3 ms·

Purslane is actually really tasty to eat in scrambled eggs or soup. It's a decent spinach replacement too. Leaves are tiny so it takes a bit of effort to harve

by zdw 3y ago

Purslane is actually really tasty to eat in scrambled eggs or soup. It's a decent spinach replacement too. Leaves are tiny so it takes a bit of effort to harvest. If you know you have it, break a bunch off, wash it in a bowl to clean it, and also to harvest the tiny black seeds - dump the water+seeds out where you want more. It does literally grow like a weed, and it's pretty good for you, with a fair amount of ALA/EPA omega 3's for a plant and vitamin C.

aetherson 3y ago
As with any foraging, you should also make sure that you know that you're actually harvesting purslane and not something else. There are plants of a family called spurges that can be mistaken for purslane and are toxic. I don't have enough expertise to talk about how likely it is that you'll mistake spurge for purslane or how to identify.
- joecool1029 3y ago
  They aren't that close in appearance. Spurges are woodier with flatter leaves and have an irritating white sap. This is not a plant likely to kill you if you ate a small amount of it, it's likely to cause burning/irritation in the mouth if you did make the mistake. Purslane you'll know it's correct if it tastes good, it's one of the best random green plants I've foraged. The only downside it seems to have is kind of high oxalate levels so it should be eaten sparingly or cooked especially if predisposed to kidney stones. Article describing differences between the two plants: https://lawnphix.com/lawn-care/spurge-vs-purslane-lawn-weeds/ https://lawnphix.com/lawn-care/spurge-vs-purslane-lawn-weeds... unlike mushrooms or potential poison hemlock lookalikes I don't want to discourage foraging this, just take it slow (try small amount of anything new before eating a lot of it) and you'll be fine.
jeremiahbuckley 3y ago
It appears that purslane is the same thing as vergoladas, sold in Mexican grocery stores (I am not an expert in this, I did a quick Google search and found a supporting article here: https://mexicanmademeatless.com/verdolagas-purslane-in-salsa-verde/#google_vignette https://mexicanmademeatless.com/verdolagas-purslane-in-salsa... ). I’ve been trying to figure out what vergoladas is to English speakers. Very good as a green-salsa addition anywhere you’re using avocado, adds a peppery spicy flavor. Spoils quickly. Thanks for writing this, it’s been bothering me for a year, and without your comment I wouldn’t have thought about the possibility of a connection.

by zdw 3y ago

aetherson 3y ago

As with any foraging, you should also make sure that you know that you're actually harvesting purslane and not something else. There are plants of a family called spurges that can be mistaken for purslane and are toxic. I don't have enough expertise to talk about how likely it is that you'll mistake spurge for purslane or how to identify.

joecool1029 3y ago
They aren't that close in appearance. Spurges are woodier with flatter leaves and have an irritating white sap. This is not a plant likely to kill you if you ate a small amount of it, it's likely to cause burning/irritation in the mouth if you did make the mistake. Purslane you'll know it's correct if it tastes good, it's one of the best random green plants I've foraged. The only downside it seems to have is kind of high oxalate levels so it should be eaten sparingly or cooked especially if predisposed to kidney stones. Article describing differences between the two plants: https://lawnphix.com/lawn-care/spurge-vs-purslane-lawn-weeds/ https://lawnphix.com/lawn-care/spurge-vs-purslane-lawn-weeds... unlike mushrooms or potential poison hemlock lookalikes I don't want to discourage foraging this, just take it slow (try small amount of anything new before eating a lot of it) and you'll be fine.

jeremiahbuckley 3y ago

It appears that purslane is the same thing as vergoladas, sold in Mexican grocery stores (I am not an expert in this, I did a quick Google search and found a supporting article here: https://mexicanmademeatless.com/verdolagas-purslane-in-salsa-verde/#google_vignette https://mexicanmademeatless.com/verdolagas-purslane-in-salsa... ). I’ve been trying to figure out what vergoladas is to English speakers. Very good as a green-salsa addition anywhere you’re using avocado, adds a peppery spicy flavor. Spoils quickly. Thanks for writing this, it’s been bothering me for a year, and without your comment I wouldn’t have thought about the possibility of a connection.