Calling Hunters & Gatherers: Wild Foods Day

Posted By Ingrid Turner on Oct 28, 2013 in Featured, Food Holidays | 0 comments

There are so many fine foods to celebrate on Wild Foods Day!

The most interesting aspect of eating wild foods is that whether the foods are wild fowl, venison, beautiful & wild greens, mushrooms, rice & roots is that the flavors are earthier & cleaner tasting than their cultivated or domestic counterparts.

Wild mushrooms have much more flavor than the ones available in your supermarket. Not too many folks these days have the experience or know how required to forage for edible wild mushrooms, but they are a true culinary triumph. Try them, if possible! Be careful.

Wild roots grace your table as side dishes.

Wild game, such as deer, rabbits, sheep & goats are prepared and cooked slightly differently from domestically raised, but still provide distinct & flavorful meals.

Generally speaking, if they are allowed to marinate for a short time in wine & paired with garlic & onions, either placed under he skin or int he oven, the gaminess is difficult to detect.

Cooking any of them on a spit allows you to incorporate the herbs & spices in a sauce, which is brushed on to the meat during cooking.

Wild turkey, geese, ducks & pheasant will be a treat for you to try & have flavor that is difficult to replicate in domesticated counterparts.

Here’s an How to Cook an Easy Duck Stock:

My Dad used to bring home moose meat & those moose steaks were positively outstanding.

Also, I understand that buffalo burgers are unbeatable, according to Kimberly. They are certainly worth trying.

My Favorite Wild Food:

I am partial to pheasant, as when I was growing up, it wasn’t illegal to shoot them. Our family of eleven people came to enjoy this delicacy frequently. My Mom even made pheasant noodle soup, which was so very delicious.

Wild greens like purslane, miner’s lettuce, mustard, pepper grasses, dandelions, chickweed, sorrels, cress, winter cress, mallows & various flower buds can be harvested by experienced foragers. Use raw in salads, but they can also be a tasty addition to other dishes.

Wild Foods Day is really a day to experiment & celebrate heartily.