What is Mixed Greens?
Mixed greens or mesclun are an assortment of small, baby field greens from different plants, including kale, spinach, chard and others. The leaves are green, tender and have flavors that are green, vegetal, and sometimes spicy or sour. Mixed greens are served raw as a salad or may be gently wilted with oil and seasonings.
Ingredients
...Romaine lettuce is a type of lettuce with flat, dark green leaves that grow in a cluster in the soil. The lettuce stalk at the base is dense, watery and usually discarded because of its bitter taste. The leaves are shorter in width and longer in length. These leaves get smaller and a lighter shade of green towards the heart of the vegetable. The flavor is green and vegetal. Lettuce is usually served raw.
...Baby lettuce leaves are the tender and not fully mature leaves of the lettuce plant. Baby lettuce can be harvested while the plant is still young, or grown as a specific small variety. The thin leaves vary from light to dark green, including a vegetal purple color. The flavor is soft and green, sometimes with a hint of sweetness. Baby lettuce is generally used for salads and raw dishes.
...Red chard is a leafy vegetable and one of the varied types of this oxalic acid-rich veggie. Chard has a mouthfeel found also in spinach, that creates an astringent sensation on the tongue and cheeks, due to the oxalic acid. Red chard has a red stalk and a dark green leaf that grows along the stalk. The leaf is roughly one foot in length, or a little less. The texture of the stem is fibrous and the leaves are tender and wilt easily. The flavor is mildly vegetal, with an almost bitter edge. Chard is best when cooked.
...Chard is a green leafy vegetable that contains oxalic acid, which is what creates the film on the inside of the mouth when chard and spinach are consumed. These leaves are wide and green with white stalks through the center. Chard cooks quickly and is tender with a mild vegetal flavor that some people describe as bitter.
...Mizuna, also called Japanese mustard greens, or spider mustard, is a green vegetable with thin, white and green stalks and green leaves that run alongside the stalk with frilled tops. The leaves are tender, but have a fibrous quality. The flavor is mildly peppery and piquant. Mizuna can be served raw or cooked. It goes well with many dishes from soups to risottos and stir fries.
...Arugula is a leafy and tender field green with a tender texture. The leaf is small, about the size of baby spinach or slightly bigger, but longer and looks like a spindly oak leaf. The flavor is green and spicy, with a refreshing bite. Arugula is used in salads, omelettes, sandwiches and is commonly served raw, or pan wilted with a touch of oil.
...Radicchio is a form of leaf chicory cultivated for food preparation. It is formed similarly to a cabbage, is round or oblong/conical and made of many layers of tightly wrapped purple leaves, with streaks of white. The leaves are thick and crunchy when raw. The taste is bitter and mellowed by grilling or roasting.