September 4, 2010

Eatin' Weeds

My edible weeds article got published on Etsy this past monday!


I've been going on about purslane ever since I found out it was edible.  We have sooo much of it in our garden!  It's a pretty darned amazin' plant if you ask me.  A bugger weed to have in your garden, of course.  When I weed, I usually let the weeds dry out on the sidewalk for a few hours before I get rid of them.  Purslane sat there for 3 days and it still looked juicy!

It was really rewarding to read all the comments people left on the article.  Many people said they had been pulling lots of purslane but never realized it was edible.  Others were familiar with it and told stories of their families eating it.
I also received some really yummy sounding recipe ideas including:

I usually saute it with garlic (gotta use fresh garlic), chopped onions and tomatoes (plus salt and pepper) with either cubed chicken breasts, ground pork/beef, but my fave with it is sardines (with tomato sauce, not the mackerel ones). I know that not everybody is a fan of sardines. I've seen on magazines & other TV shows where they simply blanch it and include on their salads, while some put purslane in stew - I already tried that. I served it on top of rice... Yum yum! Just thinking of it makes me hungry. I better grab some now on our backyard, we have a lot of them in the garden
One of my all time favorites! After cleaning the leaves, I mix them with plain yogurt, add a little garlic, salt and chili pepper. It makes a refreshing summer salad! You can also cook purslane any way you prepare spinach. I just LOVE it :)
Here in Cyprus it is eaten raw in salads. I never thought of cooking it tho! I got lots of this "weed" growing in my garden.
We make purselane pickles from ours! Try it, you'll like it.
Crunchy and delicious.
In Turkey it is also considered a veggie. Besides in stews we eat it raw mixed with thick biological yoghourt, fresh garlic, salt and olive oil. Leave it a couple hours like that to get the flavours mixed well and ieat it with fresh bread, delicious! :)
Purslane is also a great addition to soups, thickens it up a bit!
Thanks everyone, for all your comments.  It was pretty exciting to not only have my article published, but get so much positive feedback and know that people have been inspired to try it themselves!

Do you have a favorite edible weed?  How do you eat yours?

3 comments:

Arron K-W said...

This is fantastic news! I have a garden full of purslane and now I can do something other than composting it!

Anonymous said...

I'm very excited to stubble across your blog. I've recently been reading The Omega Diet book and it refers to this weed as a nutritious food that is commonly used in other areas diets. I had never heard of it and not sure where to find it. Thanks for posting a pic. Now I have an idea what to look for. However, I don't think I've seen it around here, Texas. I'd love to share your posting on my blog if that's ok with you? My blog is eatingmywayout.wordpress.com. I'll wait for your approval. Thanks! Keep doin' what you do!!

Ashley said...

please share all you want sheilah! if you could just please reference back to my article or blog, that would be awesome!