289425 Sat May 25 21:50:39 -0700 2002 8 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1566953 Thursday, at the local dog park, here in DC, I was chatting with a woman while our pups played. She has a summer home in the Northeast Kingdom in Vermont, and I used to live in southeast Vermont. We were discussing wild foods--berries and mushrooms that we'd enjoyed foraging for in Vermont. She'd eaten fiddleheads but had never gathered them, and we agreed that they were the absolute, flat-out most delicious vegetable we'd ever eaten. I hadn't talked about or thought about fiddleheads in eons. The next day, I was at Trader Joe's in Bailey's Crossroad, Virginia, and they were selling fresh fiddleheads from Canada. It had to be some sort of synchronicity-- I've never seen fresh fiddleheads for sale this far from New England. I prepared them tonight--simply steamed after rinsing and trimming browned stem ends, and served with hollandaise. Hardly any flavor at all! I can only assume that they were picked too long ago, and in the process of transport and storage, they lost their pizzaz. In Vermont, we used to gather a variety called ostrich fern, with a brown, papery cover that we had to peel off, which had a complex, wonderful flavor something like a cross between asparagus, artichoke and manna from heaven. Other ferns, with fuzzy covering, tasted bitter and awful. I presumed that in Canada, they would have picked the same variety, ostrich fern. Could these have been a different edible fern? Any culinary botanists out there who could edify me? Anybody else love fiddleheads? Sat May 25 21:50:39 -0700 2002 0 zora 1 1566955 The edible ferns are Ostrich fern, Cinnamon fern, and Bracken fern. Ostrich fern is the best tasting, this one has the papery coat. Then cinnamon, which is relatively rare. With Bracken the most available but very variable for flavor. This is the one with a wooly coating. They have different tastes not just by species but also according to location, weather, etc. I harvested some of the most bitter and or tasteless ones ever this year. I think this may be due to the very mild winter. There is a very good chance that any fiddleheads you get in a commercial market will be bracken. The others are more typical of farmers markets. Age after harvesting will definately rob them of flavor. Sat May 25 22:10:24 -0700 2002 1566953 0 The Rogue 2 1567052 They are readily available in the greenmarket in nyc right about now and are usually the kind with the papery coat, quite delicious but must be cleaned well before steaming etc. And they are about 4$ a pound. Mon May 27 17:59:01 -0700 2002 1566955 0 djk 3 1567077 Oh my God. I bought and made them for the first time last night and had them w grilled halibut. I trimmed the ends, boiled in water and salt for 2-3 minutes , drained and put them in an ice bath , dried 'em off and then sauteed in plenty of foaming butter, Finished w some fresh lemon juice, s & p. Don't miss this short fiddlehead season. Bon apetit' Tue May 28 03:08:28 -0700 2002 1567052 0 Shaebones 1 1566968 I just saw fiddlehead ferns in a produce store for the first time. They were $8 a pound. Is that the usual price range? Sun May 26 11:09:42 -0700 2002 1566953 0 Bride of the Juggler 2 1566969 Here in Maine they are currently $3.99 a pound at the supermarket. Where do you live? Sun May 26 11:59:04 -0700 2002 1566968 0 ironmom 3 1566993 I'm in Philadelphia, and I saw them for that price in the Italian Market, which *usually* has good prices. Thanks for the info. Sun May 26 17:01:45 -0700 2002 1566969 0 Bride of the Juggler 2 1567207 I got some local ones last week at an eastern MA farm stand for $6/lb. They had been cleaned (according to the teenager at the counter), so I can't tell you which species I was dealing with. They were quarter-to-half-dollar-sized, if that helps to identify them. And fairly tasty, neither bitter nor completely devoid of flavor. Wed May 29 15:57:11 -0700 2002 1566968 0 C. Fox 1 1566970 Here in Canada(Toronto), fiddleheads are readily available this time of the year, both in supermarkets and farmers' markets. I don't know the variety, but they are generally quite flavourful. I steam them and quickly saute in butter and garlic. Sun May 26 12:16:42 -0700 2002 1566953 0 J.Gorman