Saturday, June 6, 2009

Fiddle-dee-dee


This is my first post request! Chef E posted about fiddleheads a couple of weeks back. Knowing that fiddleheads were a local dish where I live (New Brunswick, Canada) she asked if I would write about them too. So here I go.
I will be honest, I had never heard of fiddleheads until I first came to visit my (then) fiance during his college Christmas Break. We were having a New Years Supper with some people that he had gotten to know and one of the ladies had made a dish from fiddleheads that she had frozen the spring previous. I liked them. Fiddleheads are a kind of fern that is edible. I've eaten them plain (as seen in this post) and cooked in a casserole in place of broccoli. They are available fresh in May, so you have to get them when you see them.

We often see fiddleheads growing wild around here. This picture was taken on a recent hike at the Nature Park. There are so many of them along the path.

This is the fiddlehead statue at the Saint John Arts Centre uptown. Kind of a neat local landmark celebrating both something local as well as something arty (an actual fiddle). This statue is right around the corner from the church my husband works at.
So how to cook fiddleheads? Well, pretty much the same as any other green veggie. Wash them first. Steam them. That's what a did this time around. Some people like to soak them first. I added a little butter and salt and pepper when they were cooked.
I served these with baked potatoes, corn and honey mustard chicken. (mix equal parts dijon mustard and honey - pour over boneless, skinless chicken breast, bake at 350* for 40 minutes, until chicken is cooked through). Nice meal altogether.

12 comments:

Lissaloo said...

These sound really interesting, I had heard of them but never seen them. They are really cool looking :)

Lara said...

Fiddlehead is a new word for me! How interesting!

Heather S-G said...

If nothing else, they are definitely fun to look at. Honestly, I can't even remember what they taste like because i haven't had one in years and I never see them here!! :)

Melody said...

Wow! This is new to me. Thanks for expanding my horizons!

Coleens Recipes said...

We live at the base of a mountain that is literally covered with fiddlehead ferns.Can you belive I've never tasted one? I guess I should give them a try. People go up the mountain every year and gather fiddleheads by the bucket.

Katy ~ said...

I've never had them, but I occasionally see them in the grocery stores. I've been intrigued by the idea (as my grandmother ate them) but have actually eaten them. I think it's something worth exploring seeing how we have so many on our property (gone by now, but shall remember for next year!).

Interesting, interesting post!

Selba said...

I haven't seen fiddlehead veggie here in Indonesia but if not mistaken, it's a quite common veggie in Malaysia (neighbor country of Indonesia).

I would love to try it someday :)

justjoycee said...

This is new to me, but very interesting. You can find the Sazon you asked about here: http://goya.com/english/products/product.html?prodCatID=4&prodSubCatID=8

Take care.

Creative Classroom Core said...

Ive always wanted to try fiddleheads - such a fun looking ingredient!

Barbara Bakes said...

Such a beautiful side dish. I hope to try them some time.

Heidi said...

How neat! I've neaver heard of these. What a fun food.

Monica H said...

I've seen them on flower arrangements but I never thought to eat them. What did they taste like? Would you make them again?