I Ate Weeds for Dinner

Three years ago, if you asked me to spend an afternoon hiking through a public park scavenging around for wild vegetables and herbs, I probably would have stared at you stupidly in disbelief or laughed in your face. But, my friends, that is exactly what I did last weekend…

I joined 20 other hikers (i.e. Haight-Ashbury dwelling hippies and non-profit-loving, Liberal urbanites) on a walk organized by Forage SF, a co-op with a “mission to connect Bay Area dwellers with the wild food that is all around them.” Our fearless leader, Fred Bove, a Permaculturist and instructor at UC Berkeley, took us on a two-hour leisurely walk through the western most tip of Golden Gate Park and pointed out all of nature’s edible bounty growing wild, ready for the taking.

Our first stop: a scrappy patch of (what I presumed to be) weeds growing alongside a salt-rusted and battered chain-link fence. As you can see from the picture, this isn’t exactly the idyllic field or rolling pasture that comes to mind when you think of “foraging”.

But, as Fred pointed out, these weeds are actually a delictable, lemony green called Curly Dock (Rumex crispus) that is tasty raw or cooked up. I tried a bite…okay, it’s not that tasty, but hey it’s free and really good for you! At this point in the walk, I’m trying to be open minded!

Next up, an unassuming, lily-pad looking plant called Miner’s Lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata). It’s delicate leaves taste surprisingly like butter lettuce and it grows everywhere. I stuff a few handfuls into my bag and check off part of dinner for later that evening!

Growing right next to my dinner salad is armfuls of Bermuda Buttercup (Oxalis pes caprae), which I’ve seen before in my backyard growing up. My sister and I used to chew on the stems because they taste like a sour lemon candy.

Fred uses it to make tea by boiling one part Buttercup (about a handful) with two parts water (about 2 cups worth) for 10-15 minutes. Intrigued, I try making some at home later that evening and stir in 2 tablespoons of honey. Oh my, it is delicious, so long as you can get past the pee-yellow color.

We head deeper into the park where there is more shade and stumble across various mushrooms. Fred isn’t a mycologist and tells us we will NOT be messing around with fungi today. I’m relieved…I’ve heard too many horror stories about people keeling over from eating an assuming ’shroom and I’m feeling adventurous enough at this point already. We find some New Zealand Spinach (Tetragonia teragoniodes) instead, which has the same texture as traditional spinach but is just a bit thicker. I add some to my bag for my ever growing dinner salad!

We’ve rambled around for almost two hours in the cold and I’m starting to long for a hot Starbucks, when Fred shows us a really cool plant called Salt Bush (Atriplex lentiformis). The small, grey leaves don’t look like anything special until I pop one into my mouth. It tastes salty, as the name implies! Fred suggests throwing a few leaves into our salads to help season the mix. I love this plant!

Fred points out a dozen or more plants, but my bag is full and I’m reminded of ForageSF’s “rule of three”: If there are three plants, take one. If there are three branches on a plant, take one. If there are three leaves on a branch…you got it. The idea is to leave enough for others and not to completely ravish nature.

I think I’ve taken enough from nature for the day and head home to enjoy my tea and salad. To be honest, I’m not sure I’ll be forgoing my trips to the farmer’s markets to forage for meals instead, but I am happy to know that nature has so much to offer!

Tagged as: Bermuda Buttercup, Forage, Golden Gate Park, miner's lettuce, New Zealand spinach, Salt Bush, wild lettuce