Eating from your yard tip~Purslane has more omega 3 than any other leafy green. Look no further than the crack in your sidewalk to find purslane thriving. While many Americans view purslane as a lowly weed, purslane is eaten all over the world. It is baked in bread, pickled and added to soups, stews, a stir fry and egg dishes. Google recipes for verdolaga, the Mexican word for purslane, and you will find many dishes. I add purslane to my lunch salad and egg salad or just eat it in the garden. One year I ordered a big leaf purslane from the Seed Savers catalog, but it didn’t taste as good as our Nebraska “weed variety.” Kay Young suggests substituting purslane for lettuce on your taco or mixing it into your sandwich mayonnaise spread because it doesn’t wilt like lettuce. I brought purslane leaves in a nice dish to a party where we were suppose to bring taco toppings. People enjoyed it, never connecting it to the plant growing in the sidewalk. Kay has a recipe for purslane oxtail soup in her book Wild Seasons that I will try someday when I have some oxtail. Take a fresh look at the purslane growing in your sidewalk. How do you eat purslane?
– Jill Kuhel
