![]() |
Your Recipe Center |
The custom of grubbing for Earthnuts, or Pignuts is as ancient as mankind itself. Although these tasty tubers are beloved of pigs (hence the name) they are a most unusual and rewarding woodland snack and there was a time when they were a popular nibble for country children on their way to and from school.
The fern like leaves appear along with the Lesser Celandine in the spring. During May and July they develop umbellifer heads with white flowers not unlike Cow Parsley. According to Gerard and others the Dutch once ate them 'boiled and buttered, as we do parseneps and carrots'. Unearthing a pignut is a delicate operation. The root disconnects from the tuber very easily, which can be several inches from where the stem appears above ground.
Follow the stem under the earth using careful scraping with a twig, fingernail or knife. Eventually you will reach the pignut which is covered with a chestnut coloured skin. If you can wash the nut at this stage it avoids getting muddy fingernails while peeling. As soon as I found the one shown in the picture, an earthworm appeared and dived into the hole it left!
Scrape off the papery outer coating to reveal the Earthnut. The older name for Earthnuts is 'Earth Chestnuts' and this gives you a clue to their taste - a chestnut texture but with a more earthy taste. There's nothing like carefully digging one of these up during a walk in the woods. Do it with your fingernails. As the earthy taste hits the senses you are drawn more completely into contact with the nature around you. A true 'pomme de terre'.
Gerard's Herbal mentions that 'There is a Plaister made of the seeds hereof, whereof to write in this place were impertinent to our historie'....Probably witches again! Earthnuts get a mention in Shakespeare's 'Tempest', from Caliban as he promises:
"I prithee, let me bring thee where crabs grow;
And with my long nails I will dig thee pignuts".
With thanks to R. Maybee, R. Phillips and M. Woodward's version of Gerard's Herbal.
From an ebook called 'Wild Food' underway at simonthescribe.If you wish to republish this article (with this resource box intact) you will find excellent quality pictures to accompany it at http://www.simonthescribe.co.uk/pignuts.html
![]() New York Times (blog) | Around the Grill | Readers' Recipes New York Times (blog) With Labor Day in sight, a bit of backyard inspiration in the form of reader-submitted recipes from near and far. Below, a sampling from New York City ... |
![]() New York Times (blog) | Vegetarian Recipes for Barbecue Season New York Times (blog) If your Labor Day plans include a picnic or barbecue, be sure to check out Martha Rose Shulman's latest installment of Recipes for ... |
Trading Post: Favorite apple recipes The State Journal-Register “As we have an apple tree that is a great producer, I look for recipes that use lots and lots of apples. Ones that use only one apple won't ... |
![]() Washington Post | Holiday recipes for Eid and Rosh Hashanah Washington Post The Jewish New Year and Eid overlap this year, and both call for groaning tables. Check out these recipes from our Recipe Finder archive: |
Recipe accuracy important Kansas City Star This week's "7-Day Menu Planner" in the Wednesday Food section featured a recipe for Chipotle Chicken Pasta. A reader called me this morning to report on ... |
Our five tailgating recipe winners Fort Worth Star Telegram We recently asked readers to send us their favorite tailgating recipes -- and like the action that Texas high school, college and NFL teams supply on the ... |
Ask the Editor — Going green and recipes for cookies Frederick News Post (subscription) In this business we're constantly having to look ahead, so don't yell at me for rushing the holiday season when I ask that you send in a favorite recipe for ... |
Lip-smacking recipes for your Labor Day barbeque msnbc.com Celebrate the end of the summer with delicious pork and steak dishes. Chef Alex Guarnaschelli shares his secret to having the best food at your Labor Day ... |
![]() Kansas City Star | Worldly recipes served with a slice of Jewish history Jweekly.com But among her most cherished possessions, she packed her recipe for this traditional Rosh Hashanah sweet hailing from Lithuania. ... Rosh Hashana Recipes Routed Through Africa Rosh Hashana recipe for chicken breasts with cider, spices, caramelized apples El Al shares Rosh Hashanah treats and recipes |
Jewel Box stages "Wartime Recipes" NewsOK.com From left, Joshua McGowen, Meg Linck, Jane Hall and Allyson Caldwell head the cast of the Jewel Box Theatre production of "Wartime Recipes. ... Jewel Box stages "Wartime Recipes" |
| home | site map |
| © 2007 |