Last Updated on May 23, 2024
Do you know that there are 20 types of lettuce, and each offering different tastes and textures? Lettuce is one of the most versatile and commonly consumed leafy greens, enjoyed in salads, sandwiches, lettuce wraps, and more.
With its crisp texture and mild flavor, it can enhance any dish. They are often packed with nutrients like vitamins A and C, iron, and fiber, like most greens.
In this article, we will explore its various types and discuss creative ways to enjoy each one.
20 Types of Lettuce
1. Romaine Lettuce
Romaine, also known as Cos, stands tall in the world of leafy greens. With its long, crisp stalks and bold leaves arranged in a tight head shape, it’s one of the favorite choices among Americans.
Cos lettuce is ideal for Caesar and wedge salads and sandwiches due to its sturdiness underdressing weight.
It is also used as a wrap for low-carb options. Its versatile taste profile pairs well with an array of flavors from sweet fruits to tangy dressings.
2. Little Gem Lettuce
Little Gem is a small, compact variety that is known for its sweet and crunchy leaves. It resembles a miniature romaine with tightly packed leaves that form a small, elongated head.
It has a slightly nutty flavor and maintains its crispness even after being dressed with dressing or sauces, making it an excellent choice for mixed fruits and veggies, sandwiches, and even grilling.
Its petite size also makes it perfect for individual servings or as part of appetizer platters.
3. Butterhead Lettuce or Buttercrunch Lettuce
Butterhead is a popular variety known for its tender leaves and mild flavor. Its loose, ruffled leaves form a compact head with a soft, buttery texture.
This type is commonly used in salads and sandwiches because it adds a delicate crunch and a refreshing taste.
The yellowish or pale-green lettuce leaves have a slightly sweet flavor that pairs well with various dressings and toppings. It can also be cooked lightly to wilt the leaves and enhance their subtle flavors.
4. Crisphead or Iceberg Lettuce
Iceberg lettuce, also known as Crisphead, is a popular variety known for its crunchy texture and mild flavor. Its tightly packed leaves are crisp and form a compact head, making it ideal for crispy salad mix and sandwiches.
The pale-green leaves are delicate and add visual appeal to any dish. It can be used in various culinary applications, from chopped salads to wraps.
5. Green and Red Leaf Lettuce
These two closely related greens are both vibrant options that add a pop of color to any salad. These types have loose, curly leaves with a slight crunch. Green leaf lettuce has a mild flavor, while red one has a slightly peppery taste.
Both varieties are packed with essential nutrients, making them excellent choices for salads. Whether you’re looking for something refreshing or want to enhance the visual appeal of your dish, the two are versatile additions that can elevate any meal.
6. Oak Leaf Lettuce
Oak Leaf is a popular variety known for its beautiful, oak-like leaves that are tender and mildly sweet. It’s an excellent option that adds both texture and color to salads.
With its delicate yet sturdy leaves, it is sometimes used as a wrap or as a bed for other ingredients in sandwiches. You can also use it in stir-fries or added to soups.
7. Arugula
Arugula adds a lovely peppery flavor to any salad or dish. It has long, slender leaves and is often present in Mediterranean cuisine.
Baby arugula pairs perfectly with fresh tomatoes, cheese, and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar for a simple yet delicious salad. You can also use arugula to top pizzas, and sandwiches, or even as a base for pesto sauce.
8. Looseleaf Lettuce
Looseleaf lettuce refers to a type characterized by its loose, frilly, and soft leaves that are not tightly packed together.
Its tender leaves provide a mild and refreshing flavor, making it a popular choice for mixed green salads, sandwiches, burgers, and tacos, and in green juices and smoothies.
9. Batavia Lettuce
Batavia lettuce, also known as Batavian or simply Batavia, is a popular vegetable that is a variety of crisphead lettuce. It is similar to an iceberg but has softer and less tightly packed leaves.
Batavia is commonly used as a salad bowl to hold various fillings, such as chicken, fruits, or vegetables.
It is also used for sandwiches and burgers, tortilla wraps, or taco shells, and it makes a great decorative garnish for various dishes.
10. Bibb Lettuce and Boston Lettuce
Boston lettuce and Bibb Lettuce, are a popular type of butterhead lettuce that is characterized by its tender, buttery leaves. It gets its name from John Bibb, who developed this variety in the 1850s.
The delicate leaves of this lettuce make it ideal for salads, sandwiches and wraps, burger buns, or taco shells. You can also use it as a garnish for various dishes, adding visual appeal to the presentation.
11. Coral Lettuce
Coral lettuce, also known as Lollo Rosso or Red Coral, is a vibrant and visually stunning variety. Its curly leaves range from a deep red to a reddish-green color, making it an eye-catching addition to any salad.
What sets coral greens apart is their slightly bitter and nutty flavor profile, which adds complexity to salads and other dishes.
12. Cress
Cress is versatile and flavorful and is often used in salads and as a garnish. With its delicate leaves and peppery taste, cress adds a refreshing kick to any dish. It comes in different varieties, including watercress and upland cress.
You can toss cress into your salads for an extra burst of flavor or use it as a topping for sandwiches or soups. Its distinctive taste pairs well with citrus fruits, seafood, and creamy dressings.
13. Endive
Endive is a leafy vegetable that belongs to the chicory family, known for its slightly bitter taste. It has crisp leaves with a delicate texture and comes in two main varieties: curly endive and Belgian endive.
The Endive’s curled leaves have frilly, jagged leaves that add an attractive touch to salads and other dishes, while Belgian endive has pale, tightly-packed leaves that are more commonly used in cooked dishes.
You can enjoy this versatile lettuce by using it in salads, sautéing or grilling it as a side dish, or even adding it to soups and stews for added flavor and crunch.
14. Escarole
Escarole is a wonderful variety of lettuce that you may not be as familiar with. It has broad, curly leaves that are slightly bitter in taste, which adds a unique flavor to salads and other dishes.
Unlike some lettuces, escarole holds up well when cooked, making it a great addition to soups or sautés. The outer leaves can be tougher, but the inner ones are more tender and mild.
15. Frisée
Frisée is a variety of lettuce that has a slightly bitter taste and curly leaves, making it a popular choice for adding texture and flavor to salads. This vegetable belongs to the Chicory family and is often used in gourmet cuisine.
Its crisp texture provides a refreshing bite, while its bitterness adds depth to the overall flavor profile of dishes.
16. Radicchio
It is a vibrant and bitter red leaf chicory that adds a pop of color and flavor to any salad or dish. Radicchio is a type of chicory family that has deep reddish leaves with white veins and a crisp texture.
Radicchio salad has a slightly bitter taste and can be balanced out when combined with other salad greens or savory ingredients like nuts, or citrus fruits.
It can also be grilled or roasted to bring out its natural sweetness and add depth to your meals.
17. Speckled Lettuce
Speckled lettuce is a unique variety that stands out with its vibrant speckled leaves. It adds a beautiful and interesting element to your salads or sandwiches.
This type has a crisp texture and mildly bitter taste, which pairs well with other ingredients like tomatoes, cucumbers, and creamy dressings.
18. Stem Lettuce
Stem Lettuce, also known as Celery lettuce, Celtuce, or Chinese lettuce, is a unique variety that stands out for its thick, edible stem. This type has long, celery-like stems with tender leaves at the top.
It offers a refreshing crispness and mild flavor to salads and other dishes. You can enjoy it raw in salads or used in stir-fries, soups, and even pickled for added texture and flavor.
Other Popular Salad Greens
19. Mâche
Mâche, also known as lamb’s lettuce or corn salad, is not technically a lettuce. It is a small leafy green that has gained popularity in recent years. It has a mild and slightly nutty flavor, making it a favorite choice for salads and sandwiches.
Mâche leaves are tender and have a delicate texture, which adds a refreshing crunch to any dish, salad, or sandwich.
20. Mesclun Mixes
Mesclun is a delightful mix of tender baby lettuce leaves that add a burst of flavor and color to any dish. This popular blend typically includes ingredients like arugula, spinach, and other leafy greens.
Mesclun offers a variety of textures and tastes, from peppery to mild and slightly bitter to sweet. It’s perfect for creating enticing salads or adding a refreshing touch as a garnish.
Uses for Each Type of Lettuce: from Salad Green to Spring Mix
Lettuce is usually a popular ingredient in various salad recipes like Caesar salad, Greek salad, or mixed green salad. Its leaves can be used as a healthy alternative to bread or tortilla wraps in various sandwich fillings or as a crunchy layer in burgers.
Lettuce has leaves that are commonly used as wrappers in Vietnamese spring rolls, adding a fresh and crunchy texture to the dish. You can add it to stir-fries towards the end of cooking, providing a slight crispiness and freshness to the dish, such as vegetable soups.
The milder-tasting ones like Romaine can be added to green smoothies to add nutrients without altering the flavor significantly. Plus, it can be used as a cup to hold various fillings, such as tofu salad wraps, or vegetarian mixtures.
Some leaves can be filled with herbed rice, couscous, or quinoa to create a flavorful and nutritious appetizer. Butter lettuce or leaf lettuce, can be juiced and combined with other fruits or vegetables for a refreshing and healthy beverage.
How to Prep and Store Lettuce
To ensure each specific type of lettuce stays fresh and crisp, it’s important to properly prep and store it. Start by rinsing the leaves under cool running water to remove any dirt or debris.
Gently pat them dry with a clean kitchen towel or use a salad spinner to eliminate excess moisture.
If you’re not planning on using all of them at once, consider storing the remaining leaves in an airtight container lined with paper towels to absorb any additional moisture.
This helps prevent wilting and extends the shelf life of your greens. When it comes to storage, refrigeration is key.
Place the prepared lettuce in the crisper drawer of your refrigerator, where temperatures are slightly cooler than other parts of your fridge. Keep in mind that some types have better longevity than others.
Leafy varieties like green leaf and red leaf tend to be more delicate and should ideally be used within a few days of purchase for optimal freshness. Heartier options like romaine or iceberg can last up to one week when stored correctly.
By following these simple steps, you can enjoy crisp, refreshing lettuce for longer periods of time without worrying about waste or loss of flavor.
FAQs
There are many types of lettuce and some common types include iceberg, romaine, butterhead (such as Bibb and Boston), leaf (such as a red and green leaf), and arugula.
Iceberg has a mild flavor with a crisp texture, while romaine has a slightly bitter flavor with sturdy leaves that have a satisfying crunch.
To keep them fresh, remove any damaged or wilted leaves before storing them in a perforated plastic bag in the refrigerator’s vegetable drawer.
Different varieties may require slightly different storage conditions, so it’s best to check specific recommendations for each type.
Yes! Many salads can be made with various combinations of lettuce depending on your preference or what you have available.
Experimenting with different types can add variety to your meals. However, some recipes may call for specific types to achieve a desired taste or texture effect.
