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Ever feel like you’re constantly weeding the same unwanted plants from your yard? What if I told you those very weeds could be a hidden resource for your family’s preparedness? Quell your first impulse to pull those suckers out and instead learn more about which weeds are edible. You just might have something tasty to add to your dinner table.
The very idea of a “weed” depends on your perspective. That scraggly plant taking over your flowerbed might be a gourmet green to someone else. A weed is simply a plant growing in an undesirable location. Think of a potato plant thriving in the middle of your carefully planned cabbage patch!
The good news is that many of these unwanted plants have hidden potential. Many common weeds are surprisingly delicious and nutritious. They are a tasty and healthy addition to salads and some can be substituted for spinach. Here is a short list of some of the most common edible garden weeds and their attributes.
Please note: It is always very important that you positively identify a wild plant without a shadow of a doubt before eating it. Some plants that are extremely poisonous often greatly resemble plants that are good to eat. (Hemlock and angelica are prime examples). This article should not be treated as a definitive work, but as a guide to help you get started. For further reading, read this article on foraging.
Oxalis stricta. Yellow wood sorrel is a low-growing herb with three heart-shaped leaflets on each compound leaf. Slender green stems support clusters of bright yellow, five-petaled flowers. After flowering, upright green seed pods develop.
It has a sour, lemony taste, which is why it’s sometimes called sourgrass or lemon clover. This one is my personal favorite “weed.”
Yellow wood sorrel boasts a surprisingly high amount of vitamin C, essential for immune function and historically linked to preventing scurvy. It also offers some vitamin A, contributing to healthy vision, and a bit of calcium for bone and teeth health.
It’s terrific in salads, but here’s a different non-salad option to try: Wood sorrel and sweet onion tart.
IMPORTANT: Bear in mind that large quantities are toxic due to the oxalic acid in the plant.
Portulaca oleracea. A succulent, purslane is water-rich. While we here in the United States are ripping up purslane by the handful or trying to drown it with weed killer, folks in living in Mediterranean countries use it as a key ingredient in a number of tasty dishes. Where I live, purslane is fairly invasive and abundant this time of year, so I don’t imagine there will be any shortage until the frost comes.
The slightly salty taste makes it nice in a salad, but it can also be cooked.
Because of its mucilaginous properties, it can be used as a thickener in stews in lieu of flour or other starch. Purslane is a source of:
Check out this purslane and parsley salad and try one today!
Malva Neglecta. A plant of many names. It is also referred to as buttonweed, cheeseweed, and dwarf mallow. Note that this is not related to the marshmallow plant.
Beware: If you ever let this plant in your garden on purpose, be prepared to never get it out again. Common mallow is particularly invasive. Even if you pull it up, a full plant will regrow from any portion of the taproot that is left intact.
Mallow is somewhere between spinach and kale in taste.
Common Mallow has long been used as medicinal plant. It contains:
Mallow, like purslane, is mucilaginous. This property is particularly concentrated in the roots; the liquid obtained from boiling mallow root can be whipped like egg whites and used to make a meringue substitute, although this can be tricky as the mucilage does not behave exactly like egg whites. The leaves can also be used fresh in salads as a substitute for lettuce.
John Kallas has a recipe for Mallow Meringue in his book Edible Wild Plants.
Taraxacum spp. As one of the most well-known and most-cursed at edible wild plants, dandelions usually appear first on any list of edible weeds. They have rosettes of deeply lobed leaves, smooth hollow stems with a reddish hue, and a single bright yellow flower head that transforms into a fluffy white “blowball.”
Lookalikes: Cat’s ear has similar leaves but softer, hairier, and with branched stems. Chicory leaves are hairier overall and the stem is sturdier with multiple flower heads. Read about how to use chicory as a coffee substitute.
Dandelions have a sharp taste that is not wholly unpleasant when eaten young, but once the plant reaches maturity the sharpness becomes almost unbearably bitter. The bitterness can be alleviated by blanching or cooking.
Taste aside, dandelion greens are extremely nutritious, being high in vitamins A, C, and K, and a number of minerals including manganese, calcium, and iron. They can also be used as an herbal remedy.
There is more to dandelions (and all the other edible weeds, too!) than just plain in a salad. Try some of these recipes for even more info about how to use it.
Nettles don’t actually grow in my neighborhood, but I thought I would include them in this list because they are so ubiquitous and invasive in other parts of the United States. They have heart-shaped leaves with pointed tips and jagged edges. The tiny hairs on the leaves and stems can cause a stinging sensation if touched.
Don’t let the name scare you away. Once cooked like spinach, the nettles lose their stings.
Despite the sting, stinging nettle is a surprisingly nutritious plant, rich in vitamins and minerals like iron, calcium, and vitamin C.
Nettle is useful for making herbals teas. Learn more about how herbal teas can provide extra nutrition.
For further reading on nettles, look at this article, bringing nettles into the kitchen with a nettle soup recipe from NPR.
They are also good for more than just eating! When processed using the same method used for flax, nettles produce a fine textile fiber. Many people in Europe resorted to making clothing out of nettles during the drastic shortages of the Second World War. It’s even flame retardant!
And if you suffer from allergies, you might nettles, the most well-known of the traditional remedies for that miserable affliction. Learn more about how herbs can help with allergy season.
Galium aparine Also called goosegrass or bedstraw. They have square stems and whorls of three to six narrow, lance-shaped leaves. They sport small, white flowers in clusters and distinctive clinging fruits with tiny hooks.
They have a mild flavor, sometimes described as grassy or similar to young peas. Look for younger plants in early spring; older plants are tough and not edible.
Although not as potent as other options, they are a source of vitamins A and C.
Some report that the seeds can be roasted and used as a caffeine-free substitute for coffee. Here is a short, fun YouTube tutorial on making cleaver coffee.
Claytonia perfoliata, also known as Miner’s Lettuce or Winter Purslane, is a petite, perennial succulent plant, easily overlooked. It boasts bright green, kidney-shaped or oval leaves with smooth, hairless surfaces. The leaves rest on long, thin stems that are also edible. A single flower stalk emerges from the center, topped with tiny white or pink flowers.
Miner’s lettuce has a mild flavor, similar to a mix of spinach and purslane. It’s crisp and refreshing, with a touch of sweetness for some and a hint of pepper for others. It’s actually really good raw; much better than cooked, I think.
It’s a good source of vitamin C, vitamin A, and also contains some iron.
Because I love it best raw, I think salads are the best way to eat miner’s lettuce. Add a few fresh veggies and some homemade vinaigrette…yum! But I’ve also been eyeing this miner’s lettuce pesto. If you try it before I do, let me know in the comments what you thought of it.
Purple dead nettle is a low-growing creeper with a square stem. Its leaves are heart-shaped with pointed tips and come in shades of green or purple, depending on the soil. Look for tiny hairs on the leaves and stems, and clusters of pinkish-purple to reddish-purple flowers that bloom throughout the year, even in mild winters.
I was surprised how mild the flavor was; The younger the leaves, the milder and more pleasant the taste was. It was a bit earthy tasting. Some foragers detect a hint of cucumber, but I don’t get that. Perhaps my palette is less refined.
Despite the unfortunate inclusion of “dead” in its name, it’s rich in iron, a key mineral, and offers a good source of vitamins C, A, and calcium.
This edible weed is so versatile, there is no shortage of recipes on the internet. I find it barely noticeable when incorporated into a dish like this Purple Dead Nettle Rice Bake.
Also, it’s leaves, brewed as tea, were used historically for their astringent (wound-soothing) and anti-inflammatory (pain-reducing) properties.
“This is for information purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prescribe for any disease. Consult your personal medical professional.”
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