Room Beijing prepares many special salad selections. They are still bestsellers as the summer heat takes hold. Provided to China Daily

For once, Chinese consumers are trusting food suppliers when they say: "Our salads are safe". From high-end restaurants to quality supermarkets, salads and salad ingredients are still bestsellers as the summer heat intensifies in China's capital.

Feng Na, public relations manager of Room Beijing, which offers international cuisine at the Yintai Center at China World Trade Center, says salad demand has not slackened in spite of news reports of the deadly outbreak of toxic E. coli in Germany. In fact, the restaurant's diners are ordering a lot more, thanks to their special summer salad selections.

"We are a quality restaurant, paying great attention to the safety of all ingredients used. As for salad, freshness and cleanliness take priority over everything else," Feng says.

Weng San, a Vietnamese pho house at Raffles City Shopping Center in Dongzhimen, uses only bean sprouts in pre-dinner salads, a favorite with diners. A chef at the restaurant says their bean sprouts are grown under very strict hygiene conditions and safe to eat.

The classic Western lunch of coffee, sandwich and salad is also seeing no lack of orders. Anita, a barista at Costa Coffee at China Central Mall, says she did not see any drop in demand. "It's hot in summer, some people just drop in to have a cooler and some greens in the afternoon."

Meanwhile, for die-hard salad lovers, putting together a salad is an economical and creative option. A vast variety of vegetables is conveniently available at grocers and supermarkets. All you need is vinegar, sesame oil, or salad dressing to get a high-fiber light meal on the table.

Liu Liu, a post-graduate student at the Beijing Language and Culture University, says many of her female friends from both home and abroad love eating salads in summer.

"I've been eating salads for a long time. It's quite safe to eat, and it's delicious. But the recent news in Germany astonished me. I think I'll choose my greens carefully and wash them more thoroughly from now on. But I won't quit eating them," Liu says.

Maria Starmans, a 72-year-old Dutch expatriate in Beijing whose husband has a business here, echoed the general sentiment by saying salads are very much part of her daily diet. She was undeterred by the fears of E. coli. "Eating habits don't change easily."

Still, it's better to be safe than sorry. Make sure your salads are fresh if you are buying them ready-made, experts say. If you see any wilted vegetables or limp sprouts, don't eat them. Also, choose salads that are not premixed, as bacteria and germs find a better breeding ground in milky liquid.

At home, wash salad greens very thoroughly, and soak sprouts in salted water. The brine will act as a light disinfectant, and it seasons the sprouts as well. Try to eat up fresh greens as soon as you buy them. Vegetables stored too long in the refrigerator can still harbor bacteria.

China Daily