane Rolls)
Authentic Vietnamese shrimp paste molded around sugar cane sticks, broiled until bright orange, and wrapped in rice paper with fresh mint, cilantro, and cucumber. Dipped in tangy nuoc cham sauce, these are a Southeast Asian street food classic.
