#scran

Couldn’t think of anything more terrifying than the Solkats or more beautiful that Madeleine’s illustrations to go on my pumpkin this year!

Obviously Whisht goes at the front, and then I chose the other ones from the overlap in the Venn diagram of my favourite illustrations and things I thought I could conceivably carve into a pumpkin with my very amateur carving skills 😅 I wanted to add Neb and Belter too but I ran out of space.

I apologise for the long delay in response! Since this question concerns eating foraged foods (because I wouldn't dare assume anyone would attempt to cultivate Himalayan balsam purposefully) I wanted to make sure any information given is accurate and backed up by reliable sources.

I must admit, I have never considered the devouring swarm approach to combatting the menace. I believe by asking this question, you may have unlocked a whole new victory condition for the war!

If we can make Himalayan balsam a food staple while also ensuring that its cultivation remains banned, the masses may be able to consume it just fast enough to turn the tide.

Here is a breakdown of all the parts of the plant and their various edibility:

Seeds

I didn't have an image of the seeds, so thanks to GMAT both for the image and the incredible work they do fighting the good fight!

So the seeds are edible. They are described as having a nutty/peppery flavour and should be eaten before they turn dark as they will become quite hard after this and may be unpleasant to eat.

If you are going to be gathering seeds, you must be sure to keep them in a secure, ideally airtight, container. Spreading Himalayan Balsam, even by accident, is a violation of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. I don't know about any laws elsewhere in the world, but you should still avoid spreading it for the sake of your immortal soul.

Flowers

So the flowers are probably the most interesting and versatile part of the plant. Before using the flowers for anything, you should be sure to cut off all the green and give them a wash. They can be eaten on their own, but have no natural flavour.

The flowers can be used to make a variety of treats! There are lots of different sources and recipes that use flowers, mostly as colouring, but there are some cool outliers. I'd like to make another post about them in the future, as this one is already too long and too late.

Leaves

First things first, the leaves need to be washed before they're eaten.

While they can be eaten raw, I don't know why you would because they contain calcium oxalate which is a core component of kidney stones, even in death they spite us. I generally wouldn't recommend eating them raw and suggest you cook them for maximum safety.

There are varying opinions on the flavour and in the absence of complete consensus I'll just suggest that you look into the experiences of people who have dealt with kidney stones and prepare to not like the taste.

Since we're on kidney stones, why not take a break from Tumblr to get a nice glass of crisp, delicious water?

There are more ways to eat the leaves of Himalayan Balsam when cooked, but like with the flowers, I won't be getting into those in this post as sources in English are limited, and I don't think I'd do the topic justice.

Stems

Thanks again to GMAT for the image of stems, I really need to be sure to take more pictures next time I'm behind enemy lines.

The stems are best eaten when the plant is young and green, they need to be cooked in order to be eaten safely. Once they begin to turn red they can become bitter and hard, which is very unpleasant.

The stems also contain high levels of calcium oxalate, which run all the previously mentioned risks of kidney stones.

Please note that if you eat Himalayan Balsam and enjoy it AT ALL. You run the risk of developing a positive association with it.

Another thing worth mentioning is that Himalayan Balsam starts off small, it doesn't stay small. They can grow up to 3 meters tall (10 feet ish).

Sources:

https://www.wildfooduk.com/

https://www.foragingcoursecompany.co.uk/

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/

https://www.homesteadherbsandhealing.com/

https://www.gmat.co.uk/