Respect Mother Nature. She's giving you a free feed.
Scott Goss, executive chef of the I'll be Mother group is in the June/July issue of Good Things magazine sharing his passion and knowledge for foraging and eating wild food.
- Top tips number one, two and three is to never, ever pick mushrooms. It’s too risky and can cause tummy upset or even worse. As a chef, Scott knows he is safe to pick very easily identified mushrooms such as morels, chanterelles or puffball, but really the best thing for anyone keen is to go out with a professional guide on an organised foraged walk. There are plenty in Kent and East Sussex such as ones run by wild food expert Miles Irving, who is based in Canterbury
- Invest in a good book, such as The Forager Handbook by Miles Irving. If you’re really keen, get an armchair book with recipes but also a pocket guide you can take out into the woods with you
- Only pick what you need and don’t pull the roots, or your newly found wild food won’t be there next year
- Always pick through wild herbs and vegetables for grit and insets and wash thoroughly
- Don’t pick for prettiness, pick for flavour. There are too many chefs at-the-moment using bought in edible flowers just because it’s fashionable and looks pretty. Nothing winds me up more - just because something’s pretty doesn’t mean it tastes good. Try everything, develop your own likes and dislikes and only ever pick what you need. Wild Strawberries are flowering now and are very pretty, but leave the flower and wait until a tiny, jewel like wild strawberry grows. Pick the flower and you won’t get the berry
- Plants that grow together, eat well together. Wild Strawberries and wood sorrel are woodland companions and are beautiful together, sweet and tart
- When in a new city everybody says, ‘look up’. In the woods and the countryside remember to always ‘look down’! You’ll be amazed after a little bit of research and practice just how much good food is literally on your doorstep, under your feet. It’s tasty, wild and it’s free
- Wild garlic is everywhere and it seems to be a national Instagram competition who can get the first #wildgarlic hashtag up. Wild garlic is delicious but in my view whole dishes being almost slavishly devoted to it is a bit passé. Scott's big tip if you want to try something a bit different is Jack by the Hedge or Garlic Mustard as it’s also known. It’s a spring wildflower with elongated heart-shaped leaves that are similar in shape to nettles and tiny white flowers. It has a subtle tang of garlic, but much less so than its pungent wild cousin, and has a mild, herbaceous flavour. It’s such a versatile ingredient in the kitchen and goes brilliantly with lamb, kid goat, fresh pasta and sauces
- Lastly, always respect Mother Nature. She’s giving you a free feed after all. No littering, trampling and never pick more than you need
