Wild Thing, I Think I'll Eat You
If "Wildman" Steve Brill were dropped in Central Park with nothing but a pocketknife, he could eat pretty well. No, he wouldn't rob a hot dog cart. He'd forage. The naturalist began leading edible foraging trips in 1982. He started with just two or three students and now gets groups of 50. Here are a few tips for fresh foragers:
1 Step outside. You don't need to climb a mountain to find wild edibles. With a rich mix of native species and garden and landscape exotics, the suburbs actually offer more variety (bamboo shoots are especially yummy).
2 Start with dandelions. Their tender young leaves, packed with vitamins A and C and iron, are great in salads. Once flower heads appear, greens can become too bitter; use yellow blooms for battered fritters. Forage far from roadside pollution--and avoid pesticides or fertilizer.
3 Branch out (carefully). The cattail's inner stem, for example, can be cooked like asparagus. For safety, you need to be familiar with poison ivy and other dangerous species, and to ID any plant with certainty. A field guide is a must; Brill's Identifying and Harvesting Edible and Medicinal Plants is $23 at wildmanstevebrill.com . Or try a class taught by a local naturalist.
4 Forage at home. Hunt and gather for change under sofa cushions. Use it to pay for foraged foods online at wildpantry.com .
This story appears in the April 18, 2005 print edition of U.S. News & World Report.
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