Fiddlehead Foraging with Beckers. (field and kitchen action)

[COPPERHEAD88]

It is fiddlehead season in Maine. What is a fiddlehead? A fiddlehead is an immature Ostrich fern that hasn't unfurled. It is nicknamed "fiddlehead" because when curled up it resembles a head of a fiddle.

Yesterday Jeremy and I went out and picked about 15 pounds of fiddleheads.

This is what they look like.

Look for the notch in the stem and the brown parchment paper like stuff flaking off.

While having the fiddlehead shape these next two ferns are not what you want. Be sure to pick the right ones because some other ferns can be very toxic.

Rough size comparison.

Our loot from our second trip. We got about this much the first trip too.

Now lets cook them up! I decided to make some garlic and chicken fiddlehead alfredo.

Heat minced garlic and olive oil in large skillet.

Chop up some chicken. The Becker kitchen knives made this effortless.

Our cat was begging for some chicken.

Add chicken to the garlic and olive oil.

Cook chicken.

Clean fiddleheads under running water and add to the chicken and garlic.

Cook noodles.

Once the noodles are done add them to the chicken and fiddleheads. Add the alfredo sauce and eat!

~Amanda

 

[Tankerwolf]

That looks really good! Pre-minced garlic? I'm glad some one else likes tons of garlic in their food. If I cook anything with garlic the whole clove is the minimum. What do they taste like? Asparagus maybe?

 

[BeardedNemophilist]

I need to know what they taste like. Looks to be an excellent addition to pasta dishes. Or maybe grilled?

 

[COPPERHEAD88]

Fiddleheads taste like a cross between Spinach and Asparagus.

Thanks!

~Amanda

 

[The Warrior]

A thread after my own heart, haha. Never even heard of a fiddlehead before. Awesome stuff, thanks for posting.

 

[elrond18]

Thanks for posting this, now I'm hungry!:thumbup:

 

[granitestateofmind]

Nice, Amanda. That might even get me to *cough* enjoy fiddleheads. They are a little bitter for my taste but I almost always eat them anyway, because, you know, Maine. Locavore. I've never tried adding cheese to the equation, or actually mixing them into something else.
For anyone who has not ever tried these, ferns are one of the most ancient plant species, more than 145 million years ago, first appearing in the fossil record 360 million years ago. Sometimes they taste like that. Fresh, they taste (to me) like dandelion greens (bitter) mixed with the texture of asparagus tips (not nearly the flavor, though). I generally try to cook them very little and then toss in garlic (Amanda has used a good amount) and maybe a little balsamic vinegar & olive oil.

Amanda, maybe you'll bring some of that to the cabin? I'm down with leftovers .

 

[ac700wildcat]

I'm definitely a fan of the amount of garlic!! That meal looks amazing. I have never heard of fiddleheads before but now I want to try some!!

 

[Auraria]

I wonder if they grow in central new York where I'm at, I'd love to try it out.
Looks delicious copperhead!

 

[Galeocerdoshark]

That. Looks. Delicious! Not sure if we have edible ferns in Europe but I'm gonna keep an eye out for that kinda stuff. Thanks for sharing!

 

[Greebe]

It has been years since I had those. My wife and I would gather them every spring in Alaska.

 

[Norse_Nightcrawler]

I think we have those here in norway too. Think i'll have to find out if they're the edible kind, cause that looked tasty and this thread made my hungry...
Love spinach, hate asparegus. This should be interesting.

 

[tman038]

great thread and pics. i've never had nor heard of fiddleheads before... ty for sharing... i was almost expecting to see something to do with a Bushfinger or another Fiddleback Forge knife. lol

 

[Ethan Becker]

Thank you, Amanda....... Great tutorial with damned decent pics to go with it...... I just finished dinner and I got hungry all over again!!!!......

E