When you think of eating weeds in your yard, you are probably imagining something bitter and tough. Purslane is surprisingly mild and delicious. It is described as slightly lemony and a little salty, although I don't detect the saltiness. It has the highest levels of omega-3 fatty acids of any leafy plant and a multitude of other beneficial vitamins and minerals. It also has some medicinal uses. See this Wikipedia article for all of the info. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portulaca_oleracea
Some came up in my herb garden so I just let it do its thing. I hope that it continues to reseed itself. I will let some of it go to seed and not harvest it all.
It is used in many cultures around the world in many different ways, from using the seeds for cakes, pickling it, and using it the way you would spinach. I chose a Greek dish that uses tomatoes, garlic, onions, oregano, purslane, and feta cheese.
The quantities would vary depending on how much of the ingredients you have on hand. I sautéed the onions and garlic first, then added the chopped purslane and fresh oregano and tomatoes and simmered it for a few minutes with a lid on it. Then I seasoned it to taste with salt, pepper, and a little sugar to reduce the acidity. Then I turned it out into a baking dish and added the feta cheese.
It is delicious! If you were here, I would sit down with you to eat it with some crusty Italian bread and a glass of wine.
Next time you are out walking or working in your yard, keep your eye out for some delicious purslane.
Oh your dish looks so good! I would dip that bread in the sause and stuff my face with it.
Purslane grow here (Portugal) like weed nearly everywhere! Just the other day I saw it growing between concrete steps on my street. I love it in salads, sandwiches and it is also used in soups.
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I agree...dipping the bread in the sauce! Yum!
Here it likes to grow in my driveway in the gravel. I doesn't seem to care if it is a fertile place, it grows like the "weed" it is.
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It does :D And there is many weeds that we can actually eat it's amazing!
Free food... just have to know which to pick ;)
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Yes and most important is knowing which ones not to eat. Lol
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Haha yea it kinda is :p
Do you know haphazard-hstead here on Steemit? I think she knows all the weeds! And which one to eat or not and how to eat them :D
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I will have to look her up. Thanks!
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I see you have a lot of similar interests to me. I am following. :-)
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Cool! Thanks :)
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You are welcome!
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I have a herb garden also, and use it for my cooking and to make drinks, etc. since you are a hippy at heart, and I the laid back beach guy, i decided to follow you.
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Beaches and hippies are two wonderful things! Following back! Thanks!
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I absolutely love purslane and look for lots of other foraged plants to cook with. I do agree that I don't taste the salt either.
It only took six decades, but my eyes have been opened about the benefits of "weeds". I've found many medicinal and food plants on my homestead growing wild. I'm making a mullein oil right now
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Yes, I'm just about to soon step out of my sixth decade and into my seventh one and I get more interested in eating and using weeds medicinally all the time.
I am intrigued by what you said about mullein oil. I was thinking about doing a future post on mullein. Are you going to do a post about the oil? I would love to read it!
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I'm working on it right now. Well, truth be told, for the last two weeks. It's more about the plant, it's history and medicinal properties. I'm going over formulations and recipes too.
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I look forward to hearing about it!
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This is a great and inspiring reminder. This yard over here has plenty of weeds right now, which means that I need to do something brilliant like this.
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It makes me smile that I have inspired you. 😊 It's one of my goals in life...to inspire thinking creatively about life!
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