Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Edible Wild Plants: How to Eat Stinging Nettle with David Wolfe

This is a fantastic video. David Wolfe shows you how to eat stinging nettles straight from nature.

How do you pick a stinging nettle? The younger leaves are the easiest. The older one sting more. You come from underneath, pull and grab the leaf, like a taco. If you do it wrong, you will feel the nettles sting in your fingers for a few hours. In your mouth they might sting, but it doesn't last longer than 30 seconds.

Stinging nettle is one of the most powerful wild foods, full with iron, magnesium and silicon. The real nutrition in nature is in stinging nettles and grasses. You can juice nettle, add it to smoothies or salads.

The juicing and blending take away the stinging. I used to put them in hot water for a few seconds and afterwards in cold water. You can do this for a salad. For a smoothie or juice, this is not necessary. Nettle is one of the strongest wild foods with a very mild taste. You can keep adding it.

Nettle is a great food to eat in springtime to build up your blood and energy. The root of stinging nettle is good for the prostate.

1 comment:

schwartz2001 said...

You could also just peel off the edges of the leaves and it makes the stinging nettle edible.