Natural wild foods

[fusil de chase]

Dandelions. They used to be grown in gardens as they provided the first greens of the year. I have a row I water and manure and we eat the leaves all spring till they get bitter.

Suppose to be able to make a coffee substitute from the roots. Never tried the roots but always have 5-10 gallons of Dandelion flower and honey mead in the cellar.

AS mentioned above rose hips are a big staple when hunting, they seem to act as an appetite supressant. Pack your cheek with them after the frost sweetens them and you can go all day with out lunch. Boiled, strained and packed they make a fantastic jam/spread.

Oh yeah on the coast we used to eat a flour/cereal made from Devils club root.

 

[tenngun]

I didn't see them on the list of everything added so far so will add hicory nuts, american walnuts,and acorns. Beggers lice is a poa but as addictive as sunflower seeds.

 

[Old Creek]

when i was a kid my grandma took us picking in the forest each season, every kind of edible berrie in the area, one that wasnt mentioned is mayhaw.pears which could have been on an old homestead,perssimons,maypops(i cant remember the proper name)indian cane but it wasnt actually eaten just chewed to extract the sweet juice, indian pepper,wild pepper mint or spearmint, cant remember which and it hasnt been that long ago, wild onion was a favorite to dress up c-rats, fox grapes and muscadines grow all over our property and i have even set up a ladder to pick them along the hedge row.prickly pear,pine seed. there is propably more that i cant think of now, and as someone mentioned in a post not long ago we did smoke a few grape leaves as well. something i have not tried but intend to is thistle. i have tried some books on wild edibles in the us south east but have not found one with confidence inspiring sketches so if any of you can reccomend one i will give it a look see.

creek

 

[1frozenhillbilly]

i did not see fiddle head fern on the list or nettles both are excellent greens here in Alaska we often use cow parsnip ( also called pushki locally)but i will repeat the earlier warning KNOW the plant before you eat it! salmon berries are delicious, i like devils club root bark for a tea, we have pineapple weed here which looks tastes and acts much like camomile,i'm sure there are others

 

[running horse]

Don't know how to add pics but look up bull thistle cut off the head peal of spiny shell and fluff and pop it in or add it to the pot another I haven't seen is yampa, prickly lettuce wild mustard purslane shepards purse malo willow bark tea rose petals miners lettuce and sego lily root at least those are ones I've had but don't see on the list

 

[sidelock]

Ain't no body talked bout POLK salit yet. You'all aint't lived till you tried sum. YUM YUM

 

[shawn_c992001]

Don't think I have seen stinging nettle either. Just remember to boil them first!

 

[Robert Egler]

Word to the wise..., if you choose to try some of these foods, be sure that you do identify them well. The wild carrot and Queen Anne's Lace are very similar and Queen Anne's Lace smells like a carrot, but it's toxic.

LD

Queen Anne's Lace is Wild Carrot (Daucus carota).

It also looks like Poison Hemlock, which is (obvious by the name) poisonous. Wild Carrot (Queen Anne's Lace) root smells like carrot, Poison Hemlock doesn't. Where I grew up Poison Hemlock was known as Swamp Hemlock.

(I reference checked Queen Anne's Lace at the US Forest Service just to be sure before I posted, didn't want to poison anyone! :grin: )

 

[Rifleman1776]

Ain't no body talked bout POLK salit yet. You'all aint't lived till you tried sum. YUM YUM

Ain't POLK. :shake:
It's POKE salit. Don't ye from up nawth no nuttin'?
Yes, and boil and rinse it a couple times before eating.

 

[sidelock]

U are shore rite Rifleman. I probly fergot some o my spellin after beenin away from the appalachins of VA fer ny on 70 years. Have a good day and good shootin.

 

[Rifleman1776]

U are shore rite Rifleman. I probly fergot some o my spellin after beenin away from the appalachins of VA fer ny on 70 years. Have a good day and good shootin.

Are ye that guy on the Mountain Men TV show? Come back south before ye freeze yer brain. Take care. :v

 

[Wes/Tex]

Ain't POLK. :shake:
It's POKE salit. Don't ye from up nawth no nuttin'?
Yes, and boil and rinse it a couple times before eating.

Even Poke Weed has a use. Research at the local Cancer Science Center has identified Poke enzyme as being linkable to cell destroying amino so it will only attack and destroy cancer cells, not healthy ones! Great gobbledegook! How long will it take them to get that little flash into something workable?

 

[sidelock]

No I ain't but I'm planning on comin back soon. I need sum gray squirralls bad. squarils pot liqar grivy and biscits long with ramps an poke salat. YUM Good luck to yu.

 

[shawn_c992001]

Used to be able to find it at the grocery store in cans and labeled as such!

 

[Billnpatti]

There is a pretty long list of replies. Did anyone mention poke weed? It is delicious with a flavor a lot like spinach. But, you must parboil it twice to remove the slightly toxic juice. Once it has been parboiled, it can be boiled with bacon or fried, also with some bacon and onion.

 

[Blizzard of '93]

field cress - also known as 'creesy greens' in the southland - is very good eating but a pita to wash clean of dirt/sand. also takes a lot of picking to have a good bunch worth cooking. IMO the tastiest wild green.

 

[dyemaker]

Don't forget Hen of the Woods fungi and Chanterelles. Dewberries for a cobbler. Dittany and Sassafrass for tea. Wild garlic. Cleavers for coffee. I helped make jelly from violets once. Tried Jewelweed but I think it needs parboiled too. Just some of the things that I can recall.

 

[Billnpatti]

Here's a tip that many don't know about. Putting a tiny pinch of sugar in vegetables, whether wild or domestic, will brighten up the taste by replacing the loss of natural sugars that vegetables experience starting as soon as they are picked. Another little known trick for all green vegetables is to add just a tiny pinch of freshly ground nutmeg. You don't want enough that you can taste it but, somehow, it hides in the background and improves the natural flavor of all green vegetables whether they are wild or domestic.

In either case, whether adding sugar or nutmeg, if you can taste the ingredient itself, you have added too much. On the other hand, if you can taste no difference, you have not used a big enough of a pinch. Trust me, both of these tips work and once you have figured out the size pinch it takes, you will always cook with them,

 

[dyemaker]

Another mushroom I found once (just one) was the "Chicken Fried Mushroom". Not the Chicken Mushroom which is good also.
It DID taste just like fried chicken. I don't think it would be worth looking for again since i've only ever found one. I would of course suggest using extreme caution when collecting any kind of mushroom.

 

[Billnpatti]

Let's not forget the Morrell....or is it Morel? Anyway, that mushroom is proof that God loves us.