Bugleweed
A couple of plants go under this common name – Ajuga retans and Lycopis. The one I use most often is Ajuga reptans. However, while Ajuga is edible, it also slows the heart rate and lowers the blood pressure to the extent that it could be very dangerous if much was eaten. I like to toss a flowering stalk or two in a salad – it gives a nice bitterness and feels like I have had a couple of glasses of wine….. very nice! But, Lycopis is the main Bugleweed we look for in foraging. The roots may be cooked and served like small potatoes or Jerusalem Artichokes. As with all such tubers, they are best friends with butter, salt and a little parsley. As much as I love salads and potherbs, nothing quite fills your stomach and gives you needed calories in the plant world as do the edible tubers.
A really good way to use tubers like this is in fish cakes. Whenever I go to the woods, my top priority is to look for places to fish. I take a collapsible Tenkara fly fishing rod with me in the mountains where most streams are stocked with fish. In other areas I take a few hooks and some line with plans either to make a cane pole or run a trotline for catfish. Most any fish will do… in fact, I don’t think I have ever encountered a fish that wasn’t delicious made into fish cakes. Of course, I have never tried using barracuda or the poisonous parts of blowfish! Whatever fish you use, clean it and scale if necessary and poach it in salted water. Take it out when the meat begins to flake and boil your wild tubers or potatoes in that water. Of course, you could make a fish stew if you only had one pot and no pan, but I like to plan ahead and bring a few things with me… in fact, dried parsley and a couple of lemon slices in that pot of water will make any fish taste much better. When your tubers are cooked enough to mash, remove them and mash them up. Stir in chopped onion/wild alliums, any savory herbs you have on hand, salt and pepper, an egg or two and the flaked fish. Mix it all up together, form patties or balls and fry in fat. You can even use minnows or other bait fish in dishes like this… or a can of tuna if you pack it in.
Bull Thistle
This is probably the most common thistle that grows in my area. Like many wild edibles, it is considered a weed. I think it is a very pretty flower. It grows along side roads and trails, in pastures and old fields. Like all thistles, Bull Thistle is in the same family as Artichoke and tastes much like Artichoke. Unlike the Artichoke though, we do not eat the bull Thistle flower. The stems or stalks are best harvested in the spring, but with care! Thistles have spines, so it is best to wear gloves. Peel or trim off the outside of the stems. Boil for 15 minutes or so and then cook in the steam/saute method. These are excellent served with butter! Alternatively, you can pickle the stems.
The roots of Bull Thistle may also be harvested, peeled, slicked and cooked as a vegetable. So, why not use them to make the fish stew I mentioned under Bugleweed? Of course, you don’t have to use fish. If you pack in some meat or take some birds or small game while you are out, that will be equally delicious. Oddly enough though, I find that most folks don’t pack in meat or hunt. A friend who is an avid backpacker and camper was shocked when I told her that I always bring bacon when I go to the woods, at the very least. She was sure it would attract raccoons and more serious predators. But, I always seal my meat in two ziplock type bags and put it in a little nylon, waterproof cooler that zips up and fits easily in a backpack. I like to camp near a creek or stream so I can fish. Once there, I dig a hole in the creek bed and sink my cooler into it, weighing it down with rocks. That way, the meat stays almost as cold as it would in a refrigerator, animals won’t smell it and fish can’t get to it. I only bring a pound or so, so if some critter with a super keen sense of smell does raid my stash, it isn’t a horrible loss. That hasn’t happened yet. Old books recommend hanging sealed packages of meat on cords from branches. It can be done. Regardless, I wouldn’t keep meat in my tent… bears and coyotes have good noses!
If you brought bacon or fatback, start by rendering some fat from it in your pot and sweating down some onions/wild alliums in that. Then add water and bring to a boil. Either way, clean and scale your fish but leave the heads and tails on – there is good meat on the head and the tail adds a little gelatin to the soup. Poach your fish in salted water, preferably with some parsley (etc), pepper and lemon if you have it. When the fish begins to break apart, remove it to a plate, let cool and then pick all the usable meat off of the bones. Reserve the meat and put the bones, head and tail, back into the water and let simmer for at least 30 minutes. When all the bits are cooked off of the bones, either strain or pick out the bones carefully… or be prepared to eat carefully, leaving some of the soup in the pot, wasting it, so you don’t swallow a bone. It is best to strain, but do what you can. Then, add your fish meat back in, along with some sorrel or other wild greens. Sorrel has a nice, lemony flavor, so you can use that if you don’t have citrus. That said, add any edible greens and any edible tubers you have on hand. Add any herbs you like. If you didn’t bring bacon, just add your alliums with the greens. I prefer the taste of onions (etc) cooked in pork fat, but being cooked in the soup is fine, as well. Simmer until everything is tender. If you brought rice, add that and continue cooking until it is cooked. Salt and pepper to taste.
By the way, I always bring rice, canned beans and some canned fish. There have been many times when my skills as a woodsman have failed to put food on the plate. Or, maybe all I could catch was a couple of minnows or crawfish. If I have rice, some form of protein and even just some Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning, I can make a meal. Even if the weather won’t allow for a fire, I have a little fold up camp stove that will at least allow me to cook some rice or warm a can of beans.
Also, BTW, if you do accidentally eat a fish bone and it becomes stuck in your throat, do not panic. This happens commonly in restaurants and an old restaurant trick is to have the customer eat some bread. The bread usually clears the bone from the throat and the small fish bone is digested.
This article is an excerpt from
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The information on this site is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease or condition. Nothing on this site has been evaluated or approved by the FDA. I am not a doctor. The US government does not recognize the practice of herbal medicine and their is no governing body regulating herbalists. Therefore, I'm just a guy who studies herbs. I am not offering any advice. I won't even claim that anything I write is accurate or true! I can tell you what herbs have "traditionally been used for." I can tell you my own experience and if I believe an herb helped me. I cannot, nor would I tell you to do the same. If you use any herb I, or anyone else, mentions you are treating yourself. You take full responsibility for your health. Humans are individuals and no two are identical. What works for me may not work for you. You may have an allergy, sensitivity or underlying condition that no one else shares and you don't even know about. Be careful with your health. By continuing to read my blog you agree to be responsible for yourself, do your own research, make your own choices and not to blame me for anything, ever.
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