Hair Raising Bittercress

Along with dandelions and garlic mustard, hairy bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta) is one of the first greens to come out during the spring. Often viewed as a weed, it’s actually a delightful vegetable that, while a pain to collect, is quite tasty in that it can be enjoyed by a wide variety of audiences. It’s name doesn’t do it justice, for it is neither hairy nor bitter, and is mild flavored. Those who can’t get used to the strong flavor of dandelions, which is usually considered the staple of foraging, will find that hairy bittercress is right up their alley.

In the spring, it has attractive little white flowers, making it charming and white easy to miss in the lawn. However, if you have zoysia grass, it stands out like a green little mound among the still yellow dormant grass. It spreads its seeds through a spring loaded mechanism, and during the summer my kids love touching the seed pods that explode on contact. They think it’s a lot of fun (and it keeps them occupied!) It lives in both sun and shade, any kind of soil, and is wide spread across the globe.

I collect as a vegetable to eat like kale–its flavor and texture similar. It does not turn slimy the way spinach does, and is excellent sauteed or steamed or blanched. Sometimes in the mornings, I’ll go out to add it to my pan baked eggs, just so I have some dark greens to start me off on the day.

If you forage for it, make sure it’s from an area where you are certain no pesticides or herbicides have been used. I just pull the entire thing out of the ground (it comes up very easily) and pinch off the root.

Recipes with Hairy Bittercress

Breakfast Pan with Hairy Bittercress
Steamed Vegetable Dumpling