Northern Light
Lt. Colonel
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2014
I just picked my first fiddleheads of the season. I have a nice little patch down by the stream near the back of my property. Fiddleheads are the unfurled heads of Ostrich Ferns, Matteuccia struthiopteris, which grown in damp shady areas, most often along river beds, in my neck of the woods. According to Wikipedia,
"It is a crown-forming, colony-forming plant, occurring in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere in central and northern Europe, northern Asia, and northern North America. The species epithet struthiopteris comes from Ancient Greek words, struthio meaning ostrich and pterion meaning wing.
It grows from a completely vertical crown, favoring riverbanks and sandbars, but sends out lateral stolons to form new crowns. It thus can form dense colonies resistant to destruction by floodwaters."
We should have a late crop this year, due to all the flooding in my province.
Fiddleheads have been eaten for centuries, as they are one of the first crops to emerge in the spring. The tightly furled heads have been part traditional diets in much of Northern France since the beginning of the Middle Ages, across Asia, and also among Native Americans. I cannot prove it, but I would bet many of New England soldiers grew up eating fiddleheads, and dreamed of them in the spring when they were far from home.
Fiddleheads are labour intensive to prepare as they must be shaken to dispose of as much of the brown husk as possible, and then rinsed at least three times to remove any remaining husk and any dirt. They are worth the effort.
Fiddlehead closeup
Ɱ [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Fiddleheads that are ready to be picked. You can see how they got their name.
Fiddleheads Crosses de fougère
New Brunswick Tourism [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Freshly picked fiddleheads, head to cook.
Acoording to New England Today, " They’re best served simply, sautéed with a bit of butter and an allium, such as garlic, shallots, or minced onion. Here’s a favorite fiddleheads recipe that’s both easy and flavorful.
To prepare them for cooking, wash about 1 1/4 pounds of fiddleheads in cold water and rub away any papery “scales,” then trim the ends. Because the plants are wild, it’s wise to make sure they’re thoroughly cooked before serving, to avoid the possibility of food-borne illness. So the best method is to boil them in salted water for about 10 minutes, then sauté.
Paired with roasted salmon, this fiddleheads recipe yields a delicious spring meal (I used the thinly sliced ramp leaves as a garnish).
https://newengland.com/today/food/side-dishes/vegetables/easy-fiddleheads-recipe/
"It is a crown-forming, colony-forming plant, occurring in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere in central and northern Europe, northern Asia, and northern North America. The species epithet struthiopteris comes from Ancient Greek words, struthio meaning ostrich and pterion meaning wing.
It grows from a completely vertical crown, favoring riverbanks and sandbars, but sends out lateral stolons to form new crowns. It thus can form dense colonies resistant to destruction by floodwaters."
We should have a late crop this year, due to all the flooding in my province.
Fiddleheads have been eaten for centuries, as they are one of the first crops to emerge in the spring. The tightly furled heads have been part traditional diets in much of Northern France since the beginning of the Middle Ages, across Asia, and also among Native Americans. I cannot prove it, but I would bet many of New England soldiers grew up eating fiddleheads, and dreamed of them in the spring when they were far from home.
Fiddleheads are labour intensive to prepare as they must be shaken to dispose of as much of the brown husk as possible, and then rinsed at least three times to remove any remaining husk and any dirt. They are worth the effort.
Fiddlehead closeup
Ɱ [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Fiddleheads that are ready to be picked. You can see how they got their name.
Fiddleheads Crosses de fougère
New Brunswick Tourism [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Freshly picked fiddleheads, head to cook.
Acoording to New England Today, " They’re best served simply, sautéed with a bit of butter and an allium, such as garlic, shallots, or minced onion. Here’s a favorite fiddleheads recipe that’s both easy and flavorful.
To prepare them for cooking, wash about 1 1/4 pounds of fiddleheads in cold water and rub away any papery “scales,” then trim the ends. Because the plants are wild, it’s wise to make sure they’re thoroughly cooked before serving, to avoid the possibility of food-borne illness. So the best method is to boil them in salted water for about 10 minutes, then sauté.
Paired with roasted salmon, this fiddleheads recipe yields a delicious spring meal (I used the thinly sliced ramp leaves as a garnish).
https://newengland.com/today/food/side-dishes/vegetables/easy-fiddleheads-recipe/
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