by Lisa Giroday, Sandra Lopuch and Sam Philips | This time of year is very exciting for foragers, chefs, gardeners, and, well…people who eat! That means everyone! Not only are the days getting noticeably longer, but spring foraging is kicking off with stinging nettles! It’s been hard to keep the word count down with this post because there is just SO MUCH to say about nettles. What can’t you use them for, really?

So, what to do with these little jewels, aka Urtica dioica? First off, let’s note the word “stinging”. Be aware that stinging nettles do sting for real, it’s just that maybe some of us have a lower pain threshold. The hollow stinging hairs on the leaves and stems, called trichomes, act like hypodermic needles, injecting histamine and other chemicals that produce a stinging sensation when touched. Some folk remedies include applications of dandelion, the underside of fern spores, and horsetail. Urtication, on the contrary, is a process by which the sting of nettles is used as a treatment. Stinging nettles are also the best weed to have in the garden as they encourage beneficial insects, indicate high soil fertility if they thrive in a particular spot, and they can be utilized as a compost activator because of their high nitrogen content.

But let’s focus on nutrition and culinary uses. First off, blanching nettles in a pot of water is essential – and also awesome, because you get nettle tea as a result. The flavour exudes Spring: fresh, green and grassy. Nettles are super good for you – used both medicinally and for culinary purposes. In its peak season, the stinging nettle contains up to 25% protein, which is high for a leafy green vegetable. They’re also are rich in vitamins A, C, iron, potassium, manganese, and calcium.

Chashma Heinze of Pastiche (those delicious vegan pates you may have heard about, sold at the Vancouver Farmer’s Market) has kindly offered her recipe for Stinging Nettle Risotto. She also uses nettles to make everything from a cordial to a morning omelette. The culinary uses are endless: in pestos, purees, soups, and even in cheese. Use nettles in place of other greens and see what happens!

Nettles are popping up in many Vancouver restaurants as well. Wildebeest and the Acorn have both been featuring them on their menus (with thanks to Alexander Mcnaughton, forager extraordinaire of Umami Consulting, and Chashma’s business partner at Pastiche). Chef Brian Skinner recently created the most insane nettle gnocchi (gluten free to boot) as a nightly harvest special last week. It came with gai lan, peas, beurre blanc, and foraged peppercress (see photo above). Where to find stinging nettles? Go foraging, or hit up the VFM on Saturdays, where a wonderful man with the best beard on earth sells them. His booth is called “The Promised Land”.

Read Chashma’s recipe for stinging nettle risotto after the jump…

STINGING NETTLE RISOTTO

Spring nettles flush at a time of year that still makes you want to come in and warm your belly and toes — and warm your belly it will. With the addition of nettles that have a ‘full body’ warming effect, this version of risotto is a riff on the classic method I was taught by a talented Italian chef while I working in Northern Scotland on a Russian’s private yacht. Instead of (or in addition to!) tossing in a hefty portion of butter and parmesan at the end as is classically wont, this adaptation uses the naturally velvety, creamy texture of blended cauliflower to finish the dish.

To personalize your risotto and define it as a ‘teaser’ or main meal, you can use all leeks or shallots, add some cauliflower pieces halfway through cooking, incorporate peeled spot prawns (the season may coincide with your nettle picking!) or top with a sautéed cod cheek to compliment the beautiful pale green rice—I’ll leave that decision to you.  If dairy isn’t your thing, or you simply want to reduce the fat, then omit them both, add a little more cauliflower puree and drizzle with olive oil.

Recipe

·       1 1/2 cup risotto rice
·       about ¼ lb of nettles
·       1-2 large shallots and/or
·       1-3 small leeks
·       ¼ part of a medium cauliflower, marrow included (reserve small florets if you want to add them whole to the dish)
·       stock and stock veggies
·       salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
·       at least a ¼ cup of dry white wine

Optional

·       Spot Prawns—thawed and peeled if they are frozen (local spot prawns are best because if you can get them they are sweet and delicate.  If using regular prawns, add them a little bit sooner towards the end, as they will take longer to cook)
·       2-3 tablespoons cold, cubed butter
·       ¼ cup good quality finely grated Parmesan cheese
·       Mixed fresh herbs of your choice—fresh chives, parsley, tarragon or very finely minced sage.  If using fresh thyme, add to the rice early on in the cooking stages

Directions

1. Wash the nettles, and blanch them for a couple of minutes in about 4 litres of boiling water. Drain, reserving your cooking liquid—this liquid will be a brownish color, but the flavor is rich and there is incredible nutrition in the water—why throw it away?  Set your nettles aside to cool.

2. Return your cooking liquor to the stove, separating it into two pots—one for your stock and one for your cauliflower.  Put your stock to simmer, and throw in any good bits like leek and onion trimmings, parsley and thyme stems, an old carrot and the butt end of a celery that you can’t use for anything else. A bay leaf and a few black pepper corns are classic addition.  I usually keep adding to my stock as I cook—there are always little bits and peelings that will add to the flavor—and I may add some chicken bones (fresh from a butcher or frozen in my freezer for a rainy day soup) or some shrimp shells for a seafood based version.  The broth from the nettles themselves is well rich on it’s own, so skip the chicken or shrimp if that’s not your thing.

3. Pick through any large stems and squeeze the nettles to extract as much water as possible (add any excess water to your stock) and chop finely.

4. Put cut cauliflower in the remaining nettle broth, and cook with the lid on until extremely tender (about ½ an hour or so).  Blend until utterly smooth; you should have a cauliflower cream that is the consistency of softly whipped cream.

5. Finely mince your shallots and julienne your leeks.  In a larger, heavy based pot, sweat your shallots in olive oil, add your leeks and sauté for a minute or two—keep this on low as you don’t want to colour either and leeks have sweetness so burn easily.  Add the risotto rice and stir to coat all the grain with a little bit of fat, toasting them ever so slightly until they become lightly translucent.

6. Add your liberal splash of dry white wine; stirring to make sure the risotto does not catch on the bottom of the pan.  Place a sieve on top of your simmering stockpot so it is immersed in the liquid, and continue to ladle the broth from the centre by degrees into your rice while stirring.  The idea here is to always keep the risotto barely covered with just enough liquid so that it can be stirred easily—always adding a little more liquid as it cooks down (and before it gets gluey).

7. The halfway cooking point should be about 10 minutes or so, but your rice should still be fairly al dente when you add your cauliflower liquid and your nettles.  Add a pinch of salt, and continue to alternate with a little cauliflower and broth until the risotto is creamy, and the individual rice grains are tender with just a hint of chalkiness in the middle.  As with cappuccino, some people like it wetter, some people like it dryer and you can always finish with a little more broth if you like.  Season to your liking.

8. This is the point where you choose to fold in your peeled spot prawns (they only take a minute to cook), choice of fresh herbs and grated butter and/or parmesan—but make sure everyone is sitting and waiting patiently—risotto is best served immediately to preserve it’s unctuous nature.

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Victory Gardens is a team of local urban farmers for hire. Lisa, Sandra and Sam help transform tired or underused residential and commercial green spaces into food producing gardens. Their goal is to challenge the way communities use space and to participate in the change needed to consume food more sustainably. For the rest of the growing season, they’ve hooked up with Scout to share some cool tips and tricks on how to get the best from of our own backyards.