People have gathered edible plants and animals from the wild forever. This may seem alien to those who think meals come from supermarkets and restaurants, but it is still a way of life for many peoples of the world. Even in the ultra-civilized United States, interest in foraging wild food in Ca to NY is growing.
People may wonder why anyone would go out and look for something to eat outdoors when supermarkets are handy and, for those who want fresh, farmer's markets are common. Well, there are many reasons. One might be to find an ingredient for a gourmet dish. Another might be for the romance of it all; this occupation is getting trendy. Or, maybe the forager is hungry, has no money, and is looking for dinner.
Recently, television and survival websites have brought this food source back to the public's attention. It used to be knowledge found only in magazines like 'Mother Earth News' or in out-of-print books - or learned from grandparents. The fact is that many indigenous plants, even ones that grow in the cracks of sidewalks or vacant city lots, are tasty, nutritious, and even therapeutic.
People learn in school that Native Americans made flour out of acorns and taught Europeans how to find and eat oysters. They made pemmican out of roots, berries, and animal fat to carry for food on long journeys. Most adults know that toadstools may look like mushrooms but are poisonous, and that dandelion greens are edible.
This knowledge may be important someday in a time of famine. In that case, it will be helpful to know a mushroom from a toadstool. Mushrooms are valuable foods, with a taste that mimics meat and a high protein content. Making a salad of plantain, dandelion greens, watercress from a stream, and a few edible mushrooms can be lunch for a hungry person. In warm places like California, with long growing seasons, foraging is easier.
There are lots of old favorites, like field cress, watercress, and cattails. Dandelion greens, lamb's quarters, plantain, and wild onions are other familiar foods. Berries, nuts, and honey from the hive are natural delicacies. Ginseng, goldenseal, native mints, rose hips, and elderberries have medicinal properties, another thing that might be good to know.
Others may not think of themselves as foragers, yet they sprinkle nasturtium flowers in their salads or saute day-lily buds at the peak of perfection (when the buds show color but are not yet open). Day-lily buds cooked in butter taste like asparagus. Suburbanites may sugar violet flowers for cake decorations or add a sprig of mint to a glass of iced tea.
Fine restaurants are featuring ramps, purslane, and other wild foods on their menus. This brings up another aspect of foraging - responsible harvesting in order to preserve native populations of plants. Learning all the aspects of this time-honored pursuit is important for many reasons.
People may wonder why anyone would go out and look for something to eat outdoors when supermarkets are handy and, for those who want fresh, farmer's markets are common. Well, there are many reasons. One might be to find an ingredient for a gourmet dish. Another might be for the romance of it all; this occupation is getting trendy. Or, maybe the forager is hungry, has no money, and is looking for dinner.
Recently, television and survival websites have brought this food source back to the public's attention. It used to be knowledge found only in magazines like 'Mother Earth News' or in out-of-print books - or learned from grandparents. The fact is that many indigenous plants, even ones that grow in the cracks of sidewalks or vacant city lots, are tasty, nutritious, and even therapeutic.
People learn in school that Native Americans made flour out of acorns and taught Europeans how to find and eat oysters. They made pemmican out of roots, berries, and animal fat to carry for food on long journeys. Most adults know that toadstools may look like mushrooms but are poisonous, and that dandelion greens are edible.
This knowledge may be important someday in a time of famine. In that case, it will be helpful to know a mushroom from a toadstool. Mushrooms are valuable foods, with a taste that mimics meat and a high protein content. Making a salad of plantain, dandelion greens, watercress from a stream, and a few edible mushrooms can be lunch for a hungry person. In warm places like California, with long growing seasons, foraging is easier.
There are lots of old favorites, like field cress, watercress, and cattails. Dandelion greens, lamb's quarters, plantain, and wild onions are other familiar foods. Berries, nuts, and honey from the hive are natural delicacies. Ginseng, goldenseal, native mints, rose hips, and elderberries have medicinal properties, another thing that might be good to know.
Others may not think of themselves as foragers, yet they sprinkle nasturtium flowers in their salads or saute day-lily buds at the peak of perfection (when the buds show color but are not yet open). Day-lily buds cooked in butter taste like asparagus. Suburbanites may sugar violet flowers for cake decorations or add a sprig of mint to a glass of iced tea.
Fine restaurants are featuring ramps, purslane, and other wild foods on their menus. This brings up another aspect of foraging - responsible harvesting in order to preserve native populations of plants. Learning all the aspects of this time-honored pursuit is important for many reasons.
About the Author:
If you would like to learn more about foraging wild food in CA click this link to The Living Wild Project. For information on ingredients and recipes, visit us today at http://livingwild.org.
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