Nettles: Glorious Green!

Nettles

Nettles! No matter the weather or date, I know that Spring has sprung when the nettles come up out of the ground. Urtica dioca is nettle's botanical name, dioica meaning "of two houses." This common species of nettles has male flowers on separate stems above female flowers. Nettles grow in rich, moist soil in the woods, along year round desert sagebrush streams, up on the passes, in farmers' fields, down to the ocean forests. Maybe even your backyard! The key words here are wet and moist soil. Nettles have squarish stems and opposite leaves like the plants in the mint family, look like a giant mint plant on steroids, but they are not in the mint family... just to be confusing!

Hollow hairs covering the underside of the leaves and stems of the plant and sporadically on the top of the leaves contain a collection of acids, causing the "sting" for which they are so famous. These hollow hairs have something like a little ball on the end (think ballpoint pen) that comes off when brushed against. This releases the acids on the poor hapless victim and can cause hives and discomfort for a day or two. Most people cringe at the mention of nettles, but just say the word and I'll jump in my truck with kitchen gloves and plastic bags ready for harvesting.

Nettles are excellent sources for ascorbic acids, choline, vitamins A and D, iron, calcium, mineral salts, vitamins and fiber. The plants are best harvested before they flower. Ingesting nettles gathered after flowering can cause uncomfortable digestive upsets (ask me how I know!).The flowers are small, unassuming and a pale green making them hard to find for the untrained eye, so as a rule of thumb, harvest the nettles in the first 3 weeks of growth or up to a foot high.

Nettles, eaten freely and drunk as a tea will, over time, feed our adrenals and kidneys, help to heal and strengthen the lung tissue and intestines, tonify the arteries, nourish the hair, help to promote lots of rich milk in lactating mothers and can even help to prevent or lessen the strength of seasonal pollen based allergy attacks. Congested? Try eating nettle pesto (recipe below), drinking nettle juice or nettle decoction and find swift relief. Nettles are anti inflammatory and can help with many ailments where inflammation is present.

Dry the plants for infusions later in the season. If you live in a moist area like I do in the Pacific Northwest, the nettles need to be dried in a dehydrator to dry completely. Oven and microwave drying? Don't even think about it. Even the lowest temperature on an oven is too high and microwaves destroy the medicine in plants. The key is to fully dry the plants as quickly as possible with the lowest temperature. 95 degrees F. is perfect. Dehydrate until the thickest part of the stem snaps when you bend it. Any flexibility means there is still moisture in the plant which will cause mold if stored at that point. Store your dried nettles in glass jars or food grade (PET) plastic containers. My home made dehydrator is 5 feet high, 4 feet wide and 4 feet deep with 7 trays made with wood frame and screening. It has a fan in the bottom and a heating coil. My nettles dry in about 2 - 2 1/2 days. I keep my herbs in 5 gallon buckets as my business demands a high volume of plants. For home use, you can find dehydrators at local feed stores, Fred Meyer type variety stores, thrift stores and yard sales. Look for ones that have a fan and temperature gauge that can be adjusted. And yes, properly dried nettles will sting, so remember to work with kitchen gloves.

Not only can you use your dried nettles for teas/infusions, think about adding dried nettles in your spaghetti sauce, soups, beans and stews for their superb mineral and vitamin content. My redneck meat and potato eating husband eats nettles all the time, he just doesn't know it! I crumble up the nettles and put them in just about everything I'm cooking. His favorite meal that I make is meatloaf. Guess what's in it? Yep, nettles! He's a happy eating man and I'm happy knowing that I'm serving him food that is nutrient rich.

Blanch and freeze nettles in individual or family serving sizes for eating after the season of harvesting is over. Serve as a cooking green or add as an ingredient in casseroles. My nettle lasagne is a winner in my home. I simply add nettles in place of spinach and off it goes in the oven and off the plates at dinner time.

A few years back, I had a urinary tract infection that lasted only one day because I immediately drank 8 oz. of strong nettle decoction upon feeling the "burn." I made enough decoction to last a day and drank 8 oz. each hour for the first day and then just a couple of cups the next day. Nettles do not kill bacteria, but help to flush out the source of the infection from the urinary tract and out the body. Nettles act as a diuretic. This keeps the urinary tract flowing and you going!

Nettles juiced can be put in ice cube trays for freezing. When frozen, pop out the nettle "sickles," keep them in plastic bags or containers and back in the freezer they go until needed. If you're a vinegar lover, consider making an herbal vinegar with nettles and apple cider vinegar. For information about herbal vinegars and directions on how to make them, click on the Recipes page of my website.

Nettles make a superb "compost tea" for our garden and house plants being so high in nitrogen. Simply put fresh or dried nettles in a bucket, cover with water and let it sit for a few days. You'll want to do this outside as it does get stinky. When it begins to bubble, it's ready for use. Strain and water your plants. They'll love you for it.

Nettle stalks may be used dried or fresh to be processed and twisted into a remarkably strong twine. The natives of the north pacific coast used nettle twine woven into nets to catch fish.

NETTLE PESTO RECIPE
4 cups fresh nettle tops - roughly chopped
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup nuts of your choice (I used 1/2 almonds, 1/2 pecans in my last batch...yum!)
2-6 cloves garlic according to taste
1/4 cup Romano or Parmesan cheese (optional)

Put all ingredients in a food processor and process until creamy, making sure all the nettles are incorporated. That's it! What an incredible taste! Not only is it good on the traditional pasta, but the pesto makes a wonderful spread on toast or crackers. Also good as a dip. It freezes well.