Spring is coming, have you ever smelled that fresh green in the air? As soon as the Qingming Festival passed, the earth warmed up, and those little secrets hidden in the fields began to emerge. Vegetables are more delicious than meat in the spring limited, so if you miss it, you have to wait another year! Are you like me, when you think of these tender green little guys, you can't help but swallow your saliva?
When I was a child, my mother would always come home with a handful of toons every spring. The rich aroma seems to have stuffed the whole spring into the kitchen. She will blanch it with hot water, mix it with some garlic paste and sesame oil, and the moment she bites it, it is crispy and tender with a slight bitterness, like a spring breeze dancing on the tip of her tongue. Do you know? Toon is the "wild vegetable on the tree", the fresh buds are the freshest when they first emerge, and they are too old to chew after Qingming. When buying, pick the purple-red bud head, which has a stronger fragrance and a more tender taste.
Shepherd's cabbage is one of my favorite wild vegetables. I remember once going to the suburbs with a friend, picking some camellia and making dumplings at home. The taste is so fresh that it makes people squint their eyes, like spring melting in their mouths. There is a little secret to the shepherd's cabbage: its roots are more fragrant than the leaves, and after washing, it is chopped and filled, which is definitely the finishing touch. In ancient times, shepherd's cabbage was still a "life-saving dish" for poor families, but now it has become a favorite on the table. What is your favorite food to eat with shepherd's cabbage? Let me know in the comments!
Ma Lantou is the business card of Jiangnan Spring. The emerald green leaves, with a faint fragrance, are blanched and cold, and the entrance is crisp, as if chewing a spring poem. I heard that during the Qingming Festival, Jiangnan people will use Ma Lantou to make a youth group, and do not forget to comfort their taste buds when worshipping their ancestors. Want to make it taste better? Don't be in a hurry to mix after blanching, let it cool and add some sesame oil, the fragrance can be doubled.
The bracken is the treasure of the mountains, tender as a child who has just woken up, slippery and slippery into the mouth. The first time I ate it was in the mountains, and my friend used it to fry bacon, and the fragrance mixed with the smell of meat was a perfect match. Bracken has a particular point, and you have to blanch it quickly when you pick it back, otherwise it will be easy to change color and become bitter. Eating it in spring is like having a close contact with nature.
Don't look at the dandelion as inconspicuous, it is the "all-rounder" of spring. When the leaves are tender, take a bite of cold mixing, and after the bitterness, there is a faint sweetness, like life, you always have to be bitter first and then sweet. When I was a child, I still played with its flowers, but I didn't expect to find out when I grew up that it could still be cooked. Want to go bitter? Add a little salt when blanching to double the effect.
The name of bitter herb sounds bitter, but it tastes uniquely refreshing. My grandmother often said that eating some bitter herbs in spring can "clear the body". She will use it to cook soup, with some wild vegetable dumplings, and drink it warmly, like spring rain to nourish her heart. The roots of bitter herbs can also be dried to make tea, not to mention the taste is more energetic.
Alfalfa is the "emerald" of spring, and the water will be cut off as soon as the shoots are pinched, and they are fried or mixed to eat, which is too fresh. It has the advantage that the protein is higher than a lot of meat, and in ancient times, it was a "noble grass" that livestock rushed to eat. I like to scrambled eggs with it, spread it green on the plate, like spring flowers.
Spring is the stage for wild vegetables, and every bite is a gift from nature. The nobility of the toon, the gentleness of the shepherd's cabbage, and the fragrance of the marantou...... These flavors are fresher than meat, and more soul-stirring than mountain delicacies. After Qingming, they are in season, and if they miss it, they will have to wait another year.
At the end of the day, wild vegetables are not just food, they are an emotion. They remind me of the time when I was a child digging wild vegetables on the ridges with my grandmother, and I think of my mother busy in the kitchen. Wild vegetables in spring are eaten as a taste and a memory. Take advantage of the spring to make an appointment with three or five friends, go for a walk in the field, dig some wild vegetables and go home, fry a plate, mix a bowl, and put the deliciousness of spring into your stomach. Such a day is what spring should look like!