Chickweed a delicious addition to salad and...

jowitt.europe

Chickweed, an excellent addition to Salad full of healthy surprises

 I could not wait any longer. Even though the way to my greenhouse is deep in snow, I had to have a look what is there, inside and I was rewarded. I found a green carper of chickweed – a real treasure. I love it! It is such a useful plant. One can add a lot of cut chickweed to salad, it can be used for making spice butter, spice curd, it makes Omlett tastier. At this time of the year here, when one can get green plants only from the shop it is a real enrichment to ones kitchen. I like it. It tastes a bit like nuts or like peas.

And it is good for health!  Chickweed has 10 times more Vitamin A and C than Salad. It is rich in Potassium, Calcium, Magnesium. 150 gramms of Chickweed covers the daily need of Iron, Potassium and Vitamin C. It also contains Saponins, this foaming ingreadient, helping by Bronchitis. Saponins also protect stomach lining and indestins lining.

In folk medicine it is also used externally for soothing pain of Rheuma, Arthritis and Gout: cut or beat the chickweed until juice comes out and put on the sore place. One can use chickweed for rubbing into the skin after moscito sting.

 Chickweed multipies very quickly. That is the reason why it is not so popular among gardeners. One plant can spread up to 15 000 seeds. Thus, the more we eat out in spring, the fewer we will have to weed out during the summer, when out gardens will be full of other nice things to eat.

It is also a good green manure. But one has to dig it up before the seeds are developed.

 I am already enjoying my chickweed in salad 😊

Torey

@jolanta.wittib What a lucky find at this time of year! Love it in a salad.

Chickweed has so many uses. I use it in any salve that requires a refrigerant. So it is great for cooling; heat rash, diaper rash, certain types of psoriasis and eczema, sunburn, reactions to mosquito and other bites. I think it was one of the very first salves I made. Good on its own or in combinations. Goes well with plantain for bug bites.

judsoncarroll4

LOVE chickweed!

Sharie

Years ago my housemate introduced me to this. She was making salve but my daughter had a rash so I used the straight oil before it made it in there and it worked like a charm. One of the most healing herbs ever for the skin.

MaryRowe

There are so many good chickweed recipes--I especially love chickweed pesto.

I just came across a fine thick stand of young chickweed on my place, and right now I'm having an argument with myself about it. It's in the chicken yard and all around the coup. I had to give up my chickens in Nov. 2019 because of health issues; my friends were going to bring them back when I recovered and was able to take care of them again, but predators got them all in the meantime, so no chickens to come home....The coup and yard have been empty since. But now I am getting more chickens, and was out checking on the coup, doing some cleaning, repairs, etc. when I found the chickweed.

At first I wouldn't consider eating it, knowing how thoroughly the old girls had fertilized that piece of ground....But then I thought, it's been over a year now, and would it be that much different from the composted coup cleanings I use on my garden?...and the chickweed looks so very delicious....But then again, the new chickens are arriving next week, and what a welcome that bed of chickweed would make for them, and in another week or two there will be chickweed all over the place anyway--plenty for me.....So I haven't touched the chickweed yet....still debating.....

jowitt.europe

@MaryRowe that is a dilemma 😊.

your chicken will definitely appreciate chickweed, but you can share. Half/half. I have learned that if one collects herbs from dunged meadows (not freshly dunged, of course), one should collect herbs in the afternoon. In the afternoon the concentration of nitrates is lower as plants have used most of it. The concentration of nitrates is highest in the morning.

Linda Bittle

Chickweed was one of the first "weeds" I learned to eat! Delicious and so full of nutrition.

Here are some free articles at Learning Herbs dot com:

https://learningherbs.com/?s=chickweed

MaryRowe

@jolanta.wittib Thanks for the tip about collecting in the afternoon; I didn't know that.

It's pouring rain here today, and likely to continue raining for another couple days, so I won't be out foraging. By the time I can get out again I'm thinking more chickweed will be up--it is blessedly abundant here most years. So that might help me be generous with this stand. I keep thinking about the chickens' delight when they first see that thick bed of chickweed....

flowerpower *

@Jolanta.wittib Stellaria Media is the botanical name. I have eaten it in salads - I like to add just a portion. I believe it is high in Vitamin C. I find the flavor and texture similar to pea shoots. I have made a salve out of it for healing eczema, it turns the salve a nice green color.