Welcome to the Celtnet Guide to Wild Foods Beginning with 'W'

Wild Food Guide — 'W'



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Welcome to the Celtnet guide to wild foods. As this recipe site has grown it has become obvious that to allow people to replicate some of the more ancient recipes on this site (especially from the Ancient, Roman and Medieval periods it is necessary to list modern alternatives but also to produce a guide so that the curious can find the original (often wild) ingredients for themselves. These pages are an attempt at bringing all these potentially useful and often forgotten wild foods together into one place. To use this guide simply click on the first letter of your term above or below. Alternativey why not just browse through the terms. You may well find something that surprises you!

This page covers wild foods beginning with the letter 'W' and includes both common and scientific names.

marker button  Water Mint marker button  Watercress marker button  Waybread
marker button  Wayside Plantain marker button  Whin marker button  Whinberry
marker button  Whip-beam marker button  Whipcrop marker button  Whitebeam
marker button  Whiteleaf Tree marker button  White Rice marker button  White Clover
marker button  White Deadnettle marker button  White Goosefoot marker button  White Horehound
marker button  White Man's Foot marker button  Whortleberry marker button  Wild Beaked Parsley
marker button  Wild Cherry marker button  Wild Chervil marker button  Wild Chives
marker button  Wild Cowbin marker button  Wild Garlic marker button  Wild Kale
marker button  Wild Leeks marker button  Wild Marjoram marker button  Wild Mint
marker button  Wild Onion marker button  Wild Plum marker button  Wild Strawberry
marker button  Wild Thyme marker button  Wild Turnip marker button  Wilding Apple
marker button  Winged Kelp marker button  Winter Heliotrope marker button  Winter Rocket
marker button  Wintercress (Common) marker button  Wood Avens marker button  Wood Blewit
marker button  Wood Ear marker button  Wood Garlic marker button  Wood Sorrel (Common)
marker button  Wood Strawberry marker button  Wound Rocket

Example Entry

Below, you will find an example wild food entry produced randomly from our database:

Wild Food Entry For: Sugar Kelp

This is the description page for Sugar Kelp (Saccharina latissima) and includes a description as well as an image, if available and a selection of recipes from this site that relates to the wild foodstuff: Sugar Kelp.

Sugar Kelp (Saccharina latissima), formerly Laminaria saccharina

Sugar Kelp, Saccharina latissima, [previously known as Laminaria saccharina] (also known as Sea Belt, Poor Man's Weather Glass, Kombu Royale and Marafuto kombu) is a brown alga (and a member of the Laminariaceae family [kelp]) that represents one of 15 species commonly referred to as 'kelp' that has a circumboreal distribution (ie all seas around the North Pole). It grows grows profusely in intertidal pools and occasional in the shallow subtidal, becoming more abundant at low water in sheltered localities with fast-moving water, such as rapids systems. In the subtidal, it is characteristic of intermittently disturbed areas. In terms of relatives, it is closely related to the four other species (Saccharina japonica, Laminaria angustata, Laminaria longissima and Laminaria ochotensis ) typically harvested as 'Kombu' in Japan (but is the only one of these species found in the Atlantic and is frequently harvested and sold as kombu. Indeed, it is much prized for this purpose as the fronds contain the sugar, mannitol and it is considered sweeter and more sought after, hence the comon name of 'Kombu Royale'. Indeed, any recipe calling for Kombu can be made with this form of kelp. They are yelow-brown seaweeds, with elongated, unbranched, fronds that that can grow to 3m in length.

Saccharina latissima are attached to anchor stones with a claw-like holdfast attached to a small, smooth, flexible stipe with a round cross-section which extends to a single laminate blade with parallel, ruffled, sides that has an elongated, tongue-like, appearance. Amongst the Kelps it is unique in having only a single frond that is dimpled with regular depressions known as 'bullations' (see image).

Compared with it's more common relative, Laminaria digitata

As an edible seaweed it can be used in any Japanese recipe calling for 'kombu' (and, indeed, is one of the species harvested in Japan for this purpose) and can be shredded and pickled as a condiment. It also dries well for later use. Like all edible kelps, Saccharina latissima is high in glutamic acid, which contributes to the flavour of 'umami' and aids with the mouth feel of foods making them more appetizing. This species can also be peled, shredded and eaten raw as a salad vegetable.

Kombu (kelp) is a traditional Japanese additive to all kinds of bean-based stews. It is extremely useful in that it provides the umami flavour (making the dish more more-is) as well as speeding-up the cooking time by softening the beans and thickening the stew itself. To use, just add a few strips of dried kombu to the base of the pan, add the beans on top and cook as normal. A 12cm strip of kelp will be enough for a large pot of beans. The seaweed becomes translucent, tender and very tasty after extended boiling.


Recipes Utilizing Sugar Kelp

Azuki Beans with Squash and Kombu
Rice with Kombu
Lentils and Vegetables with Kombu
Dried Kombu
Simple Dashi
Kombu Dipping Sauce
Shiitake Dashi
Kombu Hummus
Chickpeas with Kombu
Kombu Stock for Miso Soup
Kombu Marinade with Soy Sauce and Honey
Kombu Marinade with Ginger and Honey
Sea Vegetable Soup
Kombu and Dried Daikon
Seaweed Seasoning
Fresh Kelp Soup


You can also use the search box below to find the wild food of your choice. You can use the common name or the scientific name or any text you choose:



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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Mushrooms and Fungi

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