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Raw salads

Nettle salad with young shoots

The plant that stings in the meadow becomes, once finely chopped, one of the most nourishing wild salads of spring.

Nettle is gathered young, before flowering, taking only the top four leaves. Finely chopped or briefly blanched in boiling water, it loses all its sting and reveals a green flavour close to spinach. It's a classic of Europe's peasant cooking, reputed to be remineralising at winter's end.

Ingredients

  • Young nettle shoots

    tips only, gathered with gloves, before flowering

    2 good handfuls
  • Olive oil
    3 tbsp
  • Lemon juice
    1/2 lemon
  • Seeds (sunflower, squash)

    optional, for crunch

    1 tbsp
  • Salt
    1 pinch

Steps

  1. 1

    Gather and rinse

    Gather the nettle tips with gloves, in a clean spot (far from roads and treated crops). Rinse in fresh water.

    10 min

  2. 2

    Neutralise the sting

    Two methods: either chop VERY finely with a knife (crushing breaks the stinging hairs), or plunge the leaves for 30 seconds in boiling water then drain and press. The sting disappears completely.

    5 min

  3. 3

    Season

    Mix the chopped nettle with the oil, lemon, salt, and seeds. Let it rest 5 minutes so the flavours bind.

    5 min

Storage

To be eaten the same day; seasoned nettle does not keep.

How to use it

As a spring starter, or as a side to a soft-boiled egg or warm potatoes.

Health properties

  • Traditionally reputed to be remineralising: nettle is a good source of plant iron, calcium, and protein.
  • Rich in vitamin C and chlorophyll when eaten raw and young.

These preparations belong to cooking and herbal tradition: they nourish and support, do not “cure” anything and replace no treatment. Ask a doctor or pharmacist before prolonged use, if under treatment, pregnant or breastfeeding, or for a child. Follow the stated storage precautions strictly.

Precautions

Gather only the YOUNG shoots before flowering (old leaves become gritty and irritating to the kidneys). Nettle contains oxalates: to consume in moderation, and to avoid in case of kidney stones or kidney failure. Always gather far from roads and treated areas.

Sources & tradition

  • · François Couplan, *Le régal végétal* (nettle, Urtica dioica)
  • · European peasant culinary tradition

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