# Wild Eatables



## longbow

So, the Little Woman and I went up to a local campground, set up my walltent and had a nice evening just sitting around the fire. I cooked steak and potatoes. During the course of the evening we got talking about wild eatable food. So today we went and picked watercress and dug for cattail tubers. I made her a watercress sandwich. She had never had one and she loved it. The cattails didn't turn out so good. I always boil them and they turn out great. This time I tried to steam them and they shrunk into little shriveled stems. Weird. They normaly taste like aspergrus so I was disapointed that she didn't get to try them.
Soooo... what's everybody's experience with wild edibles. I know quite a few, (like yummy mushrooms) but let's see what you guys got that's different and how to cook them. Turn me on to something new.


----------



## The Naturalist

One of my favorites is cattail pollen pancakes. Mix about 1/4 cup cattail pollen with 1 cup pancake mix. Very good, and nutritious (high protein). We also pick a lot of wild berries, particularly serviceberries and elderberries. then juice them. We then mix that in with our own homemade grape juice, and/or make a special elixer (I know what you guys are thinking but it is non-alcoholic) to ward off colds and illness.


----------



## wyogoob

Cattail pollen sounds cool, I have never eaten it. I've had cattail root although. It's best in the spring before the plant "greens" up. If I had to live off the land here I would starve to death. There are lots of wild edibles but their season is brief and most offer little starch or protein.

We have mint along the Bear River, lots of Hawthornes too.

Plenty of wild strawberries, but they seldom have fruit anymore, shortage of honey bees maybe.

Red Rasberries and Currants.

Dandelions, I like young dandelions....and clover, there's clover all the way up to 12,000' that's good to eat. It's Parry's clover up in the tundra. I always eat it fresh while ptarmigan hunting, sitting on a rock, thinking. And Stonecrop, Stonecrop is everywhere in the tundra. Juicy, nice to chew on, ptarmigan like it better than I do.

While backpacking, I will throw dime-sized wild onions in with my trout..... add some sliced wild mushrooms if I can get them.

Lamb's Quarter is good, had a couple I plucked out of one of my flower gardens yeasterday. Pronghorn Antelope love Lamb's Quarter, it's candy to them.

There's Salisfy, called Oyster Plant or Oyster Root. It's a common weed out here; looks like a big dandelion. Eat the roots....tastes terrible.

We have Huckleberries up in the Wind Rivers, nothing better. 2 years ago 3 of us up in the Wind River's Cirque of the Towers sat on our butts in a huckleberry patch and gorged ourselves while watching a couple guys peak out on Pingora Peak. Biggest and mostest blueberries I ever seen, anywhere.

Rich County Utah and Lincoln County Wyoming have some "wild" horseradish growing along the Bear River and nearby irrigation ditches that are close to 100-year-old abandoned homesteads. Horseradish is dug early in the Spring; it's no good after the plant leaves out.

Wild roses. I eat a lot of wild roses during the hunting season. They're awful, but good for you. Forest grouse hang around wild roses.

More later, maybe some pictures.


----------



## wyogoob

The Oxeye Daisy is a common wildflower across the lower elevations of Utah and Wyoming. The beautiful white daisy is classified as a noxious weed in Wyoming, yet other states like Nebraska and Colorado plant it along their interstate highways.

It's basal leaves (on the base, not the stem) are some of the best edible greens out there. They are mild-flavored, taste like a cross between spinach and Romaine lettuce. Gourmet resturants sometimes serve them in salads.

In addition, Oxeye Daisy flowers contain a chemical compound useful in making natural, and safe, chemical insecticides and repellants.

I have Oxeye Daisy in my flower gardens. It's easy to grow and spreads readily. The tender basal leaves can be picked from mid-April to Thanksgiving, even under the snow.

I just picked some, along with some wild mushrooms, out in the yard:









Enough for 2 small salads:


----------



## wyogoob

While searching for mushrooms for my salad I came across a stunted Salisfy (Oyster Root) plant. The red arrow points to Salisfy, a very common, yet edible, weed. The yellow arrows point to some mushrooms that are too old to eat.










Actually there's stuff all over the place to eat. Just grab ya a handful and try it.....well maybe just a small handfull.


----------



## wyogoob

Found some Lamb's Quarter hiding in the petunias, It will also go in my wild salad.


----------



## hunter_orange13

Venison and fish!


----------



## longbow

The Naturalist said:


> One of my favorites is cattail pollen pancakes. Mix about 1/4 cup cattail pollen with 1 cup pancake mix.


That's one I'll have to try.



wyogoob said:


> Found some Lamb's Quarter hiding in the petunias, It will also go in my wild salad.


That's one I've heard is really good. I need to identify one so I know what it is. I dug out my Eatable Plant book and it doesn't mention anything about Lamb's Quarter. It's kind of a crappy book.



wyogoob said:


> ....and clover, there's clover all the way up to 12,000' that's good to eat. It's Parry's clover up in the tundra.


I had no idea clover was good. That a new one for me.

I went and picked some burdock and boiled it twice like the book said. I was pretty disappointed. It tasted like swiss chard but was quite tough. I'll wait until spring and try it again.


----------



## wyogoob

I never ate burdock, but cut or pulled a billion of them out of the soybean fields growing up on the farm.


----------



## wyogoob

Earlier I said I ate wild roses. Sort of, I meant to say *rose hips*. Those seedy, pulpy, berry-lookin, fruit thingys on wild rose plants in the fall and winter.


----------



## The Naturalist

longbow said:


> That's one I've heard is really good. I need to identify one so I know what it is. I dug out my Eatable Plant book and it doesn't mention anything about Lamb's Quarter. It's kind of a crappy book.
> Lambsquarter is a good one and looks just like the pic Goob put up. Very common "weed". Try looking under is scientific name Chenopodium alba.
> 
> I went and picked some burdock and boiled it twice like the book said. I was pretty disappointed. It tasted like swiss chard but was quite tough. I'll wait until spring and try it again.


Burdock is mighty nasty. I would classify Burdock as a medicinal plant not edible....the difference being..... use the seeds to make a tea to treat bacterial infections of the urinary tract, definitely not a salad type plant.


----------



## The Naturalist

Another good one that is a common "weed" is Amaranth, known around here as redroot/pigweed. The leaves can be eaten and the seeds have a high protein count. but they are very tiny. In South America they have some varieties of Amaranth that have seeds the size of wheat and rice. There are some commercial growers of those varieties in the U.S. but it is very expensive to buy the seeds/flour.

The lists could go on and on. For those that are truly interested in edible/medicinal plants I would suggest to enroll in an Ethnobotany class from one of the local Universities. I was taught by one of the best in the State... Dr. Stephen Clark of Weber State U.


----------



## Briar Patch

A good resource for learning edible plants is a book called NATURE BOUND Pocket Field Guide.
ISBN 10: 0-9609776-7-8

It's out of print. If you search the ISBN number on used book sites you can find it at very reasonable prices.

Anyone else familiar with this book?


----------



## wyogoob

The Naturalist said:


> Another good one that is a common "weed" is Amaranth, known around here as redroot/pigweed. ...................................................................................quote]
> 
> Never had pigweed either, but cut or pulled one-half billion of them out of the soybean fields.
> 
> I have amaranthus in my flower gardens, but I don't know what subspecies it is. I usually catch it and pull it before it gets over 6" tall.


----------



## wyogoob

We had lots of wild cannabis back home in Illinois. It was another weed pest I had to help control on the farm.

It was used in brownies and rope.


----------



## wyogoob

longbow said:


> ..............................
> 
> 
> 
> wyogoob said:
> 
> 
> 
> Found some Lamb's Quarter hiding in the petunias, It will also go in my wild salad.
Click to expand...

..........................................................................quote]

There's Lamb's Quarter around that little campground a couple blocks east of the Flying J in Perry. Always seen it out in the squash and pumpkin fields too. It's everywhere, look where they cultivate for the younger plants. If they spray herbicides or insecticides, leave it alone.


----------



## cornerfinder

i read that lambs quarter can be harmfull. http://cal.vet.upenn.edu/projects/poiso ... plambs.htm


----------



## longbow

The Naturalist said:


> Another good one that is a common "weed" is Amaranth, known around here as redroot/pigweed.


I had to look that one up. I recognized it right away. I use to see it in my mother's garden. I'll keep an eye out for it now.



wyogoob said:


> There's Lamb's Quarter around that little campground a couple blocks east of the Flying J in Perry.


I think I'll stop by this evening on the way home from work. I pass by it on the way home.


----------



## wyogoob

cornerfinder said:


> i read that lambs quarter can be harmfull. http://cal.vet.upenn.edu/projects/poiso ... plambs.htm


That's interesting, thanks.

If you read the introduction, _Introduction to Poisonous Plants of Veterinary Importance_, you will find that the website pertains to livestock and pets, not humans.

http://cal.vet.upenn.edu/projects/poison/intro.htm


----------



## Catherder

wyogoob said:


> cornerfinder said:
> 
> 
> 
> i read that lambs quarter can be harmfull. http://cal.vet.upenn.edu/projects/poiso ... plambs.htm
> 
> 
> 
> That's interesting, thanks.
> 
> If you read the introduction, _Introduction to Poisonous Plants of Veterinary Importance_, you will find that the website pertains to livestock and pets, not humans.
> 
> http://cal.vet.upenn.edu/projects/poison/intro.htm
Click to expand...

Correct, and the lambsquarter page explains as follows,

"Toxic principle: nitrate. Nitrate is reduced in the rumen to nitrite which is the ultimate toxin."
"Nitrate is not very toxic for monogastrics since it is not efficiently reduced to nitrite."

Humans are monogastrics. It should be pointed out though that most other plant toxins are toxic to both domestic animals and humans equally.

As an aside, my daughter and I were up in Big Cottonwood canyon last week and found that the wild strawberries were present in abundance. They weren't very big but there were enough of them for a small snack for each of us. The family has a cabin up there and I have never seen so many present at one time before in 40 years at this locale. Usually the best one can find is one or two teeny ones.

The boletes (mushrooms) were also coming on nicely. Probably even better now with the recent rains.


----------



## wyogoob

I wonder if Pronghorn Antelope have multiple-chambered stomachs? Seems I always turn my head when I gut them.  

They sure love Lamb's Quarter.


----------



## Cdragon

Anyone know what these berries are?

[attachment=0:2twd8mj1]ResizeDSC_0413.jpg[/attachment:2twd8mj1]

[attachment=1:2twd8mj1]ResizeDSC_0411.jpg[/attachment:2twd8mj1]


----------



## wyogoob

Got me. It's not chokecherry or elderberry for sure. Close to black currant but I don't think so. 

Is it an ornamental or found out in the wild?


----------



## pkred

Saw a ton of mushrooms up in Murdoc/Grandaddy basin this weekend. Brought some home and they were AWESOME!.


----------



## wyogoob

pkred said:


> Saw a ton of mushrooms up in Murdoc/Grandaddy basin this weekend. Brought some home and they were AWESOME!.


Happy Days!!!

What kind of mushrooms?
Pictures? 
Are the worms bad? 
How was the fishing?
Was there much litter?
How tall's yer sister?

igottgetbak2wurk


----------



## Catherder

Cdragon said:


> Anyone know what these berries are?
> 
> [attachment=0:24601q9f]ResizeDSC_0413.jpg[/attachment:24601q9f]
> 
> [attachment=1:24601q9f]ResizeDSC_0411.jpg[/attachment:24601q9f]


Is it this one? (Black twinberry honeysuckle) 
http://www.wildutah.us/html/plants_scen ... uckle.html

We have what you photographed up at Big Cottonwood Canyon in relative abundance. I have no idea if they are edible or not, but the link says they taste bad. Can't say I want to experiment to confirm that. 



wyogoob said:


> I wonder if Pronghorn Antelope have multiple-chambered stomachs? Seems I always turn my head when I gut them.
> 
> They sure love Lamb's Quarter.


They do! Maybe it is the processed lambs quarter that makes it so objectionable? I have heard that if you don't know what you are doing when field dressing an antelope, that the meat can turn out downright toxic flavored as well. Perhaps that can be due to the LQ also? (j/K)


----------



## wyogoob

Catherder said:


> ...............
> 
> Is it this one? (Black twinberry honeysuckle)
> http://www.wildutah.us/html/plants_scen ... uckle.html
> 
> We have what you photographed up at Big Cottonwood Canyon in relative abundance. I have no idea if they are edible or not, but the link says they taste bad. Can't say I want to experiment to confirm that.
> 
> I don't know what that plant is, but I know the lady that took the picture, Nicky Davis!!!!
> 
> 
> 
> wyogoob said:
> 
> 
> 
> I wonder if Pronghorn Antelope have multiple-chambered stomachs? Seems I always turn my head when I gut them.
> 
> They sure love Lamb's Quarter.
> 
> 
> 
> They do! Maybe it is the processed lambs quarter that makes it so objectionable? I have heard that if you don't know what you are doing when field dressing an antelope, that the meat can turn out downright toxic flavored as well. Perhaps that can be due to the LQ also? (j/K)
Click to expand...

ha, ha, I read that Lamb's Quarter *seeds* are poisonous to humans along with other animals. I don't think any person would want to eat the seeds, but a cow, horse or an antelope would eat the seeds along with the rest of the plant.


----------



## longbow

They are indeed Twinberrys. We went camping up Strawberry Canyon near Preston Idaho the last couple days and saw quite a few of them. They're good to eat but you have to prepare them like Elderberries. They're pretty bitter off the bush.
By the way, my grand daughter and I picked about a gazillion huckleberries. We also found a good supply of the tiny Grouse Berries around. We both had purple fingers at the end of the day.


----------



## pkred

No pics, worms are bad in the more mature specimines. Porchinni is the only one I can identify fore sure so thats all I pick. I only fished Pine island lake, and the fishing was no good. I think mostly cause the lake is shallow. I saw more litter than people! and my sister is knee high to a grasshopper.


----------



## wyogoob

pkred said:


> No pics, worms are bad in the more mature specimines. Porchinni is the only one I can identify fore sure so thats all I pick. I only fished Pine island lake, and the fishing was no good. I think mostly cause the lake is shallow. I saw more litter than people! and my sister is knee high to a grasshopper.


slow down, I can't read that fast :lol:

glad you had a good time

The litter in Grandaddy Basin is sad :evil:


----------



## pkred

sorry had to get back to work.  :lol:


----------



## 10yearquest

I found a whole bunch of these in the uintas. They dont quite smell like an onion more like a chive. Anyone know what they are. I am seeing stuff on the web about death camas and it has me a bit scared!


----------



## The Naturalist

10yearquest said:


> I found a whole bunch of these in the uintas. They dont quite smell like an onion more like a chive. Anyone know what they are. I am seeing stuff on the web about death camas and it has me a bit scared!


Wild onions difinitely have a an onion smell. The one you have here could be wild garlic. Death Camas usually has a little broader leaf than what your pictures show, the best way to tell though is after it flowers. Death Camas flowers are usually white to yellow, while onions and garlic are usually purplish/pinkish to white.


----------



## 10yearquest

thank you. After alot of research I came to conclude them to be wild onions and not the deathcamas as well. I even found some others growing abundently in the same areas. A diferent variety. Smaller and the bulb was purple. It smelled very much like an onion. I dug up a bunch for the slop I made on saturday night and they were delicious. I also made a salad with dandelion leaves and onion wild onion flowers and greens. Pretty good. The dandelions up there are not as bitter as the ones in my yard.


----------



## MKP

One trick to getting good dandelion leaves is look for one growing in the shade, they're usually not as bitter as those growing in full sun.


----------



## longbow

I scored twice this week on wild eatables. I found a whole crap-load of aspagrass down the railroad track behind my house. I'm tellin' ya, it's a patch about 150 yards long. It's all too old now but in the spring I'll be an aspargrass picking fool.
Last weekend we took the Polaris speed-couch 500 up Willard peak and found some Agaricus mushrooms. Eureka!!! I plucked a handfull up and sauted them in butter. Yum!!! Got ta love it!


----------



## Catherder

How about this one? I found these "berries" while hiding under some vegetation, waiting out a thunderstorm the other evening. I opened one up and it was quite pithy. I didn't eat it. _/O

[attachment=0:u6ez22jr]P7260002.jpg[/attachment:u6ez22jr]


----------



## MKP

"I ated the purple berries, they taste like burning...""


----------



## StillAboveGround

Anyone have any experience eating Salsify? 
The plant that looks like a giant dandelion when mature. 
Some pics of the roots look similar to carrots...
My father said that my grandmother used to make a mock oyster stew from the roots... 
An online search of "mock oyster stew and salsify" had 5 or 6 recipes on 1st page...


----------



## massmanute

Purslane (portulaca) is a tasty and nutritious wild plant. It is low growing and succulent.



Don't confuse it with the following creeping plant, which is a kind of spurge and is poisonous.










afasdff


----------



## Idratherbehunting

massmanute said:


> Purslane (portulaca) is a tasty and nutritious wild plant. It is low growing and succulent.
> 
> 
> 
> Don't confuse it with the following creeping plant, which is a kind of spurge and is poisonous.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> afasdff


The top one looks like what I've heard called water weed, and the bottom one looks like what I've heard called puncture vine. Am I thinking of the right stuff?


----------



## Idratherbehunting

We grew up eating:
Chokecherries - make awesome syrup and we would also make chokecherry/crab apple jelly
Morrell mushrooms - most often eaten poached in milk with eggs, or with a beef roast 
Huckleberries - picked and hoarded, most often eaten mixed with raspberries. My favorite is raspberry/huckleberry jam
Pigweed greens - ate like spinach, most often cooked with Apple cidar vinegar over them
Watercress - most often eaten in a salad or my favorite was on a turkey sandwich

That's what I can remember right now. If anybody has some great places to find those things in utah, I'd love some hints.


----------



## massmanute

Idratherbehunting said:


> The top one looks like what I've heard called water weed, and the bottom one looks like what I've heard called puncture vine. Am I thinking of the right stuff?


Puncture vine is probably what I call puncture weed. It is different from the spurge I mentioned. I will see if I can find some other pictures of the plant and post them later.

I haven't heard the term "water weed", so I am not sure I can comment on that. However, purlsane (the top picture) isn't particularly associated with growing near the water. It is, however, somewhat succulent, so perhaps that could justify calling it water weed. I will see if I can find some more pictures of purslane to post later.

I would describe the flavor of purslane as being mild, with little or no bitterness but a touch of sourness. It is fairly tender, especially the young leaves. The older stems can be a little tougher, but still not bad in my opinion. Puslane goes well as a salad ingredient.


----------



## massmanute

massmanute said:


> Puncture vine is probably what I call puncture weed. It is different from the spurge I mentioned. I will see if I can find some other pictures of the plant and post them later...


Here is another picture of the spurge I mentioned, the plant not to eat.










and here is a comparison.



One note: The comparison says that purslane grows upright. That is only half true. It does tend to sprawl, but it typically is more upright in growth habit than spurge. Once you see and compare the plants in person they are easy to tell apart.


----------



## massmanute

And here is a whole web page about purslane.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2013/08/foraged-flavor-all-about-purslane.html

In commenting on purslane the article says "Purslane is fresh and crunchy, with a tang and a faint citrus undertone ...." I would call that a pretty fair description. It also describes it as "...the plant with the highest source of Omega-3." Purslane also has a slight _mucilaginous_ quality, though not as strongly mucilaginous as a vegetable like okra.

The article also briefly touches on the difference between purslane and spurge.


----------



## Gumbo

You should have plenty of fiddleheads in Alaska come spring.


----------



## Catherder

massmanute said:


> Purslane (portulaca) is a tasty and nutritious wild plant. It is low growing and succulent.
> 
> 
> 
> Don't confuse it with the following creeping plant, which is a kind of spurge and is poisonous.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> afasdff


Good grief, that Purslane grows all over in my tomatoes and peppers and keeps me busy all summer trying to unsuccessfully weed it out of the garden. Maybe I ought to throw some into my salsa instead.

So Massmanute, what does it taste like?


----------



## massmanute

Catherder said:


> Good grief, that Purslane grows all over in my tomatoes and peppers and keeps me busy all summer trying to unsuccessfully weed it out of the garden. Maybe I ought to throw some into my salsa instead.
> 
> So Massmanute, what does it taste like?


It's pretty mild in flavor compared to most greens. Some sources characterize it as "refreshing". There is a little bit of a sour taste, but little or no bitterness. The sourness supposedly varies with the time of day, more sour in the morning and less sour later in the day. The texture is both crunchy and relatively tender.


----------



## coolgunnings

How about stinging nettle. I frequent this site often. This guy mostly cooks with wild game, and what he gathers from the wild. Here is the link for foods he makes with nettle. http://honest-food.net/2010/01/28/grasping-the-nettle/:grin:. I make his salmon candy. It is wonderful.


----------



## 2full

I'm not real adventurous.
I have tried some wild mushrooms - very good
Have made some cactus jelly - very good. (use needle nose and good gloves)
Have done Elderberry jam, syrup, and eaten them like raisins - very good.
And of course watercress - very good


----------



## longbow

2full said:


> I'm not real adventurous.
> I have tried some wild mushrooms - very good
> Have made some cactus jelly - very good. (use needle nose and good gloves)
> Have done Elderberry jam, syrup, and eaten them like raisins - very good.
> And of course watercress - very good


Watercress!! One of my favorites. I miss it. I use to walk out back behind my house in Perry and pull up cattail tubers, pick asparagus and wade for watercress. I love a watercress samwitch.


----------

