Foraging is now one of our favorite weekend pastimes. It doesn't get much fresher or more local than foraging in a field or grassy area near your home! We probably would have spent $20 on greens and berries from what we foraged this weekend within a mile of our home.
Mmmmm....spring berries!
On Saturday morning we went out as a family to pick mulberries and blackberries near our home in an area that seems to have little pollution. Unfortunately, the mulberries are almost gone and the blackberries are not quite ripe, but we did find enough mulberries for a tasty morning snack. I'm sure our three year old son is making good memories of hunting for berries. A few weeks ago we were able to pick bags full of mulberries, which we mostly dehydrated for future camping snacks.
Dandelions, kudzu and briers, not a dread but a delicious dish!
We also picked green briers (yes, those pesky briers that catch on your clothing as you walk through the woods are edible and the shoots and young leaves make a tasty salad!) which we served for dinner on Sunday night as part of a big salad. We also ate our first kudzu dish with our lunch on Saturday. We sauteed the kudzu in butter and a little salt. They remind me of collards or kale, only furrier. :-)
Another favorite of ours is dandelion greens which were very good in early spring, but are edible year-round.
If you're interested in foraging, please be sure to educate yourself on different plants for your own safety. There are poisonous plants around Raleigh too! A good resource my husband frequently uses is the Eat the Weeds website which has many great videos.
This thing still on? I've got a map of persimmon trees in the area, and a bunch of gps points for blackberries and such. Have you ever considered working on a crowd-source map of foraging opportunities? I'd be happy to work on it with you. I'm only good for a few types of plants, i'd love some help, especially in the mushroom category.
ReplyDeleteDwight, I would love to learn more about working with others with foraging. I have only met a couple others in Raleigh who are also interested in foraging. One lady showed me some plants like wild ginger and poke weed. I want to learn about medicinal plants too. Persimmon trees--awesome! I actually don't know anything about mushrooms so we pretty much avoid them. Now that we own a house we mostly forage in our backyard. I just picked dandelion greens and plantain to cook for dinner.
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