There are groups of winemakers who continually look for techniques that will help them improve wine quality. The “indigenous yeast” trend became a buzz word popularized by influential wine critics of wines made with more natural, less interventionist techniques. Native yeast start the fermentation naturally in contrast to the common California, and in recent years European, practice of adding yeast to start the fermentation.

Fining (clarification of wine by filtration and chemical additives to precipitate out suspended solids) and filtration are examples of “interventionist” techniques some critics object to, perceived as excessive manipulation which compromises wine quality. This view is contradicted by top California winemakers that claim a properly carried out fining or filtration improves the quality of some wines.

Robert Parker, a skilled writer and passionate advocate of wine quality, has helped shape consumer opinions and buying habits. Some winemakers, being well aware that favorable Parker reviews sell wine, are actually producing their wines to suit his taste. John Williams, Owner and Winemaker of Frog’s Leap Winery in Napa who has been making wine since 1981, draws the line: “When I see people making good wines change what they’ve believed in for a long time just to satisfy the latest craze, I have to scratch my head.”

What role should the wine writer have in the winery?

Williams believes a limited one: “Wine writers do have a place in the cellar – reflecting on and communicating the vision of the winemaker. To me, the most interesting wines are those made with conviction based on the personal experiences of the winemaker. That conviction can change, that’s how wines get better, but it should not shift with the wind.”

Williams, a long-time user of wild yeast, feels that the inherent risks are overstated. He says, “You bring grapes into a winery and you’re faced with risks. I don’t think those risks are substantially increased by using natural yeast fermentations and that is 20 years experience. I don’t want to say that we’ve never had a fermentation problem that is not true, we have. But I think there may be some benefits to an overall program of using natural yeast that come with it, the wines are more harmonious, more knit and reflect their vineyard character more closely.” Terry Adams, Winemaker at Sonoma-Cutrer Vineyards, comments on the wild yeast trend: “There is a continuum, 10% of the wines I think are excellent and 10% I think should be sold in bulk and there are wines in the middle. I do about 10-15% of the wine that way because I like the complexity. But I like the clean fruit characters that I get from cultured yeast. I continue to work with it because I think it’s fun and exciting, but it just doesn’t work for me the way it seems to work with other people. I think it’s a great philosophical approach; I just don’t know that everyone has the same indigenous yeast. We’ve decided which yeast we like and they work well for us.”

Most winemakers using wild yeast are looking less at the marketing dividends and more at the potential for enhancing wine quality. Saccharomyces cerevisiae is referred to as the “true” wine yeast, and it’s only on about 1 in 1,000 berries. Its alcohol tolerance enables fermentation up to and beyond 13% alcohol. Also on these grapes are other species of wild yeast, bacteria and mold. Generally, S. cerevisiae is the least prevalent of these microbial species. For the first one to three days of a natural fermentation, the wild yeast predominates. As alcohol levels reaches 3-4%, the wild yeast give way to the increasing numbers of alcohol tolerant Saccharomyces and in two to five days this yeast predominates. At the end of a natural fermentation, usually only S. cerevisiae yeast is present from a multiplicity of strains (as many as 16) in such fermentations. Whereas in inoculated fermentations, S. cerevisiae predominates from beginning to end because of the high level of inoculum.

However, some of California’s top winemakers use wild yeast and others do not. There are situations when even devoted followers of wild yeast would prefer an inoculated fermentation, as when rain at harvest washes off the native yeast, reducing their populations. The ensuing rot contains bacteria and mold, which can, during the longer lag phase of native yeast fermentation, proliferate and ruin the wine. The irregularities of natural fermentations require closer monitoring which may be impractical on a large scale. By matching the right grape varieties to the right growing regions, winemakers will be working with high acid, low pH fruit, reducing the risks of wild yeast fermentations.

We created http://www.YourLoveofWine.com because we passionately want to share with those with an interest the art, science, and physical and psychological aspects of the wine tasting experience. An experience without pretension which both the novice and seasoned wine lover can enjoy and appreciate. Some of the most exquisite wine experiences are made by passionate vintners creating wines with more styles and tastes than ever could be imagined and http://www.YourLoveofWine.com can take you on a wondrous journey, tracking down some truly exciting wines to bring to your door when you need them. Our mission is to deliver a greater online wine buying value than you will find anywhere through the combination of our outstanding customer service, depth of product offerings, value pricing and commitment to online wine buyers’ satisfaction. Including the best of the elite red and white wines, gift baskets, wine racks, glassware, wine openers and charms.

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The superior flavor and texture of Alaskan seafood is recognized throughout the world. But perhaps not everyone makes the connection between the superiority of the product and the unique environment that nurtured its development. The delightful flavor of wild Alaska cod, as with other Alaskan seafood, is a direct result of feeding on marine organisms which are the natural food supply for that species. Prized all over the world, the texture of wild Alaskan fish is the result of annual migrations in the cold North Pacific.

These migrations are cause the development of optimum fat content and distribution. It is the fat content in a fish and its proper distribution which ensure the excellent texture contained in the finished product…

When nature is permitted to take its course unimpeded the results are extraordinary. For years now we have witnessed a trend towards lighter more heart-healthy menu choices. Modern seafood recipes tend to favor lighter seafood mild enough that it can set off rather than compete with light delicate sauces. One of the most delicate and healthy fish to be found, wild Alaska cod, is also versatile enough to star as the main ingredient in the most exotic of recipes. The mildness of flavor and tender texture found in all three varieties of wild Alaska cod can act to balance any strong or spicy seasoning in some of today´s most creative recipes. When choosing among the various types of wild Alaska cod it is helpful to become acquainted with the particular characteristics of each of these fish. Which kind of fish is best suited to a given recipe? Just as importantly, which fish best satisfies the chef´s individual tastes?

Here are some brief descriptions of the three varieties of wild Alaska Cod:

Black Cod: In recent years, this fish has received abundant attention among culinary experts. It has been touted as one of the world´s top 10 up and coming ingredients. It´s succulent flavor is comparable to that of sea bass. Like all wild Alaska cod, Black Cod is low in saturated fats and rich in heart-healthy Omega 3s as well as other nutrients. Black Cod is harvested practically year-round; its´ harvest season running from mid-March to mid-November.

Alaska Pollock: This fish is the most affordable, versatile and abundant member of the wild Alaska cod family. It is available year-round in a variety of convenient packaging that can help speed up meal preparation. Its mild flavor, moderately firm texture and wonderful flaking ability make it ideal for just about any cooking method imaginable. Alaskan pollock can be an excellent substitute in many recipes calling for a mild, flaky fish.

Alaska Cod: This fish is known for its firm fillets and distinctive large flake. It´s flavor is slightly sweeter than that of the other wild Alaska cod. Its´ delicate sweetness is well complimented by a wide variety of sauces and seasonings. Like the other two types of wild Alaska cod, this fish is naturally abundant and harvested from a wild sustainable environment; an excellent source of quality protein and other nutrients with a low calorie content. When it comes to wild Alaska cod it´s impossible NOT to make a good choice! So relax and enjoy any of these healthy, natural options.

The Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute has accurate, up to date information on the fish species off the coast of the most northern state.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Allie_Moxley

This is probably because many people are almost entirely ignorant of wild greens. The wild plants that can be harvested (often in your own back garden) and consumed.

Indeed, as soon as April turns into May edible wild plants spring into profusion. If you know what to look for then you can probably spot six edible species right in your own back garden. If you venture further afield, to a back lane, for example then with a little practice you will see thirty or more wild plants that are both edible and, more importantly, good to eat.

In fact there are well over a hundred common plants (many of them considered weeds) that you can collect and add to your own recipes. There are as many rarer plants again so that anyone with enough knowledge will be able to gather one wild plant or another all year round. Even in the depths of winter there are enough wild plants in abundance for you to be able to create a hedgerow salad.

Here I present two recipes designed around and incorporating wild spring greens.

Springtime Fritters

Ingredients:

180g flour

pinch of salt

1 egg

450ml flat beer

300g edible leaves and flowers (hawthorn flowers, broom flowers, gorse flowers, young beech leaves, hop shoots, bisort leaves, ground elder leaves, sow thistle, cleavers, ramsons, henbit deadnettle, red deadnettle, white deadnettle [anything that's to hand, basically])

Method:

Add the flour and salt to a large bowl, make a well in the middle and break the egg into this. Pour in a little of the beer and start to mix. Gradually pour more beer and incorporate more of the flour. Mix thoroughly so that there are no lumps and keep adding beer until our have a batter about the consistency of single cream. Cover the bowl with a cloth and allow to rest for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile trim your greens and flowers and rinse with plenty of cold water. Heat oil in a wok or deep pan and mix your flowers and greens into the batter. Drop spoonfuls of the batter mix into the hot oil and fry until golden, turning once.

Lift them onto a plate using a slotted spoon, drizzle with a little honey and serve warm.

A Spring Tart

Ingredients:

80g of spring buds (hawthorn flower and leaf buds, gorse flowers and beech leaves just out of bud)

150g spring greens (the young leaves of primroses, violets and wild strawberries)

12 primrose flowers

80g young spinach

100ml double cream

300ml single cream

60g naples bisket (or any dry sponge cake)

1 whole egg

2 egg yolks

enough pastry for a 22cm pie shell

60g sugar

salt, to taste

freshly-grated cinnamon

Method:

Place the primrose flowers in sugar to partly candy them.

Meanwhile, wash the buds and greens, drain them then chop very small. Add to a pan along with the single and double cream and bring to a boil. Simmer for 3 minutes, or until the greens wilt then take off the heat. Finely chop or grate the naples bisket and stir into the cream along with the sugar, salt and spices. Set aside to cool.

After you have made your pie crust (use either the short-crust for an expensive pie or the standard pie-crust recipes) place in a 22cm pie dish, add dried beans to keep the bottom flat and blind bake in an oven at 200°C for ten minutes.

Whisk the eggs into the cream mixture. Pour this mixture into the part-baked pie crust and dot the surface with butter. Bake the tart in an oven at 170°C for 75 minutes or until the surface turns a golden brown. Take out of the oven and allow to cool completely before decorating the top with the candied primrose flowers.

I hope that these recipes have given you a taste of how you can use the various wild foods and flowers on your doorstep to make tasty dishes from and that you will now want to find out more about how to include wild ingredients in your own cookery.

Dyfed Lloyd Evans runs the Celtnet Recipes site which specializes in Wild Food Recipes. If you would like to include more wild foods in your own cooking then why not check-out the Guide to Wild Foods that can help you identify the wild foods you can use in your own cookery.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dyfed_Lloyd_Evans

For example, young dandelion leaves are quite like bitter salad leaves. You can use them directly in any recipe calling for radiccio or endive. As salt counteracts bitterness in any food you can also blanch dandelion leaves in salted water and use as a spinach alternative.

Wild greens such as sea kale and sea beet, being members of the cabbage family can be used in any recipes that call for other members of the cabbage family (eg cabbage, kale, collard greens, turnip greens, chard and even spinach). They just need to be blanched in salted water for a few minutes to make them tender and less bitter before use.

Common mallow has a taste profile and a mucilaginous nature that’s very similar to Egyptian corchorus and so can be directly substituted to make the Egyptian soup, Melokhia. In a similar vein dried Linden (European lime) leaves are similar to West African baobab leaves and American sassafras and like their culinary equivalents can be used to thicken stews and soups.

Wild fruit, of course, can be used in any recipe that calls for a domestic fruit: jams, preserves, cakes, ice creams, granitas etc. Just remember that wild fruit tend to be a little more sour than their domestic cousins and adjust the sugar content accordingly.

Standard wild greens such as Good King Henry, Fat Hen, chickweed, bedstraw and many others can be used in a very similar way to spinach and work well anywhere spinach would be used. If young they can even be eaten raw in salads.
Edible flowers can be candied (just store in sugar for a few days) and used in ice creams or to decorate desserts and cakes. Edible wild flowers provide an aromatic and sweet note to many dishes and are excellent in salads and as decoration for desserts and cakes.

Young shoots of many wild plants, such as Japanese knotweed and hogweed can be prepared, steamed and eaten in much the same way as asparagus and make wonderful alternatives to this vegetable.

Essentially, once you know what a wild ingredient is equivalent to or can be substituted for you can modify any recipe with that traditional ingredient and substitute-in the wild ingredient for it. So, the question when coming to wild foods isn’t ‘where do I find recipes for this?’ but rather, should be ‘what can I use this ingredient instead of?’ Then you can just mix and match and substitute to your heart’s content.

Make life easy for yourself, rather than hard!

Dyfed Lloyd Evans is the creator of the Celtnet Guide to Wild Foods, a large list of edible wild foods and how to use them. He is also the author of the Wild Food Recipes, a catalogue of recipes incorporating wild foods.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dyfed_Lloyd_Evans

In Europe, at least, the Second World War marked a watershed in culinary tastes. Foraging for wild foods became an essential part of survival. Wild-sourced foods often became essential dietary staples for those who could access those foods. It was inevitable, after the shortages of the war cam to an end that people would shie away from such subsistence foods and that commercial agricultural produce and processed foods became the be-all and end-all of daily sustenance. Two generations lost the knowledge of which wild foods were edible and which wern’t (with the notable exception of fruit such as blackberries and certain mushrooms). Consumers became more distant from the land than ever before.

But the wheel is turning. Concern for the planet has led to increased awareness and interest in the possibilities of foraging and the finding of wild food sources. This is partly a matter of curiosity and partly an increased interest in the recipes of the past and their ingredients. There is also an increased interest in growing a larger range of herbs and flowers in the garden to attract insects (and many of these insect-attracting plants happen to be edible).

This has resulted in increased knowledge and curiosity about ancient food sources and how wild and different foodstuffs can be used. This the ancient Elizabethan trade in marsh samphire has been renewed and samphire is now on the menu. But it doesn’t stop there. Those people who would look for blackberries in summer are now collecting elder flowers in May, elderberries in August, wild plums and hazelnuts in September, and sloes in October — and these are just the common fruit.

Once you start down this road of discovery you find that common garden weeds such a bedstraw, fat hen and chickweed are not only edible but make good vegetables. Rather than grubbing these up and adding them to your compost heap, you can wash them and add them to your dinner plate! Then there are the wild herbs, the wild greens such as ramsons (wild garlic) in spring and Field Mustard which can be found year round. There are even greens such as coltsfoot, and common wintercress that can be found and consumed even in the depths of Winter.

Part of the attraction of these wild foods is that they bring out the ‘hunter-gatherer’ in all of us. It’s part of our ancestry, our heritage and once you get bitten by the foraging bug you will never quite be the same again. You will find that in spring you serve your dinner guests a hedgerow salad made of wild greens and wild flowers, in summer you will have summer puddings of wild fruit and in autumn you have the harvest of wild nuts and wild mushrooms to draw on. Even in the depths of winter there are stored fruit and wild greens that you can use.

Next time you pass a tangled hedgerow or an overgrown verge why not stop for a moment to look at the range of plant life that exists there. With a simple guide and some patience you will even be able to get yourself a tasty meal from those plants.

Trendy restaurants may be scraping the verges of wild foods to make a statement and make a name for themselves, but you as real cooks can truly appreciate the breadth and depth of the range of wild foodstuffs available to you. They will truly allow you to connect to your ancestors for these are the foods they collected and consumed. Keep the ancient traditions alive and try some wild foods for yourself.

To learn more about wild foods, how to recognize them and cook them take a look at the Wild Food Guide.

Dyfed Lloyd Evans is a cook and Internet author who is passionate about ancient foods and ancient cookery. He shares his knowlege on this subject in his Celtnet Recipes site. His reconstruction of ancient recipes can be found on his Ancient Recipes pages.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dyfed_Lloyd_Evans

If you know what to look for and how to recognize the plants then the wild harvest can provide many completely free delights for your table. What’s more wild foods are truly and completely seasonal and provide a sense of what our ancestors used to eat.

With spring just around the corner it’s time for all serious foragers and anyone curious about wild foods to venture out once more. We’re about to enter the season of fresh spring greens where dandelions, mustard greens, stinging nettles, deadnettles, ramsons (wild garlic), bedstraw and many other edible delights are at their very best.

Here are two recipes that will show-off many of these wild spring greens to their very best:

Wild Garlic and Wild Mustard Greens Pesto

Ingredients:

1 garlic clove, chopped

sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper

150g wild mustard greens, washed and with leaves shredded

12 ramson (wild garlic) leaves, chopped

100g pine nuts, very lightly toasted

100g freshly grated Parmesan cheese

extra virgin olive oil

a small squeeze of lemon juice

Method:

Add the garlic, wild mustard greens and ramsons to a food processor and pulse to a puree. Add the pine nuts and pulse once again. Tip into a bowl and add half the Parmesan. Stir gently and begin adding the olive oil. Add just enough so that the mixture is bound together and you achieve a thick but pliable consistency (a bit like mud). Add the lemon juice and most of the remaining cheese. Season to taste then add a little more olive oil. Alternate adding oil and cheese until you are happy with both the consistency and the taste.

This is best used fresh, but will store for a week if placed in a jar and stored in the fridge.

Nettle Soup

Ingredients:

900g young nettle tips (you need to pick these when the nettles are about 6 to 10 cm tall. May is a good time)
(
900g spinach
(
900ml chicken or vegetable stock
(
3 tbsp flour
(
60ml cold milk
(
4 cold, cooked, sausages
(
3 tbsp sour cream

salt and black pepper, to taste

Method:

Be careful when picking the nettles as even the young tips can still sting. Also only pick young, fresh, nettles as they become very bitter as they age. Wash the nettles when you have enough then blanch them in boiling water (this removes the formic acid). Drain the nettles and return them to the pot along with the spinach. Pour in the hot stock, season and allow to simmer for 4 minutes (add more stock if the mixture becomes too dry).

Set the soup aside to cool then purée in batches in a blender. Meanwhile mix the flour and milk to a smooth paste. Return the soup and the milk mixture to the pot and return to a boil. Chop the sausages into small rounds and add to the soup. Add the sour cream, swirl and serve immediately.

These are only two recipes of the many thousands possible and they feature only two of the many hundreds of edible plants that are all around us in the countryside. Why not begin exploring the culinary possibilities of your own backyard today?

Dyfed Lloyd Evans is the author of the Celtnet Guide to Edible Wild Plants and the recipes to accompany this guide have been collected in his Wild Food Recipes. He also writes articles on wild foods and wild food cooking at Celtnet Articles

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dyfed_Lloyd_Evans

You are welcome to do this, if you so desire, but that’s definitely not the point of the wild food movement at all. It’s partly about increasing people’s views of nature and the natural world. After all, if you naturally add wild ingredients to your overall larder then you will appreciate nature and what it can do for your. Nature no longer becomes an enemy or something you have to fight with. Rather the wild world becomes an extension of your environment. Something useful that you can dip into to extend the types of food available to you.

You can build a meal based on nothing but wild foods. Or, you can go into the wild and source things like young linden (lime tree) leaves or wild herbs for use in a salad or recipe as a simple addition.

Here I present two wild food dishes. A salad that includes almost nothing but wild-sourced foods and a main course includes a few wild-sourced ingredients as additions to he list of overall ingredients.

Winter Salad

Ingredients:
1 large bunch wintercress
1 large bunch bittercress
1 large bunch chickweed
handful of gorse flowers (if available)
10 sheep’s sorrel leaves (or wood sorrel if it’s a mild winter)
4 tbsp melted clarified butter
2 tbsp cider vinegar
1/2 finely-chopped small onion

Method:
Wash the herbs thoroughly and place in a bowl. Finely-chop the sheep’s sorrel (or wood sorrel) and add to a lidded jar along with the onion, melted butter, vinegar and seasonings.

Shake to mix thoroughly then arrange the greens in a bowl, pour the dressing over them, toss and serve.

Spicy Chicken and Goosegrass

Ingredients:
600g chicken breasts, cubed
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 small onions, sliced
butter or oil for frying
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander seeds
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper(1/2 tsp freshly-milled black pepper
1/2 tsp garam masala
4 whole cloves
10 tomatoes, chopped
200g goosegrass leaves
salt, to taste

Method:
Add the chicken and a little oil to a pan and stir-fry until nicely browned. Remove the meat from the pan and set aside. Now add a little more oil to the pan and use this to gently fry the onion and garlic for a few minutes before adding the spices (except the garam masala). Fry for a few minutes more then return the chicken to the pan along with the tomatoes and about 400ml water.

Season with salt then bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce to a very low simmer, cover and continue cooking for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Raise the heat at the end of this time and stir-in the goosegrass.

Continue cooking until the sauce thickens and most of the liquid has evaporated. Remove from the heat, add the garam masala and serve on a bed of rice.

I hope that these recipes have shown that incorporating wild foods into your diet does not need to be complex or ‘worthy’ all you need to do is go out, find some ingredients and use them!

Dyfed Lloyd Evans has a love of food and cookery and a particular passion for incorporating more wild-sourced ingredients into modern cooking. He has created a Guide to Wild Foods which is free for all to browse and you can find many more recipes incorporating wild ingredients in his Wild Food Recipes pages.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dyfed_Lloyd_Evans

Wild rice is high in protein and low in fat. A little goes a long way. One cup of uncooked rice makes about three cups of cooked rice. You can add flavor by cooking the rice in beef, chicken, or vegetable stock. The rice tastes best when slightly crunchy, so keep track of the time. Overcooked rice is mushy and looks like popcorn.

Minnesotans love wild rice. We make wild rice pancakes, breads, salads, soups, side dishes, and desserts. Recently I bought some bratwurst with wild rice and it was delicious. I love wild rice with dried cranberries, caramelized onions, and orange zest . One day, though, I hankered for a steaming bowl of wild rice soup.

Fortunately, I had leftover wild rice and chicken on hand. The other ingredients came from the vegetable bin, freezer and pantry. Since I had made wild rice soup before I was familiar with the method. You may eliminate the sherry if you wish, but it gives give the soup added punch of flavor. Cubed ham may be substituted for chicken. Minnesota Wild Rice Soup with Chicken, Fresh Mushrooms and Sherry is a meal in a bowl.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups cooked wild rice (cooked al dente)

1 1/2 tablespoons butter (or margarine)

1 1/2 tablespoons light olive oil

2 cooked chicken breast halves, cubed

1 carton (8 ounces) sliced mushrooms

3/4 cup frozen chopped onions

6 ounces (half a package) petite carrots

1/2 cup Italian flat leaf parsley, snipped

1 32-ounce carton chicken stock

3 packets very low sodium chicken bullion

1 can (10 3/4 ounces) low sodium mushroom soup

2 soup cans of water (more if needed)

METHOD

Prepare wild rice and chicken the day before. Refrigerate.

Melt butter with olive oil in a soup kettle. Saute mushrooms over high heat until slightly brown. Add remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer over low heat for 20-30 minutes. Just before serving add 1/4 cup very dry sherry to soup. Makes 8-10 servings.

Copyright 2007 by Harriet Hodgson

http://www.harriethodgson.com

Harriet Hodgson has been a freelance nonfiction writer for 28 years. She is a member of the Association of Health Care Journalists and the Association for Death Education and Counseling. Her 24th book, “Smiling Through Your Tears: Anticipating Grief,” written with Lois Krahn, MD, is available from http://www.amazon.com. A five-star review of the book is posted on Amazon. You will find other reviews on the American Hospice Foundation Web site (“School Corner” heading) and the Health Ministries Association Web site.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Harriet_Hodgson

As far as the time for cooking is concerned, it greatly depends upon your personal preference as to how well done you prefer to cook your wild boar meat. For chops, you will obtain great results baking with a sauce, an alternative to this would be pan-frying at medium heat. It is highly recommended to check the meat from time to time so that you will not overcook it.

The wild boar meat is delicious if barbecued because when it is prepared properly it is very tender and flavorful. With the wild boar meat, you can also make great sausages, jerky as well as ground meat products. When you will be preparing the wild boar meat, remember not to cook it in a microwave because it will become dry and very tough. For obtaining the best results, slowly thaw the meat the day before cooking it and marinate overnight. For marinating, it is highly recommended to use wine or pineapple juice as it contains an enzyme that actively breaks down muscle fiber and for this particular reason, it is very good as a meat tenderizer.

The animal’s light fat layer can be easily trimmed but many good cooks believe that the fat layer provides a “self-basting” element and also helps retaining the succulence. Smoking the wild boar meat is the most popular way of preparing the meat and it is usually served at friend & family reunions. Great seasonings include onions, lemon, potatoes as well as others; the choice is up to you. It is recommended to completely wrap the wild boar meat in order to make sure the vapors are locked in as well as possible and make sure that the drippings will not escape.

Slowly smoke or bake at about 275 -300 degrees Fahrenheit, turning/rotating the meat in order to make sure that the meat is being cooked evenly. The time for cooking depends on the quantity of the meat being cooked. Entire wild boars should be cooked overnight or all day as for quarters it requires between 5 – 6 hours.

Wild meat soak and tenderizer is another way to go. Skin and debone or quarter the animals out and place the meat in a large ice chest along with the following mixture: ice water, ½ cup of vinegar, medium/large (18 – 20 oz.) size container or real lemon juice. Soak big portions of meat for 2 or 3 days (changing the water as needed and keeping the ice very cold, making sure that the entire meat is covered with this ice). Soak the meat until it turns white and all of its blood is leached out. Word of warning: if the meat starts to darken or turn blue, it means that you have used too much vinegar but do not worry, the meat is not ruined, all you need to do is to change the ice water and reduce/eliminate the vinegar.

As a conclusion, cooking the wild boar meat is not a very hard thing to do and the meat is simply put, delicious. As far as the wild boar recipes are concerned, the variety is quite generous; you just simply have to take your pick.

Find out more at http://www.wildboarhuntinginfo.com where you will find dozens of wild boar interesting facts.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Razvan_Marian

Wild plants have some unique flavors that can be among your enjoyed favorites. Watercress with something sweet such as pancake syrup in a peanut butter sandwich is one I particularly enjoy. Dandelion greens pesto mixed with spaghetti sauce is another.

Since the taste of many wild edible plants is so different from the usual cultivated vegetables, you likely will at first not accept some of them as a delicious flavorful food. Just about any food flavor other than sweet, salty, starchy, and fat are, I suppose, acquired tastes. It takes time for your mind to recognize an unfamiliar flavor as a ‘tried and true’ favorite. Introduce a wild food into your diet by eating a small amount when you are most hungry. Repeatedly doing so can make the new food one that you especially enjoy.

The amount of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients in wild food, according to many sources, is on the average, greater in wild foods. Domesticated vegetables have been selectively bred for looks, production quantity, taste, length of storage and other qualities other than nutrition.

The fruits and vegetables sold in the supermarket have been chemically fertilized; exposed to herbicides, pesticides, fungicides, and a variety of other chemicals; and they may have been genetically modified and/or irradiated. The safety of eating such produce is of concern to many people. Wild foods for the most part, avoid those concerns. If you do gather wild foods avoid taking them from along roadsides, lawns that have been treated with chemicals or any other areas that may have been treated.

There is the possibility that supermarket food can be contaminated with pathogens. Dozens of diseases can be spread by an infected person handling food anywhere from the time it is harvested until it is put into your grocery bag. Plants growing in the wild are untouched by human hands.

Wild plants can be prepared in many ways. Greens can be put through a food processor or blender to make pesto. Add just enough oil and/or water to let the mixture process well. The pesto can then be easily mixed with other ingredients such as peanut butter, tomato sauce, or syrup for flavoring. Some greens such as lambsquarters, chickweed and purslane can be used anyway spinach is prepared. Strong or bitter tasting greens can be boiled changing the water once or twice to reduce bitterness. This is sometimes done with dandelion leaves. Then other ingredients can be added for flavoring and texture.

Wild fruit can simply be mixed with nuts or seeds such as sunflower seeds or almonds.

Some plants such as cattail tuber shoots and burdock root can be boiled to increase tenderness or to reduce strong flavors and then simply eaten as is.

Be sure of what it is that you are going to eat and be sure that it is edible. Consult a good reference book. If possible have someone who is familiar with a particular plant point it out to you. Most photographs are not of high enough quality to be relied upon to positively identify a wild plant.

Some edible plants have poisonous look-alikes. Some plants have edible parts and have poisonous parts. Some plant parts are edible only after being prepared in a particular way. It is common that a small quantity of a plant can be eaten without problems but if you eat too much your digestive system will protest forcefully.

There’s about 6 or 8 disaster scenarios that I can think of that seem likely to happen at some time. Most of them seem unlikely to happen in my lifetime. But you never know. Isn’t it prudent to be prepared, at least to some extent, in the event the normal food supply is interrupted. Examples of disasters that seem likely to happen are an asteroid hitting the earth, a massive nuclear war, a global epidemic, and the failure of one or two major crops such as corn and wheat due to a widespread disease or climate change.

The gathering of wild foods is interesting and enjoyable. Foraging for a favorite or new addition to your menu may take you through woods, through open fields and meadows and other places of beauty. It is a great way to get out into the natural world and enjoy its complexity and majesty. It adds to the perception that the world is a good place that is to be enjoyed. It is emotionally pleasing to find something that seems free and of exceptional value.

Making use of natural foods gives you greater awareness of the inter-relatedness of living things to each other and to the environment. That greater awareness helps us more appreciate the weather and climate, the abundance of nature, agriculture and the food supply, and the importance of protecting those things.

If you are interested in a few detailed recipes and a couple of other general preparation methods see http://www.bobcatswilderkitchen.com

For more information on wild edible plants and recipes see Foraging the Edible Wild, http://community.webtv.net/Taimloyd/FORAGINGTHEEDIBLE

For a list of links to more informaion see
dmoz.org/Recreation/Outdoors/Wildlife/Plants/Edible/

For a few books on wild edible plants see theforagerpress.com/bookstore/plantguides.htm

Alan Detwiler started the web site Leisureideas. Visitors to the site are encouraged to use imagination and whatever happens to be available to discover new ways to enjoy themselves.

Alan writes books on how to pursue playfulness and a sense of wonder. His books are available in digital format and can be purchased and downloaded on the eBookMall web site. Go to http://www.ebookmall.com Then do a search for Detwiler.

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