Delicious fiddleheads

I always enjoy this time of year. Spring is really, truly here. The earth smells alive and things are starting to green up. The apple trees are just starting to leaf out and the trilliums are in full bloom, but what has me all excited is that the first fiddleheads are up. For those of you that are not from New England, fiddleheads are a spring delicacy. While many ferns have the tightly coiled shoots that look like the decorative carving that adorns the end of the fiddle, when Mainers are discussing fiddleheads, they inevitable mean the young ostrich fern, Matteuccia struthiopteris. These are commonly wild-harvested in late April and early May.

I think that these ferns are one of the most underrated perennial edible. They transplant easily, they have no natural pests, and they are very low maintenance. They grow seasonally to about 5 feet tall and will spread to about 6 feet wide, although you can plant them about 3 ft on center and they will do better, shading out all competitors. The fiddleheads are delicious. They tastes something like spinach or asparagus but with a deeper, woodsy taste from the tanins. The important thing to keep in mind when you are looking to plant them is that they are riparian and require a place that is wet to very wet in the spring. They do not have to be wet all year, although they can take it, and they are not drought tolerant. They like part sun or dappled sun. In full sun they tend to be out-competed by grasses. They are often found in the company of blackberry brambles, and they grow well together as long as the brambles reigned in every few years.

a fiddlehead recipes to get you started:


Scollops and Fiddlehead Medley

1 pound fiddleheads
6 ounces linguine, uncooked
6 cups water
1-3/4 pounds fresh scollops
1 tablespoon oil
2/3 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup green pepper, diced
1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced (wild mushrooms are fantastic with fiddleheads)
1 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon celery seed
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Bring about 3-4 quarts of water to a boil for fiddleheads. While waiting for water, prep other veggies.
Boil fiddleheads for 10 minutes, drain and set aside.
Put on water for pasta. Saute onions and mushrooms until about half done. Add other vegetables and braise. 
Cook pasta as directed. 
Add herbs, scollops and fiddleheads to the braise.
Serve hot on pasta and dash with lemon.

Serves 6.