I went out and sourced some fresh banana leaves, mint, and dandelion leaves from my local Asian grocery store today.  I would normally get these things from my garden, but nothing has leafed out yet.  I have no idea if the leaves from the Asian grocery store are organic.  Do you think I'll be alright if I wash in vinegar and blanch, or should I toss them/use them for human food???

58 minutes ago, rabbitsnfoxes said:

Do you think I'll be alright if I wash in vinegar

I'm willing to bet these are not organic. Grocery stores source produce from farms that need a high rate of growth and it needs to look pristine. Only way to do that to maximise profits is to use pesticides.

I've never heard of anyone washing veges in vinegar. What's the reason?

Water should be enough to wash off pesticides, right? And blanching the vege will kill anything else.

 

1 hour ago, jayc said:

I'm willing to bet these are not organic. Grocery stores source produce from farms that need a high rate of growth and it needs to look pristine. Only way to do that to maximise profits is to use pesticides.

I've never heard of anyone washing veges in vinegar. What's the reason?

Water should be enough to wash off pesticides, right? And blanching the vege will kill anything else.

 

The diluted vinegar is in lieu of soap to wash off the pesticides (or as much as possible).  Some folks use baking soda, but I've always used diluted vinegar followed by a good rinse.  All that said, can I still feed the veggies I bought today to my shrimp???

Yes, you can feed it to the shrimp, but wash it very carefully first.

I would try a small piece and see how the shrimps that eat it react!

You may have been better buying in a bigger supermarket as they would say on the packet if it is organic, but it would be expensive, as JayC says, it is cheaper to use chemicals to produce food. I buy spinach which is organic and keep it in the freezer so I can use it all year round.

Simon