Wild Edibles from the Utah Desert

I’ve been studying and eating wild edible plants for several years now. I started this research in my local area of Utah, primarily the desert, by accident almost. I was asked to assist in a youth activity for my church to teach what foods might have been readily available to pioneers coming into the area over a hundred years ago. I didn’t know a whole lot at that time but through research I soon found that there were a lot of edible plants even in the Utah desert.

As I struggled to find the names of the plants I was finding and then to determine if they were edible I began putting together all kinds of notes to compile a good list of wild edibles in the west because I was not able to find such a list readily available. What I did find as I worked to understand wild edibles is that there is quite a bit available for food that we can harvest from around our homes and in the wilderness. There is a huge number of plants available and proper research can help identify them.

I found some favorites that grow well in my area. Here are a few of them…

“Chorispora tenella” by Lee Ferguson. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons

Blue Mustard
Blue mustard is a delicious spring vegetable. This is a great tasting plant in early spring when it is young and I even like it’s spicy flavor later in spring before it gets too old in the heat. Blue mustard is easy to identify when it blossoms because you will see fields of light purple flowers. It is a mustard, so simply look for the four petals and it’s two short and four tall stamens. The flavor when young is like a sweet radish and the plant gets more spicy as it grows but is never really bitter or too much to take. This is a beautiful wild edible that I look forward to every spring.

“20140812 Chenopodium album” by AnRo0002. Licensed under CC0 via Wikimedia Commons

Lambs Quarters (Wild Spinach)
I like to follow John Kallas on this one and call it what it is, wild spinach. Wild spinach is another great edible with good flavor and this one can handle the heat so it will be available well into the summer months. I have cultivated it in my garden through the entire summer and into the fall. What a great edible. Once again it is easy to identify though it does have some variations to it depending on location and nutrients provided. The white waxy film is a dead giveaway and if it is watered well the leaves have a thick feel to them. This is another of my favorites that nature now provides.

“Portulaca Oleracea…” by Isidre Blanc. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Purslane
I love to eat fresh picked purslane right in the heat of the middle of summer. This is a prolific plant that will always be around in my yard from now on. This plant is a succulent, and it is said to contain more omega-3 fatty acids than many fish and meats. This is not something you hear often when talking about a plant. Purslane has a pleasant flavor and it makes a great potherb. I enjoy snacking on it while I’m working in the yard or garden, and personally I think it looks very good when used as an ornamental ground cover.

“Rumex crispus 15052006 rosette” by Henry Brisse. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Yellow Dock (Curly Dock)
I love the dock plants. I have grown yellow dock in my garden for a few years now and I enjoy its young leaves that have almost a lemon flavor to them. I eat it in salad and on sandwiches and I really love this little plant. I have had the seeds in the past after a long winter when they did not taste too bad but most of the time they are too difficult to extract from the shell and are loaded with tannins. The leaves of this plant are delicious, however, and they are a treat that adds flavor to any salad.

All of my research and findings on desert edibles are compiled together on my website at www.WildUtahEdibles.com.

Thanks to Mike Wood for participating in the [Grow] Network Writing Contest.

We have over $2,097 in prizes lined up for the Fall 2015 Writing Contest, including all of the following:

– A 21.5 quart pressure canner from All American, a $382 value
– A Survival Still emergency water purification still, a $288 value
– 1 free 1 year membership in the [Grow] Network Core Community, a $239 value
– A Worm Factory 360 vermicomposting system from Nature’s Footprint, a $128 value
– 2 large heirloom seed collections from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, valued at $103 each
– A Metro-Grower Elite sub-irrigation growing container from Nature’s Footprint, a $69 value
– 2 copies of the complete Home Grown Food Summit, valued at $67 each
– 3 free 3 month memberships in the [Grow] Network Core Community, valued at $59 each
– 4 copies of the Grow Your Own Groceries DVD video set, valued at $43 each
– A Bug Out Seed Kit from the Sustainable Seed Company, a $46 value
– 4 copies of the Alternatives To Dentists DVD video, valued at $33 each
– 4 copies of the Greenhouse of the Future DVD and eBook, valued at $31 each