Common Plantain in Peanut Sauce

Plantain was one of the first wild edibles that I learned.  There are two types that grow in this area, Common and English.  Common plantain is the type with the wide leaves while the English variety has narrow leaves.  Once you connect the picture to the name, you will see these everywhere.  English plantain tends to linger all winter, though the color turns a bit muddy green.  You can actually dig through snow and still find it, if you were desperate.  Common plantain disappears and does not return until spring. It is more tender.

This is a great plant to know for relief from skin irritations.  You can chew the leaves and place the wad of green pulp on a bug bite to take away the sting or itch.  However, making a salve out of it is much preferred.  I use the salve on everything and am always amazed about how well it works.  I prefer to use the English plantain for salve and the common plantain for eating. 

Both types have lines or veins that run the length of the leaves.  Within each vein is a string, which makes eating a whole leaf unpleasant.  However, if you cut against the grain of these veins so that you have strips of green leaf to cook, you will not even notice a string.  You want to choose the youngest leaf available as they are the most tender.

Common Plantain in Peanut Sauce

Ingredients:

1 gallon baggie of plantain leaves

salt for boiling water

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup water
4 tablespoons of rice vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1/4 t cayenne pepper
1/2 t dried ginger

handful peanuts for garnish (optional)

Directions:

Bring a pot of water to boil.  Wash plantain.  Stack leaves to slice against the grain of the leaves into strips.  Repeat until all leaves are cut.  Boil in salted water for 10 minutes.

 

In a sauce pan, add remaining ingredients (except peanut garnish) and mix until smooth.  Heat until warm.

Drain plantain and mix in peanut sauce.  Place into serving dish and top with loose peanuts for garnish.

What's Growing in January in Tennessee?

Several days ago I took a walk in one of my favorite parks, Harlinsdale, to see what is growing in one of the coldest months of the year for Tennessee.  I found thriving watercress, field pennycress, wild mustard, motherwort, chickweed, wild garlic, clover, dead nettle, ground ivy and plantain.  Here are some of the photos!

Field pennycress, tastes mildly spicy with a hint of garlic. It is really starting to come in season.

English plantain, can be eaten as a green or made into a wonderful salve for the skin.

White avens, Geum canadense, in the rose family.  The roots have been used as a chocolate substitute and for flavoring beer.  It has also been used in Indian medicine for digestive disorders. 

Wild garlic, can be used like you would use chives.

Young purple dead nettle, member of the mint family though it is not minty.

Chickweed

More wild garlic, one of my favorite spring edibles!  It's popping up everywhere.

Wild mustard, starting to sprout out!  It's spicy eaten raw but mild when cooked.

Ground ivy, in the mint family and makes a great herb.  It's flavor is a cross between sage and rosemary. 

November Foraging in the Mid-South!

While the north is buried under six feet of snow, we are fortunately still growing some wild edibles!  I must admit, it makes me very happy to live in an area that has exactly four equal seasons.  By the time you get sick of one, the next one is beginning!  This also gives us a wide variety of available plants at different times of the year.  The fall season is still in full bloom even after a few frosts.  January and February is generally the barren season of the year.  By the end of February, you might see a few onions.  However, there is much to see today!

Watercress which grows in a spring.  Because the water temperature is never extreme, it grows all year.

Make sure you invest in a pair of these if you are going into the spring!

Field Pennycress, great in salads and has a mild peppery taste.

Thistle, if you cut the stickers off you can eat the center.  Tasty but a real pain.

Juniper berries, great seasoning for wild meat and pork. It's what gin is made of.

Rose hips, can be used to make tea or jelly.  It has more vitamin C than oranges.

English Plantain, edible as a green and makes a wonderful salve.

Curly Dock, edible as a green, in the buckwheat family

Chickweed, it loves the cool weather.  It is one of my favorites and makes a great pesto.

Carolina Geranium, has medicinal uses.

Motherwort, makes a great soothing tea.  It never dies out here.  It is an amazing plant.

Wild mustard, can be eaten as a green.  It currently is mild tasting but will become more harsh as it ages.  It grows well in the early spring and loves cool weather.

Blackberry leaves are still green and can be picked and dried for teas.

Clover leaves, edible green.

Young Cleavers, edible and medicinal

Burdock leaves, the roots make a great wild edible!

Happy hunting and be sure you know 100% of what you are eating!  Please research using multiple sources.

October Foraging in Tennessee!

What can you find right now?  Here are a few easy to find wild edibles.

Curly Dock, Rumex crispus, is loving the cooler weather! Now is a great time to pick and dehydrate for the winter.  Curly Dock is a rhubarb relative in the Buckwheat family.  It is high in beta-carotine, vitamin C and zinc.  It was a popular edible during the Great Depression. Occasionally one will show up in my garden and it does so much better than my other vegetables!

Wood Sorrel, very lemony and great for sauces.

Amaranth, probably Amaranthus spinosus, grows like crazy everywhere. Leaves and seeds are edible. Amaranth seeds are a popular high end edible found at Whole Foods!

Amaranth close up.

English Plantain also likes the cooler weather.  Edible as a green though stringy but great for making salves.

Black Walnuts are dropping everywhere!

Rose Hips are starting to ripen.  They have more vitamin C than oranges!

Thistle, cut the thorns off and the center of the leaves are tasty.  Wear gloves!

Blackberry leaves make good tea and are medicinal.  It has been used to treat diarrhea.

More Dock!  It loves to grow in infertile soil and fields.  It shoots up a large amount of red seeds which can also be used as a flour.

Mulberry leaves for tea.  Great for diabetics.  It blocks sugar from entering into your bloodstream.

Motherwort.  Makes a calming tea. Red berries in the background are honeysuckle and not edible.

Motherwort close up.  Nature's Prozac.

Haws (Hawthorn berries), great for jams, jellies, and wine.  Great for the heart.  It strengthens the heart muscle and increases the blood flow from the heart.  It has also been shown to lower blood pressure.  Flowers and leaves can be used to make tea.

Acorns.  They vary in the amount of tannins which makes them bitter.  The smaller the cap the less bitter.  White oaks are generally less bitter.  White Oak leaves have tradition Oak shape but rounded edges not sharp.  Soak repeatedly in hot but not boiling water to remove tannins.  Can be used to make acorn flour.

More Haws from a different tree.  Hawthorn trees are variable with different shaped leaves and different size of berries. There are over 280 known species. Look for the thorns.

Bradford Pear fruit.  Can be used to make jelly, wine or a nice sweet and sour sauce.  Very tart.

Crab Apples are still available!

More crab apples, though much smaller.

Maypops, Passionflower fruit, are starting to fall to the ground ripe. Fruit can be used to make jelly while the leaves and flowers can be used in tea.  They have been used traditionally as a sleep aid and a calming influence.

What have you found growing this time of year?