So much more than a sting Herbal Medicine
Sabine Hiller Nettles are probably the one herb everybody knows. And that’s not surprising, seeing the many uses people have found for them – in cooking, medicine, cosmetics, agriculture, cloth-making and even superstition.
The nettle family (Urticaceae) also includes the stinging trees of Australia, but fortunately for us, only the common nettle (Urtica Dioica) and the small nettle (Urtica Urens) are found in Ireland. Both can be used for food and medicinal purposes. You never have to go far to find nettles because they follow human migration. Their presence indicates nitrogen in the ground – nettles use nitrogen to build up the high levels of protein found in the plant.
Nettles are notorious for their ‘urticating trichomes’, the thousands of tiny ‘hairs’ that cover the leaves and stems. These are essentially tiny fragile hollow glass tubes closed at the tip. They sit on pedestals of cells that manufacture histamine, acetylcholine (a neurotransmitter) and serotonin, and the lightest touch snaps the tip. The broken point then enters the skin and injects the mix, causing the sting we’ve all experienced.
However, there’s so much more to the nettle than its sting. This week I’ll look at nettles in folklore and how they can be used in cooking.
Nettles in folklore Because of their dramatic sting, nettles have featured in a lot of superstitions and magic practices. Witches were said to use the dew of Midsummer’s Eve to spoil cow’s milk. Cows were therefore locked in barns before sunset and nettles were wedged into the barn doors to keep away the witches.
Nettles were also used as sympathetic magic to protect against lightening, or to cure an illness. When an animal had foot rot, farmers in Switzerland used to cut a sod and three nettles. They pulled the nettles between the animal’s toes, made a cut into the sod, inserted the nettles and left the lot over a firepit to wither and dry out. This was supposed to cure the animal.
In Bohemia, nettles were stuck into the dung heap at ‘Walpurgisnacht’, the night from April 30 to May 1, when the witches were said to hold a large celebration on Blocksberg Mountain. People hit the nettles with a stick, and the witches were said to feel those strikes, and so lose their power over the livestock.
Nowadays, however, the uses of nettles are a little more pedestrian, and we prefer to use them for various culinary, medicinal and cosmetic purposes.
How to harvest nettles Always harvest young nettles – plants about 20cm to 30cm high are suitable for food; they can be about 40cm high for tea. Old leaves contain a lot of calcium carbonate crystals, which in susceptible people can irritate the kidneys. So, while old leaves are still OK for external use, avoid using them for food or as internal medicine. Pick nettles from unpolluted places only. (Another reason not to use weed killers!)
To get a continuous supply of young shoots, cut your nettle patch regularly. Once harvested, leave the nettles in a sinkful of cold water with some salt added for about five to ten minutes to remove any insects. Then rinse and drop into boiling water for one to two minutes before using them in your favourite recipe, in soups, in omelettes or mixed with other greens.
Veggie nettle burgers Squeeze blanched nettle leaves to remove excess water (they won’t sting!). Chop. Mix with beaten eggs, leftover cooked rice or porridge, oatflakes and a little flour. Season to taste with garlic, parsley, thyme and soya sauce or salt and pepper. Form patties and fry golden on both sides. Serve with a homemade tomato sauce. For variety mix the chopped nettles with cooked quinoa, chopped walnuts, minced onion, garlic, turmeric, cumin powder, beaten egg, chickpea flour (gram flour). Roll patties in gram flour mixed with some sesame seeds before frying, and serve with a curry.
Nettle dumplings Make a dough from breadcrumbs, a little butter and beaten egg. Mix in finely chopped blanched nettle leaves, season with herbs of your choice, such as thyme, basil or sage, and salt and pepper. Form little dumplings, which are cooked either in salt water or directly in soups.
Next time The medicinal uses of nettles
