The sting relies on erect hairs to penetrate the skin and inject the stinging formic acid. So most people use gloves when they handle it. Using Stinging Nettle. As the weather warms, stinging nettle forms tiny flowers and seeds, and some people report GI distress from eating stinging nettle at this stage. Like spinach, when cooked, nettles reduce to 1/4 the amount, so a supermarket bag full will be about 500g. Dec 29, 2017 - Do you eat your wild greens?! Here are 6 evidence-based benefits of stinging nettle. METHOD OF PREPARATION: Leaves raw or cooked but eating raw requires much skill to reduce stinging. The stinging nettle is a plant used as a cooking green for its nutty, earthy, spinachlike flavor; its bright emerald-green color; and its texture—it is firmer than spinach and doesn’t get as squishy or slimy when cooked. In this case, I’ll show you my son’s favorite, a tropical stinging nettle smoothie with pineapple, coconut milk, and banana. And as a direct comparison between nettle and spinach, 10 grams of raw nettle contains 290 milligrams of calcium and 86 milligrams of magnesium whereas 10 grams of raw spinach has 10 milligrams of calcium and 8 milligrams of magnesium. Here are some ideas for making use of the free food and fertiliser that this under-appreciated weed has to offer. Consult a professional from more advanced use recommendations for stinging nettle. Cooked nettle is a great source of vitamins A , C, protein and iron. It’s mild and barely noticeable and yet everyone can walk away boasting about surviving stinging nettle. That’s 104ft of raw nettles eaten in an hour. Mint Images/Getty Images. Some tips and tricks on how to harvest stinging nettle roots without getting bitten by the stingers can help keep you safe as you collect this potentially troublesome, yet beneficial, plant. The cooking water is good as a tea or soup base. Very nutritious. Nettle leaves must first be cooked or steamed to destroy the hairs on them, which contain a number of irritating chemicals. Stinging nettle can be eaten on its own or as an ingredient in foods. It must be cooked or dehydrated before consuming. Cook It – Steam, Sauté or Boil. Stinging nettle has a long and diverse history of use for food, medicine, cordage, and dye. Crush the nettles. Harvesting nettle root requires finesses and caution. It has been shown that there are bioactives in Stinging Nettle that inhibit the pro-inflammatory pathways related to allergic rhinitis. I can’t stress enough the importance of avoiding consumption of raw stinging nettle as well as avoiding its contact with your skin. And most are different cooked or raw! I love using nettles in my smoothies like my tropical stinging nettle smoothie. Stinging nettle may seem like a risky herb to grow, but you can’t overlook its benefits. Stinging nettles are prickly when raw—but turn them into chips, and you'll forget all about baked kale. You can eat it raw or cooked, you can make a tea, you can make natural beauty products like Stinging Nettle Shampoo, you can use the fiber found in the stalk to make cordage, you can whip painful joints (urtication) and other joint/bone problem areas like sciatica to promote bloodflow to the area. Never eat raw stinging nettle. Once the needles on the nettles have been crushed, they will no longer sting you. Drain and refrigerate or use immediately. I just needed to say that in case there was any doubt. Some cooks throw away a first water to get rid of the stinging compounds, while others retain the water and cook the nettles straight. Nettle tops are sold in some farmers' markets and natural food stores. So good, that I should try to encourage growing it rather than discourage it. In this video you will learn how to eat raw nettles without stinging/hurting yourself. Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) has been a staple in herbal medicine since ancient times, such as to treat arthritis and back pain. In fact, it has so much calcium that it is an excellent remedy for growing pains in children. You’ll probably want to wear kitchen gloves or use tongs to handle. Raw stinging nettles offer a refreshing cucumber-like flavor. The quirky annual World Stinging Nettle Eating Championships are held at the Bottle Inn in Marshwood, Dorset. Cooking nettle in any way will disarm the sting. As a young boy bounding up the creek bed, splashing in the fresh, rushing spring water, the steep slopes dropping down from both sides were covered in glowing, green stinging nettles. When eating raw nettle leaves, note that most of the needles are on the underside of the leaf. Once cooked use like spinach or basil. Realize, you must use great care when raising and preparing it for use. It may even be downright nutritious. Reserve the resulting water for nettle tea. Stinging nettle stings when you touch it with your bare hand. Cooked stinging nettles can be used in place of cooked spinach in many recipes. Common ways to consume stinging nettle include drinking nettle tea, making nettle soup and stew, as well as sautéing or steaming nettle leaves into nettle puree. The stinging part of nettle (a combination of prickly barbs and release of chemicals) is neutralized when you cook or dry/dehydrate stinging nettle. Growing Stinging Nettles. Therefore, each raw leaf should be rolled and folded in on itself before chewing. Well, if you feel better during allergy season after using nettle, it’s not all in your head. Usually young shoots and leaves are boiled 10 to 15 minutes. Nettles aren't dangerous unless you have a serious allergy (which is rare), but their stings can be quite painful. I’ve found that when you cook nettle in a saucepan with salt, black pepper, garlic, and shallots and/or onions, you get something that’s incredibly delicious . It’s hardly surprising that people have tried eating nettles considering how well they have worked in folk remedies. By Rochelle Bilo w. June 1, 2015 ... Nettle chips! Stinging Nettle is a well-known on the list of natural allergy remedies. 5 Benefits of Wild, Stinging Nettles & 3 Ways to Eat Them. How to eat and drink stinging nettles. Making a stinging nettle smoothie. For this recipe, blanching is the best way to prepare the stinging nettle. Except my Serbian friends who pluck a leaf with their bare hands and eat it raw to show how tough they are. Despite the painful stings the fresh plant delivers, brewed or cooked nettle is safe to eat. Love stinging nettle leaves cooked in soup, or fried with my eggs in the morning! You can steam it, boil it, blanch it or sauté it on its own to freeze or to prep for recipes like Nettle Pesto, Nettle Cheese Biscuits or Nettle Stuffed Manicotti.. You can also add it directly into a recipe where it will get steamed, boiled or sautéed (eg. by Nate Bazydlo and Fiona Hollis. 12th August 2011. There are the famous ones, like the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest on July 4, and culturally specific ones, like the World Poutine Eating Competition in Canada. stirfry or soup) along with other ingredients. It's easy to find videos online of outdoor experts eating nettles raw. This may seem like it goes without saying, but don't eat stinging nettles raw. jumping on the stinging nettle train. This is great for being able to use nettles raw in smoothies and pestos. Nettles should never be eaten raw. Also Read: How to Harvest Stinging Nettle, Stinging Nettle and Cheese Biscuits, Stinging Nettle & Potato Soup, Spinach Manicotti This dish is a great introduction to stinging nettle for anyone eating this wild edible for the first time. Wash leaves as soon after harvest as you can manage. Don’t eat the leaves raw because they will still have the stinging hairs until they are dried or cooked. 2. When wilted strip the leaves off the stems. Stinging nettle is more than an irritating weed, it's also a nutritious food that when boiled is safe to eat and tastes a bit like spinach. This means the stinging properties have not yet formed in the leaf, so consumption safe. Tea. For fresh salads, use young leaves from plants less than 10 centimeters in height. The taste of this raw stinging nettle soup recipe is delicious and fresh – almost like pesto crossed with gazpacho. I would not suggest eating the leaves raw, as I have had my throat swell up eating them raw! The stinging nettle. Dried leaves can be used to make tea. The fresh or dried leaves of nettle can be used to make a detoxifying tea and commercial tea bags are commonly sold in natural food stores. Foraging for food is becoming more and more popular all over the country at the moment and is not just free, but it can also provide you with vital nutrients that are simply not eaten enough. Stinging nettle is more than an irritating weed, it's also a nutritious food that when boiled is safe to eat and tastes a bit like spinach. Convinced yet? Don’t try to eat stinging nettle raw! Apart from the fact that nettles do sting, nettles are a wonderful ingredient to use in soups, pasta dishes, frittatas—basically in any cooked dish where you would use young spinach. Few, however, match up to the intensity that is the World Nettle Eating Championship, an event that pushes people to eat as much raw stinging nettle as they possibly can. Stinging nettles are no exception being rich in vitamins A, C, iron, potassium, manganese and calcium. This could cause severe and dangerous reactions. Cook or Dehydrate. When cooked, the nettle has a flavor similar to spinach mixed with cucumber. We humans are strange creatures. There are plenty of eating competitions out there. How to Make Nettle Tea. So, one of the best, most delicious ways to use nettles raw is to blend them into a smoothie. NETTLES Some have mentioned nettles, and some have asked if the nettles lose their sting with certain methods.Here's the thing about a nettle stinger: It is a very (I mean extremely) delicate tube containing a liquid acid that reacts with your skin when it brushes against you. A friend collecting wild nettles in South Tyrol, Italy. Stinging nettle is also exceptionally high in protein, more than any other vegetable! All wild plants are best tested by eating a very small piece at the start. In looking it up, I found that it was one of the best things they could eat. How To Eat A Stinging Nettle. A Persistent and Useful Weed Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) originated in Europe but now grows on every continent … This article can help. In 2001 I learned that lots of my animals liked to eat stinging nettles. Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica) is full of the entire spectrum of vitamins and minerals we need. ... And for some reason, thousands of people flock to the World Nettle Eating Championships every year in Dorset, England, to see who can eat the most raw nettles in one sitting.