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Get out and forage – just wear gloves!
A few months ago, I texted my sister a link to a post written by Julia Sherman, a vegetable-loving, New York-based cookbook author, chef, and multimedia artist we both turn to for inspiration in the kitchen.
“Omg!!” I wrote, “Julia Sherman fed her baby puréed stinging nettles as their first meal!!” The extra exclamation points reflected how excited I was, because ever since I first learned to forage them, I have loved including nettles in my springtime vegetable rotation. I often surprise guests and delight myself by serving the cooked leaves with fresh peas on top of polenta, or tucked into a cheesy quiche.
Nettles are a nutritious, abundant, and versatile green. As someone who enjoys them, I found it validating to read that the very cool Sherman (called a “culinary impresario” by The New Yorker) felt strongly enough about the herbaceous perennial that she chose to spoon it into her baby’s mouth as their first encounter with real food.
It might seem like bad parenting to feed a child food with the word “stinging” in the name (in fact, the generic name for the species, Urtica, comes from the Latin word uro, “I burn”), but the tiny trichomes on the stems and leaves, which carry a fluid rich in histamine, acetylcholine (a neurotransmitter), and serotonin, fully deactivate when cooked; only when raw do the trichomes “sting” bare skin. Understandably, this natural defense system of the plant is enough to turn people off, even though nettles grow abundantly in most areas of the world and even though stings can be easily prevented by wearing gloves.
A Famous Wild Edible
Jamie Oliver, a British chef and food celebrity who has helped to popularize foraging in Great Britain by posting recipes with easily identified wild edibles, once wrote to his followers on social media, saying, “People might think eating stinging nettles is weird, but folks have enjoyed them for millennia.” But in this millennium, when most people have access to bagged greens that don’t burn one’s bare hands, lovers of nettles have to prove that they are worthy of the same grace given to other vexatious foods such as artichokes, whose sharp, leaf-top barbs need to be tediously removed; or rhubarb, whose stalks are edible, but whose leaves are poisonous.
I seek out nettles to rejuvenate me after a long, dark New England winter, but I also look forward to their unique taste and texture.
To embrace nettles as a food worthy of preparation, it’s crucial to understand the plant as medicinal, because part of the pleasure of eating it comes from knowing that it’s good for you. Herbal tea was my first introduction to prepared nettles. My mother, who boiled the deep green, mildly earthy, and grassy-tasting tonic on the stove and strained it into Mason jars, encouraged me to drink it after I endured a nasty illness in my early 20s. The drink helped nurture my revival, and when I caught Covid-19 in the spring of 2020, I drank it then, too.
Steve Brill, a world-renowned naturalist, forager, and educator, describes the taste of nettle tea as uniquely special: “It’s one of my favorites. It doesn’t taste like normal tea — not bitter, spicy, minty, or lemony. It’s more like a strong stock of rich, deep, green plant essence, and it’s one of the most nourishing drinks of all. Whenever I feel run down, tired, or even irritable, I make myself some.”
Because of its potent pharmacological effects, the nettle plant has been used as a natural remedy for ailments for more than 2,000 years, including for hay fever management and joint pain. The Abenaki peoples of the Northeast used dried and powdered leaves to treat nosebleeds, and the Sioux used stinging nettle tea to treat urinary issues and benign prostatic hyperplasia (uses that were also common in Europe). However, it was not until the turn of the century that nettles’ medicinal potential was thoroughly evaluated by western science. Unsurprisingly, scientists have found that nettles demonstrate the same bodily healing effects that herbalists have known about for millennia.
Healthy Stats
Many of the benefits of the plant are due to the high levels of minerals it contains, especially calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, phosphorus, manganese, silica, iodine, silicon, sodium, and sulfur. For being such an inconspicuous plant, its nutritional value is astounding. Rachel Diak, an herbalist based in Claremont, New Hampshire, calls nettles one of her favorites, and says that she finds it funny that so many people purchase magnesium supplements when they could get all the magnesium they need by sipping nettle tea for free. And a cup of cooked nettles contains more calcium (a mineral essential for bone health) than a glass of milk.
Nettles are happiest growing in disturbed (not cultivated) soil, making them more likely to propagate without help. They don’t need pesticides or fertilizers to reach full potential (as many commercial crops do).
Nettles are also a good source of vitamin A, beta carotene, and B-complex vitamins, as well as chlorophyll and tannins. A 100 gram serving of cooked nettle leaves supplies 100% of the daily requirement of vitamin A. And a whooping 26% of nettles’ calories come from protein — more than any other vegetable. Rachel says that while the histamines in nettles help the body handle inflammation, the nutrients “just sort of fill the reserves of the body,” and allow those who take them to “take care of themselves on an emotional level.” A win-win.
Investigating the benefits of consuming the entire nettle plant (as opposed to only the leaves), food scientists have found that it provides additional benefits, particularly to the gut. Dr. Diana Obanda, assistant professor in Nutrition and Food Science at the University of Maryland, uses mice and cultured cells to test the health benefits of eating nettles. Her research has found that doing so reduces the risk of obesity in mice and suggests that, for humans, consuming nettles can positively impact the bacteria in the gut microbiome and protect us from obesity and diseases associated with it. Because of nettles’ nutrients and positive effects on the gut microbiome, Dr. Obanda states that “the stinging nettle is a poster child for healthy food.”
Tasty Eats
But to fully embrace nettles as a wild edible, it’s important to think of them as a pleasurable food as well as a “healthy food.” I seek out nettles to rejuvenate me after a long, dark New England winter, but I also look forward to their unique taste and texture. They are a food that I enjoy cooking with.
In terms of taste, properly prepared nettles taste different from nettle tea, because they include the protein structure of the plant. I would compare cooked nettles to a mild spinach, but they’re grassier and slightly bitter. They are also hearty and have a thick mouthfeel. Many people who are new to cooking with nettles make the mistake of boiling them; the best way to prepare raw nettles is to steam them, which brings out their natural sweetness and doesn’t make their texture slimy; sautéing them also works well.
When explaining why she fed her baby a purée of stinging nettles, Julia Sherman didn’t speak to the nettle’s nutritional value. Instead, she emphasized their bitter vegetable-like taste, something she wanted her baby to experience and learn to enjoy the way she did. “Bitter was an important thing for me,” she was quoted as saying in a New Yorker article, “because I feel like that’s a really crucial end of the culinary spectrum that some people are just not into.”
I loved that Sherman brought nettles into a broader discussion about the American palate and what foods we are accustomed to liking. As babies, we are born with a propensity toward sweetness, which sticks with us as we age. To learn to enjoy bitter foods, many of us either need repeated exposure to a bitter food, or need to progressively enjoy it in association with something that is better liked. I, for instance, still cannot eat radicchio alone. But when it’s paired in a salad with butternut squash, or dressed with a sweet, balsamic glaze, I adore it. Nettles are in a similar category, and it’s essential to treat them as you would other slightly bitter vegetables and flavor, pair, and season them appropriately.
Global Versatility
People worldwide who appreciate nettles have incorporated them into their own cuisines and learned to properly cook them. In Central Italy, where stinging nettles are widely foraged and consumed, people use them in omelets, soups, and pasta dishes. Another standard preparation includes sautéing them on the stovetop with peppers. Inhabitants of Gorbeialdea, a region in Spanish Basque Country, routinely enjoy stewed nettles in their omelets as well. In Ireland, where nettles grow everywhere in the spring, nettle soup is a seasonal special in pubs and lodges, enhanced with cream and potatoes.
Recently, Eastern Europe has seen a revival of historical food and folk customs, including foraging for edibles. One of my favorite ways to use nettles comes from Polish Chef Zuza Zak, who coats the leaves in a beer and chickpea flour batter and fries them in oil on the stovetop. In this preparation, the stingers on the leaves enhance the recipe, because the batter clings to the tiny trichomes, making them sturdy, crisp, and absolutely delectable, while the cooking neutralizes the sting itself.
My sister (the one who received my excited message about stinging nettle baby food) developed a taste for nettles when her fieldwork as a geologist took her to Nepal’s Himalayas, where nettles pop up even in high altitudes. The Nepalis have many names for nettles, the most common being sisnu. Traditionally, sisnu is made into a soup known as satuk, which is flavored with warm spices such as black pepper and ginger and sometimes other ingredients such as stock, honey, and milk. Next door in Tibet, folklore states that the beloved Bodhisattva Milarepa, an 11th-century hermit, poet, and Tibetan Buddhist cultural hero, survived for years on nothing but cooked nettles. They say he became green and attained enlightenment.
No Farming Required
I am not a spiritual expert, but eating nettles in pursuit of enlightenment seems a valid notion, because, environmentally speaking, nettles’ existence supports ecological harmony. Nettles are happiest growing in disturbed (not cultivated) soil, making them more likely to propagate without help. They don’t need pesticides or fertilizers to reach full potential (as many commercial crops do). Whereas spinach, for example, requires land and irrigation for cultivation which can negatively impact biodiversity and local ecosystems, nettles add iron and minerals to the soil and fertilize and replenish neighboring plants. They also provide housing for 40 species of insects and are the primary food source for the caterpillars of several butterfly species. For a conscious consumer like me, all of this adds to the food’s appeal.
Nettles are so delicious and can be eaten in so many ways. If you’re convinced to give them a try, I encourage you to put on gloves, long pants, and long sleeves, and go foraging. Springtime is a great time to look because that’s when the new growth sprouts up.
I am excited about the various ways I see nettles being used as food in the United States. North American Indigenous peoples historically embraced nettles for medicinal and textile use, and many consumed it as a cooked green. In some tribes, the tradition of using nettles lives on, but in new ways that address the health challenges of the 21st century. In Washington state, the Tulalip Tribes’ Hibulb Cultural Center hosts a “Rediscovery Program” in which participants harvest nettles from the tribal forestlands each spring and use them to make tea, flavored lemonade, pesto, and a diabetic-friendly version of buckskin bread called “Hibulb bread,” which uses ground nettles as a baked-in seasoning in lieu of sugar and salt.
Nettles’ use as a seasoning is also on the rise. Recently, while browsing for some goodies at my local cheese shop, I came across crackers baked by Frog Hollow Farmstead in Castleton, Vermont. The baker finished the rustic crackers with a dusting of ground-up dried nettles and salt. I was delighted to see this rare inclusion of nettles into a commercial food product, and even more delighted when I tasted the crackers, which were delicious.
Foraging for Nettles
If I’ve convinced you to give nettles a try, I encourage you to put on gloves, long pants, and long sleeves, and go foraging. Springtime is a great time to look, because that’s when the new growth sprouts up. It’s important to harvest plants when they are young and haven’t yet flowered, when they contain more nutrients and are less bitter. Rachel Diak (the herbalist) told me that foraging younger leaves is ideal because the older plants contain compounds that can be hard on the kidneys. You can freeze or dry unused nettles to use throughout the year.
Nettles prefer rich soil with large amounts of nitrogen, so look for them in disturbed habitats — land or soil near human habitation that hasn’t been trampled — such as moist woodlands, thickets, along rivers, on partially shaded trails, even grown-over vacant lots. Sometimes they can be confused with catnip, but their sting and lack of aroma will give them away. In the city, you might find them in the corners of rehabilitated green spaces. Nettles are perennials, so once you identify a patch, you can keep going back every year to look for young growth. To harvest, wear gloves and use scissors to clip the leaves from the stems. I like to collect them in a basket, which makes me feel timeless, or in a brown paper bag, which does a good job of preventing accidental stinging.
And if you do get stung, I’m here to tell you that the world doesn’t end. Some foragers I know even enjoy it! But I wouldn’t recommend it. Last spring, when I unexpectedly came across a patch of young nettles, I had no gloves to protect my hands, but I couldn’t help myself and stuffed my pockets full of leaves. The buzzing sensation started on my hands a few minutes later, and hours afterward, they still pulsed with a warm, prickly feeling. Tolerable, yes. Desirable, no.
Lovers of nettles have to prove that they are worthy of the same grace given to other vexatious foods such as artichokes, whose sharp, leaf-top barbs need to be tediously removed; or rhubarb, whose stalks are edible, but whose leaves are poisonous.
That being said, if you ever find yourself in a similar gloveless situation, consider this: Nettles’ stinging quality has been considered a beneficial asset for thousands of years. Urtication, or the beating of one’s limbs with stalks of stinging nettle, was used by Indigenous tribes, ancient Egyptians, and other peoples worldwide to relieve painful, arthritic joints, stimulate circulation, and keep warm. Modern science confirms that when the histamine and acetylcholine in the trichomes are injected into tissue, they cause an awakening of cellular responses, lymph flow, and nerve and capillary stimulation. So if the leaves do sting you, they might even be doing you some good.
Cooking With Nettles
When planning a menu around nettles, think of using intense flavors that balance out the earthy greens. Consider cheeses like Asiago, Jack, Parmesan and sharp Cheddars. Include alliums like leeks and garlic; herbs such as thyme, marjoram, dill, and parsley; and spices such as black pepper, chilies, nutmeg, and ginger. You can also try nettles with acidic components such as mustard, lemon, lime, and wine vinegars, or, if you eat them, smoked meats or fish. Substituting cooked nettles in classic dishes such as spanakopita, ravioli, or eggs Florentine is also a good bet. When embraced as they are, nettles offer endless possibilities. In Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, chef Sabina Osmanović dreamed of a fine-dining restaurant that would “pay respect” to the nettle, which she felt had been “unjustly marginalized” as a wild food. She opened her restaurant and named it Žara iz Duvara (The Singing Nettle.) The menu is entirely devoted to stinging nettles, and almost every dish incorporates them. I am glad that restaurants like this exist and that food influencers like Julia Sherman are feeding nettles to their babies, even if they need a little extra care while handling.
Finding Nettles
- Farmers markets will sometimes have nettles (such as this one in Brooklyn).
- You can also grow your own! Check out these tips from the Gardener’s Path.
- If you’re game to forage, whether you live in the city or the country (or somewhere in between), check out Caroline’s guide to foraging in the Northeast, and pick up some tips for foraging in Southern California.
- Massachusetts farmer Rebecca Gilbert has a book about foraging for weeds: Weedy Wisdom for the Curious Forager: Common Wild Plants to Nourish Your Body & Soul (on Amazon)
RECIPE: Creamy Nettle Soup With Potato and Warm Spices
- Yield: Serves 4
Description
This delightful nettle-y variation on cream of broccoli soup is similar to versions of satuk, the nettle soup popular in Nepal. It requires quite a bit of nettles, so if you find a lot of them while foraging, this is a great way to use them. You can substitute store-bought spinach for half of the nettles if you can’t find enough where you live.
Ingredients
- 30 cups nettles
- 1 1/2 cups yellow potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch cubes
- 1 large yellow onion, medium diced
- 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 serrano or jalapeño pepper, thinly sliced (optional)
- 1 1/2 tsp freshly grated ginger root
- 1/2 cup ghee
- 1/4 cup untoasted sesame oil (or a neutral oil such as avocado oil or canola oil)
- 2 tsps ground coriander
- 2 tsps ground fennel seeds
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 pod star anise, ground
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 5 cups vegetable stock, plus extra if desired
- 1 Tbsp plus 1/4 tsp salt, divided
- 1 cup full-fat yogurt, strained
- 1/3 cup dill leaves, finely chopped (about 4-5 sprigs)
- 1 Tbsp lemon zest
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- First, cook the nettles using a waterless steaming method.
- Transfer the cooked greens to a colander and place the colander in the sink or over a bowl, allowing the greens to drain. When the nettles are cool enough to handle, gently squeeze the greens to remove any excess moisture. Chop them in bite-size pieces and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, onion, garlic, chili pepper (if using), and ginger. Set aside.
- Warm the ghee and oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. When they are warm and shimmering, stir in the coriander, fennel, cumin, pepper, star anise, and turmeric. Toast the spices in the fat until they are hot and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Avoid burning.
- Add the potato-onion mixture to the pan, and gently sauté for 45 minutes or until the potatoes are very soft. Stir occasionally to avoid sticking, turning down the heat if necessary. When finished, the potatoes will easily smash with a wooden spoon.
- When the potatoes are done cooking, add the vegetable stock and 1 tablespoon of the salt. Increase the heat to high and bring to a simmer. Turn off the heat and let it cool.
- While the soup stock cools, make the yogurt topping: In a small bowl, combine the yogurt, dill, lemon zest, and pepper. Refrigerate until serving time.
- When the soup stock mixture is cool enough to handle, combine it with the chopped nettles in a blender (you might have to do this in batches). Blend the mixture until smooth and creamy.
- Pour the puréed soup back into a pot and warm it to a gentle simmer on the stove. If you like the soup’s consistency, leave it. If you would like it thinner, add 1/2 cup of stock at a time and incorporate thoroughly.
- Add the remaining 1/4 teaspoon of salt, or more to taste. Serve the nettle soup warm with dollops of the dill yogurt on top and a grind of pepper.
RECIPE: Beer-Battered Nettle Leaves With Honey Mustard Dip
- Yield: Serves 4
Description
I adore this way of preparing nettles. Many greens would collapse under the weight of the batter and oil but the structure of the nettle helps to hold the batter to it.
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (optional)
- Heaping 3/4 cup chickpea flour
- 1/4 cup water, more if needed
- 1/2 cup beer (like a lager)
- 1/4 tsp celery salt (optional)
- 15-20 large nettle leaves, rinsed and dried
- Canola oil or grapeseed oil for frying
Instructions
- Make the dipping sauce: In a small bowl whisk together the honey, mustard, olive oil, and lemon juice if using. Set aside.
- Make the batter: Sift the chickpea flour into a large bowl and whisk in the water. When the water is incorporated, slowly add in the beer, whisking as you go and adding more water as necessary. The batter should have the consistency of heavy cream. Whisk in the celery salt if using.
- Wearing gloves or using a utensil, add the nettle leaves to the batter, make sure they are coated and let them soak for 5 minutes.
- While they soak, heat a medium-sized cast-iron skillet over medium heat and add enough oil so that it reaches 1 inch in depth.
- When the oil is hot enough (a drop of the batter should confidently sizzle when it hits the oil), use tongs to transfer the nettle leaves into the oil and fry for 30 to 45 seconds each side. Depending on the size of your skillet, you may need to do multiple batches.
- Using tongs, remove the nettles from the oil and drain on a towel-lined plate. Serve warm with the dipping sauce.
RECIPE: Nettle-Topped Polenta With Peas and Chèvre
- Yield: Serves 2 to 4 1x
Ingredients
- 6 cups water
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cups corn grits
- 4 Tbsps olive oil, divided, plus more for serving
- Sea salt to taste
- 6 cups nettles
- 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 2 medium leeks, trimmed and thinly sliced
- 2 cups English peas (frozen, or freshly shelled and blanched)
- 8 oz chèvre, divided
- Juice of 1 lemon, divided
- Zest of 1 lemon
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Make the polenta: Add the water and salt to a medium pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Slowly pour in the corn grits and whisk constantly until the mixture is boiling again.
- Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and cook uncovered for 20 to 25 minutes. Continue whisking occasionally to ensure the grits do not stick. When the grits are cooked, turn off the heat and stir in 2 tablespoons of olive oil and salt to taste. Cover and set aside.
- Next, cook the nettles using a waterless steaming method.
- In a wide skillet over medium-low heat, warm the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the sliced garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant but not browned. Add the leeks and a big pinch of salt and cook for 5 minutes or until softened. Next, add the peas and stir until heated through, about 2 minutes. Add the cooked nettles and stir to incorporate.
- Turn off the heat and add half the chèvre, half the lemon juice, and the lemon zest. Stir to combine. Taste and season with salt and pepper. If desired, add the remaining lemon juice.
- To plate, divide the polenta into bowls and top with the nettles, peas, and leeks. Crumble the remaining goat cheese on top along with a drizzle of olive oil and a big twist of black pepper. Serve warm.
RECIPE: Simply Seasoned Waterless Steamed Nettles
- Yield: Serves 1 to 4 1x
Description
This is the optimal way to cook nettles over boiling or blanching, which alters the texture. It uses very little water, so it concentrates the flavor and nutrition. Use this method when adding cooked nettles to dishes such as omelets, quiches, pastas, or grain bowls. Nettles cook down like spinach, so double the recipe if necessary.
Ingredients
- About 8 cups nettles (or more)
- Olive oil, to taste
- Sesame oil, to taste (optional)
- Lemon juice, to taste
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Wearing gloves, gather the nettles, rinse them under cool water, and trim any big stems with scissors. Shake off excess water and chop the greens.
- Place them in a large, heavy-bottom pot, such as a Dutch oven. Do not add any additional water.
- Cover, and cook on low heat for 5 to10 minutes until totally wilted. Check the greens once or twice and try not to overcook.
- Add olive oil (and sesame oil, if using), lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Mix and serve warm.
