lamb's quarters

Here’s Herbdoc with another edible wild plant:

Here’s an edible weed that I routinely yanked out of my vegetable garden until I met a mother of ten who cultivated a row!  She insisted it was edible and nutritious with a distinctive flavor, so I just had to try it.

Lamb’s Quarters (Chenopodium album), sometimes called “goosefoot,” can be found growing in disturbed soil, vegetable gardens or at the edges of fields.  It can reach four feet in height with multiple branching stems off its squared main stem. Both leaves and stems have an earthy spinach/chard flavor.  The easiest way to cook it involves putting the leaves and stems in a bamboo steamer; they will turn a deep green and reduce as they cook.  Small, raw young leaves are a wonderful addition to salads.

As with all edible wild plants, make a positive identification through the use of a good field guide or by working with a person who collects them regularly.  Be sure they have not been exposed to pollution or chemical sprays before harvesting for consumption.  If you choose not to harvest wild plants, there is a cultivated variety called “Magentaspreen” which carried by a few seed houses.