What is the name of the white powder that resturants use to rinse their green salad in?

Question

When I worked in a resturant we filled a large sink with cold water and added two table spoons of a white powder to the water. Then soaked the salad for 20 mins. The salad was then spun dried and stayed crisp and green for a days.

Answer 1

While I am not 100% sure on the name of the white powder, there is several products which restaurants use to wash and disinfect their veggies.

One product is called Veggie Wash from http://www.webstaurantstore.com/regal-ve...

Another more commercial product is Fit from http://www.tryfit.com.

The more generic product you may be thinking of might be Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS).

The removal of wax, oils, and bacteria should have a very positive impact on the lasting time of the veggies.  

In addition, I have personally noticed an improvement in the lasting time of fruits and veggies when using the green plastic veggie bags.  They supposedly let something out that causes the stuff to spoil.  YMMV on this tip.

Answer 2

Most likely a commercial form of Fruit Fresh

Ascorbic acid or Citrus acid

I doubt it was a powdered form of lemon juice because of the flavor