For Ida Eriksen of Bella Coola, stinging nettle is a food favourite at this time of year.
In mid-April she went out and picked some near her home and confirmed, “yeah” she wears gloves.
“I tend to wash and blanch it in a big pot when I get home, then squeeze out the water and package in amounts I figure I will use in cooking,” she said.
Eriksen said for a number of years, she has used it in place of spinach in some of her dishes.
She also can dry it out and make tea with it, and noted it is supposed to be helpful for arthritis.
“It tastes earthy like spinach in a way but I like it better.”
First Nations Health Authority in a fact sheet notes stinging nettle has also been used traditionally for medicine and twine for fishnets and snares.
“Stinging nettle is high in iron. It is harvested when the snow melts, throughout spring and summer.”
New leaves can be eaten fresh when the plant is four to eight inches tall. Once they are bigger they can be dried and used for tea.
Nettle leaves should not be eaten fresh once the plant has flowered, as the leaves of the flowering plant contain a compound that may irritate the kidneys, noted FNHA.
The leaves on a flowering plant can be consumed safely if dried and used as a tea or powder.
Eriksen has lived in Bella Coola since 2013 and said she learned about foraging for stinging nettle from people living in the area.
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