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Pigweed (Amaranthus) - Nutritious? Poison? Both?
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Posted by genie_wilde (My Page) on Thu, Aug 3, 06 at 3:34
| I'm getting a lot of seemingly conflicting info about pigweed's edibility or toxicity. One common variety is amaranthus retroflexus, which is prolific in my garden (though I usually pull it up). I read in another thread that it is edible and good to eat, and I am pretty sure I've come across several other references to it as a nutritious edible weed. I ate a couple of the young leaves today and they tasted kind of like corn silk.
But I've also seen many references to this plant as being toxic, even sometimes fatal to cattle. (I'm sure they ate more of it than I did, though.)
Apparently, in nutrient-rich soil, such as in cultivated lawns and gardens, this plant can accumulate toxic levels of nitrates.
Is anyone familiar with pigweed/amaranthus such that you can shed more light on this subject. This is so easy to find or grow and palatable enough that it would be a shame not to be able to use it as a salad ingredient, etc., if it's actually a good source of fiber or vitamins. On the other hand, I'm just a tad concerned about consuming something that's widely classified as poisonous. (I'm funny that way.)
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Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Pigweed (Amaranthus) - Nutritious? Poison? Both?
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| If you check out website amaranthus, I'm sure you can find something on it to answer your questions. Recently I purchased a bag of amaranthus flour from The Whole Foods Store. I haven't used it yet, but am looking forward to trying it. |
RE: Pigweed (Amaranthus) - Nutritious? Poison? Both?
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| I'm not surprised about the Amaranthus flour, Itcollins. One thing I found on the web is that the seeds can be popped like popcorn or ground into flower, and they are not a part of the plant that is iffy like the older stems and leaves. |
RE: Pigweed (Amaranthus) - Nutritious? Poison? Both?
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| We have been eating the amaranth greens for two or three years and they don't seem to be hurting us. We freeze them for winter use too. A friend from Jamaica calls it "calaloo" and showed us how to prepare the stems too which I liked better than the leaves. |
RE:Forgot to mention...
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Maybe you are thinking of the fact that amaranth contains oxalic acid, like spinach, which prevents the calcium from being used by the body? Nutritionists generally recommend limiting greens with a high oxalic acid content. I'm sorry I don't remember excatly how much they say to eat in a weeks time. These greens with the oxalic acid are great sources of other nutrients, just don't depend on them for your calcium.
VG |
RE: Amaranth-a good substitute for spinach
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Cook the amaranth greens by boiling in water and discard the water before eating.This is how oxalic acid will be removed from leafy vegetables.It is a good sustitute for spinach. Cooked amaranth leaves taste like cooked spinach.Select the tender leaves for consumption.
People having kidney problems should stay away from green leafy veggies. because of oxalic acid. |
RE: Pigweed (Amaranthus) - Nutritious? Poison? Both?
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I have eaten amaranth (pigweed) greens a lot over the years, and have never noticed any problems. They are very
nutritious and a close relative of our modern spinach, beets, etc. The Chinese use a type of amaranth (I have grown it before), and call it "Chinese spinach."
It can either be boiled or stir-fried with oil and garlic.
Also good to mix with other wild greens, like lambs quarters, curly dock, etc. I can't imagine under what situations these greens could be called poisonous.?? |
RE: Pigweed (Amaranthus) - Nutritious? Poison? Both?
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| I wonder if the confusion comes from the fact that there are so many kinds of Amaranth. I planted some Amaranthus hypochondriacus this season, two different varietys. They recomend harvesting thinnings and young leaves for salads, larger leaves for cooking and the seed heads can be harvested for grain. They are also quite ornamental, these giant amaranths. I believe we have at least two different types of "weed" amaranthus that grow around here, one gets sharp spines and the other doesn't. There are some types of plants that are quite safe in moderation though possible dangerous in high doses. There are also plants that are poisonous to one type of animal but not to others. Another source of confusion could also come from the fact that common names for plants are not standard and what one person calls pigweed might be a totally different plant than what another person calls pigweed. When using wild foods, it is good to carefully identify a plant with at least two or three sources before doing some careful testing. If all that comes out ok, then it may be safe, in moderation at first of course. |
RE: Pigweed (Amaranthus) - Nutritious? Poison? Both?
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| i think that the possible poison could be from its tendency to accumulate Nitrogen...which is harmful in excess...i believe it to be safe, as long as you are not eating pounds of it everyday red streaks on the stem mean higher in nitrates... |
RE: Pigweed (Amaranthus) - Nutritious? Poison? Both?
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| I'm 57 and have been eating Amaranth for more than 50 of those years. If you have a problem with spinach then amaranth might bother you, or if you are taking some kind of prescriptions nitrate, otherwise don't worry. |
RE: Pigweed (Amaranthus) - Nutritious? Poison? Both?
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| Perhaps you referring to epazote. Epazote characterizes the taste of Mayan cuisine in the Yucatan and Guatemala. The name "epazote" comes from the Nahuatl words, epote, meaning disagreeable or foul, and epatzotl, meaning "sweat," reflecting its strong aroma. Mexicans and Central Americans use epazote fresh in salads, soups, and meats and especially to enhance huitlacoche, mushrooms, bean- and chile-based foods such as refried beans (frijoles refritos), frijoles negros, moles, or rice and beans. It is usually added toward the end of cooking to prevent bitterness in the finished product. Spaniards flavor teas with epazote. |
RE: Pigweed (Amaranthus) - Nutritious? Poison? Both?
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| Aha, finally I see some of the tendency that prevents most people from eating mushrooms also affecting the situation with a plant's edibility. Apparently some of the species of the large genus Amaranthus are less easily digestible than the others. My guess is that the tender young pigweed greens are safe and even more safe if cooked. Certain people may be sensitive to them, the same people probably wouldn't be able to eat sorrel (=sour dock). When I was ~3, I once became sick from eating too much fresh sorrel leaves. But that really was an immoderate amount. Another guess is that someone somewhere consumed too much pigweed greens on an empty stomach, got sick and started spreading the word that it was toxic. That is what often happens with wild mushrooms species which are not edible raw anyway. |
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