Comments on: Wild food

By: Penny

Penny — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 07:35:29 +0000

Frenette, I live in Brittany and and have been given a bottle of frenette an alcoholic/wine drink, made from Ash, I can’t find out which part of the Ash it’s made from [ would guess young leaves] can anyone help please

By: CAROL

CAROL — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 09:36:53 +0000

I love wild garlic and the seasonis approaching. Does anyone know anywhere in or near London where one can pick it?

By: Granny Magda

Granny Magda — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 06:57:39 +0000

Oh, nearly forgot! The bible of wild food is “Food For Free” by Richard Mabey. It is required reading for anyone interested in wild food. It isn’t a field guide however, so you will want one of those as well, just to avoid any confusion over correct identification.

By: Granny Magda

Granny Magda — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 06:55:37 +0000

The sorrel referred to above, rumex acetosa, is a wild version of French sorrel. It is related to dock. The wild version is called sheep’s sorrel.
The three-leaved plant known as wood sorrel, the one like a shamrock, is oxalis acetosa. It is not related to sheep’s sorrel or garden sorrel, but shares a similar flavour.

Neither is poisonous and both are good to eat. However, they both owe their sour flavour to the presence of oxalic acid. This makes them unsuitable for those with rheumatic problems, kidney or bladder stones, pregnant women and very young children, all of whom should eat sorrel only sparingly.

Wood sorrel is a much less common plant than sheep’s sorrel, so sheep’s sorrel makes a better choice of wild food IMO. Both are good food though, as an addition to salads, for sorrel soup (very nice) or to act as a foil for fatty meat or oily fish.

By: juliette

juliette — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 17:21:49 +0000

So is that French sorrel or wood sorrel, the one that look like a shamrock, more interested in eating the latter? Is that ok or poisonous?thanks

By: jade

jade — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 16:34:43 +0000

I`ve just discovered a lovely little book called “A Hedgerow Cookbook” by Gleenie Kindred. Tracey it does has a small section on nuts and seeds, not too many recipes but well worth a look.

By: Merlin

Merlin — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 19:41:39 +0000

Thats one thing I miss about the countryside is picking the wild foods, my mum used to live in a place called Talysarn (near Dorothea quarry) and in the summer time there are whole hillsides covered with wild strawberries, its amazing I’ve never seen anything like it anywhere else before.

By: Dekk

Dekk — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 06:53:34 +0000

Excellent, thank you for this we have a large wood behind our house, the children and I now spend a lot more time over there gathering food (not much gets back home).

By: mike

mike — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 09:35:58 +0000

Thanks for the recipe John – it looks great!

By: john

john — Sat, 21 Apr 2007 11:40:13 +0000

Hi, you can also make nettleade

1 hatfull of nettle tops
450 gram/ 1lb brown sugar or honey
1 orange
1 lemon
3/4 cookpot full of water

1) put nettle tops and sugar in the cookpot add the water and simmer for 15 minutes

2)cut orange and lemon in half and squeeze into cooling liquid
then add the squeezed halves

3)when cool strain and enjoy

you can also make

gorseade,cloverade,cowslipade,dandelionade,elderberryade,and elderflowerade