#adventuresofachef

Location: SOUTHERN GROVE, MILE END, LONDON E3 4PX

So these 4 kinds of plants/branches were dried up for a certain amount of time and you can actually put some hot water into it and drink it like tea! who knew! Mine was a touch of silver birch and juniper which wasn’t bad but I probably wouldn’t drink it again.

Okay, I gotta be honest, this whole situation was creeping me out a bit but you know what? It wasn’t as bad as it sounded! The tour was really interesting and helpful for us chefs (and for those who aren’t either - as long as you’re interested in nature and what lies underneath all it’s beauty, open to new things and experiences, I’m pretty sure you’d enjoy this tour. )

meet our tour guides!!

Kenneth Greenway

Very accommodating and absolutely passionate about what he does! Kudos to you Kenneth and many thanks again!

And his adorable 14 year old dog, Quinn!! This pup was too adorable and very accommodating just like his owner, by the way! Also, tried to lead the whole class which way to go as best as he could! 10/10 assistant tour guide pup (also very photogenic) * look at how he posed for me! LOOK AT HIM!!!! AHHHHH *melts my heart*

Alrighty then! Let’s get to it! These were all the plants that we’ve encountered and mostly tasted, straight from the ground. The information I’ve placed is just some bits I’ve learned throughout the tour so it’s not too thorough.

FUN FACT TIME!!!

1. PILEWORT / LESSER CELANDINE - Heart-shaped leaves, as you can see! - Both leaves and root are edible - Tasted lovely! It had that bean sprout flavour which was really nice and I felt a hint of sweetness to it as well (probably my most favourite of all) - Don’t confuse it with the Hemlock which grows on June-July cause its poisonous!!

2. COW PARSLEY

- Great for salad leaves - Comes from the carrot family

3. MUGWORT

- Good for brewing beers - Great for teas as well

4. GORSE

- Kenneth made us exhale deeply on the flower since it releases its natural smell in contact with warm air. It took a while since it was quite cold but eventually it release a coconut smell - Flowers all year round

5. ACHILLEA / YARROW

- Can be found anywhere in the UK, mostly grows in backyards, lawns etc. - Great for salads and teas

6. JUNIPER BERRIES - One of my favourites as well and the only one I was familiar with since we’ve used it in the kitchen a few times - Green berries are the ones not ripe yet and are only a year old - Black berries are the ripe ones that take 18 months to  2 years to ripen - Cooking trick: place in spice bags

7. SWEET VIOLET

- Perfect for cakes and other desserts - Smells fantastic too

8. STICKY WILLOW / GOOSE GRASS / CLEAVERS

- Has hairy texture so dip in hot water to lighten it’s taste - Great for vinaigrettes

9. CROW’S GARLIC

- Our crowd favourite! - Smelled absolutely wonderful with garlic - It’s slender leaves are used like chives - It’s bulb grows in summer

10. LADY’S SMOCK / CUCKOO FLOWER

- Probably the most interesting plant of all that day in my opinion - Has a hot-peppery-food flavour - GUESS WHAT?! It absolutely tasted like WASABI

11. WOODLAND WILDFLOWER / WOOD AVENS / HERB BENNET

- Root is the only edible part - Great with apples - They’re like cloves

12. BRAMBLE

- This plant bears blackberries in the summer - While it’s not summer yet, it has young unopened bamboo shoots which are nutty in taste - Careful with the thorns!

13. STINGING NETTLE

- THIS STINGS! Either grab it quickly or wear gloves - It’s branches were also an antihistamine when you break it and rub on the place you got stung - I know because I was reckless enough to get stung and Kenneth had to help but it was a very good learning experience for everyone though. - Also, the stinging feeling on my finger lasted until the next day which was a bummer. It was a really weird feeling. - To eat this, roll like you would with a basil - Cook it like spinach - Cooking trick: Add it in the last 5 minutes of your potato soup

14. ONION WEED / THREE-CORNERED LEEK

- It’s like a pickled onion without the pickling liquid

15. LORDS & LADIES / CUCKOO PINTS

- 2 words: POISONOUS / DEADLY

16. RIBWORT PLANTAIN

- Texture is quite hairy - Great for vinaigrettes and smoothies

17. SALAD BURNET

- Tasted like cucumber! I was very amazed.

18. WILD STRAWBERRY / ALPHINE

- The plant where ruby strawberries grow in the summer - Tastes sweet - Grows in the light and shade

19. WILD ROCKET

- Tastes sweet - Has yellow flowers

20. WILD CARROT

- Flowers in the summer - As it is still in winter, this is it’s skeletal frame which I think is beautiful

21. HOGWEED

- Young and unopened are great - Cook it like asparagus

22. PRIMROSE LEAVES

- Quite bitter in taste - The inner plant is best for eating raw

There you go! Some fun facts about our foraging trip. Sadly, the mushrooms had a bad year in 2016 which was why we weren’t able to see any, except for our chef!

Foraging that day was such a fun learning experience, not to mention a memorable one for me when my finger got stung. Nonetheless it’s such a vast topic to encounter and having an introduction about it by going out there and doing it ourselves made me appreciate nature even more than I already had before.

Thank you chefs and to Kenneth, Quinn and Soanes Centre team!

Cheerio!