Eating weeds…

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When we imagine wild harvesting we usually picture vast virgin spaces to which we must travel great distances if we are to enjoy their boreal flavours. And yet in fact, all around us and under our very noses, there are dozens of delicious wild plants, many of which are familiar to us. So…how about a weed salad?

A number of wild greens have strong flavours. Because of this, it’s a good idea to choose carefully in order to create a balanced salad.

The first plants to choose are selected for their mild taste and the volume they can provide. The leaves of wild violets, which often grow in large colonies, are an excellent choice. Then lamb’s quarters (Chenopodium album) is a widespread, highly invasive weed, very commonly found in gardens and one of the planet’s most nutritive plants! It can be harvested to our heart’s content. The leaves of daisies, lightly peppery, are easy to pick and add a complex flavour to the salad. For a touch of bitterness, add a few young dandelion leaves, ideally picked early in the season and in the shade, to avoid a too-strong flavour. Lastly, our wild salad will benefit from a touch of acidity with the addition of sheep sorrel or yellow oxalis – both of which are known as “surette” in French.

Weed salad

  • 1 cup wild violet leaves (with flowers, if in season)
  • 1 cup daisy leaves (perhaps with the flower petals?)
  • 1 cup lamb’s quarters
  • 1/2 cup young dandelion leaves
  • 1/2 cup sheep sorrel or yellow oxalis leaves

Dress with a dash of olive oil, 3 Tbsp birch syrup (or balsamic vinegar), and the juice of half a lemon.

Enjoy your picking!

Gérald Le Gal8 Posts

Enseignant, agent de développement, pêcheur commercial, conférencier et coanimateur avec sa fille Ariane de la série télévisée Coureurs des bois sur les ondes de Télé-Québec, Gérald Le Gal a exercé mille métiers au Québec, au Canada et à l’étranger. Du Grand Nord aux forêts boréales de l’Ontario, en passant par les côtes maritimes du Québec, Gérald est entré en contact avec les peuples autochtones ojibwé, inuit et innu. Il passe des mois en forêt à s’initier aux méthodes de survie ancestrale des peuples amérindiens. Sa passion: la nature et la relation des êtres avec celle-ci. En 1993, Gérald Le Gal fonde Gourmet Sauvage. Cette petite entreprise assure la récolte et la transformation des plantes sauvages comestibles du Québec à des fins culinaires. / Teacher, development agent, commercial fisher, speaker and co-host with his daughter Ariane of the television series “Coureurs des bois” on Télé-Québec, Gérald Le Gal has practised a thousand different callings in Quebec, the rest of Canada and abroad. From the Great North to Ontario’s boreal forests by way of the seacoasts of Quebec, Gérald came into contact with Ojibway, Inuit and Innu peoples. He spent months in the forest learning the ancient survival methods of Indigenous peoples. His passion: nature, and the relationship of humans with it. In 1993, Gérald Le Gal founded Gourmet Sauvage. The small company undertook the harvest and transformation of Quebec’s edible wild plants for culinary purposes.

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Picking mushrooms

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