Once, on a penniless
cycling trip around the Mediterranean, I spotted a gaggle of black - clad women
in dark headscarves and thick woollen stockings, bent double at the side of the
road. They were probing the undergrowth with hefty sticks and so absorbed that
I assumed they were hunting for a lost wedding ring or a small child. Out of
sheer curiosity, and to avoid swerving around them and into the middle of the
road, I stopped. When they realised I was there, they looked up, laughing, and
held out fists of fine green and purple shoots.
Perhaps I looked
hungry (I was living on very little) because they took it upon themselves to
give me a quick lesson in hunting for what I now know is wild asparagus. It was
early spring and for several weeks afterwards, I came upon other groups of
asparagus - hunters. Everyone was at it, from shepherds foraging along the
edges of crumbling stone walls while their animals grazed nearby, to whole
families on Sunday gathering excursions.
Since then, I been
introduced by Greek and Italian friends to a whole range of wild Mediterranean
food, so that now, whenever I in that part of the world, I find myself out on
the hills or wandering along roadsides collecting oregano, thyme, dill,
rosemary, bay leaves, borage, wild garlic, dandelions, and milk thistles. On
occasions, I even bagged a bunch of garden greens such as ratheki (red - ribbed
chicory), the result of seeding plants tossed over a fence with an apron - load
of weeds.
My foraging is a
real help when it comes to increasing health and reducing expenses while
travelling but, more importantly, through it, I come to understand how
essential wild foods are to a peasant cuisine which does not necessarily rely
on the garden, or the best greens in it, to make the most delicious dishes. Consequently,
when at home in New Zealand, I now reconsider carefully before tossing any
imperfect greenery into the compost pile and I often to be found along my own
roadsides around dinner time with a basket and knife. If you want to go
gathering, here are some tips for where to look, what to gather, and how to put
it all together into a mouth watering almost - free peasant pie (known in
Greece as spanakopita).
Foraging in the wild
If you in the
country, you got it made, but even urban - dwellers can find wild greens. Where
ever you live, forage away from roadsides which may have been sprayed, and if
you can identify for sure what you about to pick, don take it. Look for: milk
thistle (commonly known as puha), dandelion, thyme, fennel, wild onion, chickweed,
garden escapees such as perennial parsley and borage.
Note: wild brassica
plants are often readily available but if you harvest them, save them for a
salad. Brassicas donsuit peasant pie.
Hunting at home
Peasant pie doesn
require your best veges. Go for greens that might otherwise be wasted:
- the leaves of going - to - seed silverbeet, spinach, celery, parsley, and leeks
- beetroot and broad bean leaves
- overblown and outside leaves of lettuce, endive, and chicory
- chives and spring onion tops
- coriander and borage
- fennel and dill
The goodness of wild greens
Wild greens are
thought to be even richer in these healthy components than their domesticated
garden - grown relatives and may be one of the factors that makes the
traditional Mediterranean diet so healthy.
0 comments:
Отправить комментарий