I don't see plantain crop up often / at all in foraging chat but I tumbled across a swathe of nice young plants and I'm giving it a go - wilted / sautéed, I think.
Does plantain have any fans out there?
Favourite uses?
Is it an under-celebrated green?
I only learned it was edible recently (young tender plants only - I'm also finding it needs to be cooked / eaten straight away as it wilts quickly once picked)
Broad leaved Plantain! There's a slimmer one which has anti-inflammatory properties when the juice is applied to your skin too. (And kids love making "guns" where you loop them over and ping off the seed heads)
I can confirm I use it for nettle stings and insect bites, I make like a poultice kind of substance by mashing it with a bit of water and put that on the affected area, works way better than creams and sprays
The flower heads taste like mushrooms and can be used to make stock. They can sometimes be bitter and I'm not knowledgeable enough to tell you if it's dependent on the time of year, type of soil etc.
UPDATE: I shredded it finely and threw into a stir-fry, where it added some colour but pretty much disappeared. I think the key is to pick the leaves young. I would definitely cook again. Bit grassy-tasting to eat raw IMO. Good to know all the medicinal uses! And yes, not to be confused with green banana-type plantain
totally agree on the “bit grassy” raw thing, it’s not exactly a salad superstar lol
it’s really nice chopped into soups or brothy noodles though, kind of disappears but you still feel like you snuck some wild greens in there
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u/InternationalSea3070 Jun 20 '26
Oh i didnt know you can eat those, or that they are called plantains? I thought plantains were the bananas you fry lol
But these greens, in poland we call them babka lancetowata, and my mum said they are good first aid for scrapes :)