Belgian Endive © Denzil Green Belgian Endive is not the same as Endive. Belgian Endive is a variety of chicory. Its narrow, cream-white leaves with yellow tips grow in a small, tight little baton shape and curve in to meet at the top. It is grown from a species of Chicory closely related to but…
Branch Lettuce is not actually a lettuce. It’s a leafy perennial plant that is harvested from the wild. It grows in shady, damp places, particularly along the banks of streams and ponds, and on damp rock faces where trickling water runs. It grows up to 3 feet (1 metre) high, and blossoms with small white…
Cabbage is a leafy plant with a short stem. The leaves can be pale or dark green, or purple / red. The leaves generally form a compact sphere in the centre. In cooking, cabbage is used as a vegetable in savoury dishes. It can be eaten cooked, raw, or pickled. It is a biennial plant…
Cultivated Dandelion © Denzil Green Dandelion is a perennial herb, though it dies back in winter. It is a member of the sunflower family, and closely related to chicory. The leaves are crisp, and have a peppery taste. They can be used as a salad or pot herb. In Europe, there are cultivated varieties, whose…
There are two broad types of Endive, curly and broad-leafed. Both curly and broad-leafed versions belong to the same family as Aster flowers. The seeds for both types of Endive are very small; it takes about 350,000 to 450,000 to make up a pound (450g.) The leaves of both varieties have a mild, pleasing bitterness,…
Enset is a plant that grows in south west Ethiopia. It provides the staple food of 18% of the population of Ethiopia. Several foods are derived from it, which are important in the cooking of the Gurages and the Sidama groups of people. Other groups such as Hadya, Gamo, Wolayita, use the plant too, but…
Frisée © Denzil Green Frisée is not a lettuce, even though it’s often called “Frisée lettuce.” It is a leafy green related to endive and chicory. It has rich green leaves on the outside; pale yellow-green leaves toward the centre of the plant. The leaves are crisp and look like fern fronds. They taste mildly…
Dark Green Leafy Vegetables © Denzil Green Greens means “green leafy vegetables.” Leafy vegetables are always green (except for those that have been blanched artificially in the growing process, such as Belgian Endive), but some leafy vegetables are distinguished further by being called “Dark Green Leafy Vegetables.” Depending on how the speaker means the word,…
Horseradish Tree Pods © Denzil Green The Horseradish Tree has nothing to do with horseradish. It is not related to the horseradish plant at all. Just about every part of the tree can be eaten, except the bark, which is toxic. In its first year, the tree can grown 10 feet (3 metres) tall, and…
Throughout North America, Lamb’s Quarters is regarded as an annoying weed; the last thing people anywhere on the continent would think of doing there is chucking a handful of it on their dinner plate. Only wild-eyed survivalists would consider eating it. And it’s not just the people: almost every state and provincial government lists it…
Leafy vegetables are vegetables whose leaves we eat. This is a smaller category than vegetables with leaves, because pretty much everything we call a vegetable (with the obvious exception of mushrooms) has leaves at some point even if they’re trimmed off before we see them. We don’t eat the leaves off of sweet corn, or…
L to R: Butterhead type, Looseleaf type, Crisphead type. © Denzil Green Lettuces are related to Dandelions. Almost all Lettuces except Iceberg have both red and green varieties. Lettuce leaves vary from very tender (in the Butterhead group) to very crisp (Crisphead group.) There are at least four main types of Lettuce. Some Lettuces, such…
Lotus is a perennial water plant. It grows throughout the Middle East and Asia. In China, it is cultivated in Hunan, Fiangsu, Fujiang, and Zhejiang provinces. Its first leaves float on surface of the water like a water lily, then subsequent leaf growth reaches up into the air. The leaves are round, and can be…
Mesclun Mix © Randal Oulton Mesclun Mix is not one single type of kind of salad green, but rather, as the name states, a mix. The contents of the mix will vary. It often contains leaves such as baby spinach, curly endive, dandelion, lamb’s lettuce, mizuna, purslane, red chicory, red oak leaf lettuce, rocket, and…
Mizuna, though often called “Mizuna Lettuce”, is not actually a lettuce: it’s a member of the cabbage family. It grows about 10 inches wide (25 cm) and up to 18 inches tall (45 cm.) Its long stalks have crisp, frilly leaves with serrated, saw tooth edges. The plant is very cold hardy. From seed, Mizuna…
Pak Wan is a tropical, woody, perennial shrub. It can be cultivated from cuttings. Its young shoots and leaves are edible, raw or cooked. The shoots are eaten like asparagus. The taste is somewhat like green peas. Pak Wan is used in stir-fries, salads, and in soups as a pot herb. Pak Wan soup is…
Potherbs are edible green leaves that you cook up to eat. You may also see them called Greens or Winter Greens. The reference is not to something “grown” in a pot, but rather “cooked” in a pot. When you cook up spinach, as opposed to serving it fresh in a salad, you can refer to…
Young Pumpkin Leaves and stems are edible. Old leaves are too tough. You can also use them as a food wrapper, as the Greeks do grape leaves. They make a good food wrapper — much better than, say, spinach, which isn’t strong enough. Cooking Tips Wash. Remove any stems that appear tough or fibrous. If…
