Foraging
From Antivist
Contents |
Wild Edibles
http://www.indianspringherbs.com/wild_food_contents.htm
Acorns Milkweed Alfalfa Mint Amaranth Muscadines American Beech Passion Flower American Elder Paw Paw Arrowhead Peppergrass Asparagus Persimmon Blackberries Plantain Black Birch Puffballs Black Walnuts Quickweed Bull Thistle Redbud Burdock Red Mulberry Butternut Rose Hips Cattails Sassafras Chestnuts Sheep Sorrel Chickweed Shepherd's Purse Chicory Spicebush Cleavers Stinging Nettle Coltsfoot Sugar Maple Dandelion Trout Lily Daylily Violets Elecampane Wild Blueberries Evening Primrose Wild Carrots Ground Cherries Wild Ginger Groundnuts Wild Onions Hickory Nuts Wild Strawberries Honewort Winter Cress Jerusalem Artichoke Yellow Dock Kudzu Yellow Nut Grass Lamb's Quarters
Types of Edible Weeds
There are many different weeds that can be harvested and eaten, but the majority of edible weeds are some kind of green that you can add to salads. Some examples of weeds that make fine greens are:
- Chickweed
- Dandelion
- Lamb's quarter
- Milk thistle
- Sheep's sorrel
Other green weeds can also be eaten cooked. Kudzu, for example, is great battered and fried or in stir-frys. Horseweed and stinging nettle are two more plants that can be eaten if the leaves are cooked.
The chicory root is often used as an addition to or substitute for coffee, and the flowers can be added to salads as well. Goldenrod flowers and leaves can be used to make tea.
Burdock root can be pickled or boiled in soups. The young leaves of plantain plants can be sautéed, and red clover flowers are great in salads, soups or as a tea. Violets and other edible flowers are also good choices for adding to salads or using as garnishes.
Wild Foods
Some edible northwest weeds include: Blackberry Thistle Nuts Wild Rose Hips Wild Strawberry Cleavers Clover Yellow Dock Burdock Mustard Amaranth Plantain Shepherds Purse Weeping Willow Mallow Nasturtium Bracken fern Chickweed Chicory Dandelion Miner's Lettuce Oxalis Evening Primrose Parsley Forget-me-nots Purslane Sorrel Watercress Queen Anne's Lace Yarrow Cattail
Please note: Do not eat any plant that you have not correctly identified. Some parts of some species are edible while other parts of the same species may not be. It is crucial to know exactly what you are eating to partake in the pleasures of eating wild foods.
Pickled Nettles
Fill a mason jar with young nettle shoots. Fill the rest of the jar half with olive oil and half with vinegar. Store in shaded cool area. This will be ready in six to eight weeks. Marinating deactivates the formic acid.
Safety Tips
The most important thing when working with edible weeds making sure you know that the weeds you are planning to eat are indeed edible. Some plants look similar when they are young, and you can get really sick from eating plants or parts of plants that should not be eaten. Some plants, when ingested, can even cause death.
If you are planning to scavenge for edible weeds, make sure you have a guidebook or a knowledgeable person with you who can help you find the weeds that are safe. Someone from your local garden club or wildflower society should be able to point you in the right direction.
Also, make sure you know what parts of a plant are safe to eat. Just because the leaves of a plant are safe, that does not mean the whole plant should be consumed. Again, check the web, or with a guide to weeds or a local expert before you go hunting for weeds and heading for the kitchen.
If you are growing your own weeds, do not use pesticides or herbicides on them. Since many weeds aren't cooked before eating, it's a great idea to grow them organically when possible.
If you're not growing your own edible weeds, you need to consider the condition of the weeds you are likely to find on your searches. Some weeds may have been sprayed with herbicides and just haven't died yet.
Others are very close to roads, which doesn't make them very appealing. The presence of animal feces or other waste in the area is a good sign you shouldn't eat the weeds as well.
Your best bet is to grow your own weeds to eat, because then you know where they came from and what has been done to them throughout the growing season.
You can often find seeds or plants for some weeds at your local garden center. You can also check out online seed sellers like Seed Rack. If all else fails and you're looking for a weed that regularly grows in your area, check your neighbors' yards or your local botanical garden. Either one would be happy to let you dig up their weed plants and take them away!
