- Fiddlehead Ferns
Now that Fred-the-New-Man-in-Our-Lives has removed some of the winter debris in our garden, I can actually see what’s there! Fiddlehead ferns, that’s what!
In reality, it’s a patch of bracken that grows in the southwest corner, no matter what. I’ve tried getting rid of it. I think Fred even tried to get rid of it. I’ve tried planting other things to choke it out or hide it. No such luck. So, I’ve decided to go with it. And, since it seems to be looking like a good crop of fiddle heads, I’m thinking about harvesting them for a special treat.
I know that fiddleheads are edible and quite delicious. David serves them at the Shelburne. And I’ve read that many indigenous cultures enjoy them. Here, in the Lower Columbia region, the Chinookan peoples ate them raw, though I have read that if eaten uncooked in quantity they may cause stomach upset.
Fiddleheads are said to be a good source of Vitamins A and C, and according to one online source I checked out, they taste a bit like asparagus “with a nutty bite all their own.” They go well with cheeses, tomato sauce or can be marinated and used in pickled form. Sautéed, stir-fried, or briefly steamed, they retain their bright green color and crunchy flavor. From the few times I’ve tasted them in restaurants, I don’t remember much about flavor or texture — just the novelty factor.
It was a little off-putting to read that the fiddleheads of bracken ferns, in particular, contain a carcinogenic substance, even though it further stated that said substance can be neutralized by roasting. Fortunately, there are about a zillion recipes available online for cooking fiddleheads. And there are specific directions for harvesting and storing them, as well.
Fiddleheads, I read, are ready for harvest when they are bright green, firm, and tightly curled. The stems should be short and the heads between ¾ and 1½ inches in diameter. Hmmm. I wouldn’t say the stems of our bracken are “short.” How relative a term is that anyway? Hmmm some more. Before I fiddle further, it may be time to check with an expert or two…
Love the ferns — the sight of them, that is. Haven’t eaten any, that I know of. I go to Pojar & MacKinnon’s “Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast” for researching native plants. They always provide info about how local Native Americans might have used the plants. For bracken ferns, they do describe how various tribes cooked and ate the rhizomes. However, they also say, “Because they are constipating, the rhizomes were generally eaten with fish eggs or oil. CAUTION: Despite the aboriginal use, you should not eat these plants; bracken has been implicated in livestock poisoning and stomach cancer.” I’m guessing that the fiddleheads served at restaurants are from the Ostrich fern (cousin to the sword fern). I’m not an expert; I’m just picking out facts from the book.
Another thing… none of the sites I visited talked about quantity. When I’ve had the fiddleheads at retaurants, they always seem to be more of a garni than a main dish or vegetable course. Maybe their negative qualities are neglible if you are only eating a few? I’ve never heard of Ostrich ferns around here — they’re not even listed in Eugene Kozloff’s “Plants and Animals of the Pacific Northwest,” though I do know that they are found in parts of Canada. I’ll ask David what he uses. He’s certainly an expert on foraging in this neck of the woods!