 Fiddleheads: Searching For Greens
Posted by mainetodo on Saturday, May 10 @ 18:47:15 PDT
Spring: Growing up in Maine has its advantages fresh seafood, clean air and in the spring a Maine delicacy, fiddleheads. I remember as a child my family’s home was on the banks of the Kennebec River. My parents would take us down to the riverside and along the muddy banks we would find patches of these unique and delicious greens. Fiddleheads are actually the early stage of ostrich ferns, still curled tight to the stems, perfect for picking and even better for eating. Fiddleheads love wet moist areas and the banks of the Kennebec were the perfect breeding ground for these delicate veggies. The time to pick was always in the beginning of May before the ferns actually start to unfurl and turn into a feathery green. You have to pick fast because this is also the beginning of black fly season. I remember my mother coating us kids with skin
so soft and heading down to start picking. Unfortunately, the black flies enjoyed us as much as we enjoyed the fiddleheads but, they were always worth the effort. Once picked, we would slough away the tan, dried up pieces, rinse them well and steam them with slices of fresh lemon. When they were ready to eat mom would always coat them in butter add a little salt and pepper and finish off with a sprinkle of vinegar. They were so good!! Fiddleheads can have actually gained popularity since then and now you can find them in most grocery stores this time of year. Although buying them is much easier, you can’t really embrace the “Maine” tradition of fiddleheads unless you pick them yourself then sit back and enjoy!
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