Edible Weeds Guide: 15 Edible Weeds to Forage

Edible weeds are plants humans can safely consume for nutritional, culinary, and medicinal purposes. You can find edible weeds in various areas, including backyards, abandoned lots, bike paths, and roadsides. Be wary of where you forage-—while it can be convenient to pluck some edible weeds from the side of the highway, they are more likely to be contaminated by pesticides and toxic byproducts from road maintenance and vehicles. It is best to go off the beaten path to forage edible weeds.

While some weeds are edible, there are poisonous weeds you should avoid, including belladonna, jimson weed, castor bean, poison sumac, poison oak, and poison hemlock. The best way to avoid noxious weeds is to know how to identify them correctly. When foraging, consult a guidebook, app, or plant specialist to prevent picking toxic weeds.

You might find edible weeds in your backyard or on an afternoon hike along the trail. Some common edible weeds include:

1. 1. Burdock (Arctium spp): The thistle-like flower pods on this plant can stick to your clothing if you brush up against them. The root, leaves, flower stalks, and blossoms of burdock are all edible. You can use the root to make an anti-inflammatory tincture or roast and consume it like other root vegetables. You can eat the leaves raw or cook them in various dishes.
2. 2. Chickweed (Stellaria media): The leaves, stems, small white flowers, and seeds of this wild green are edible. Chickweed grows in thick, lush stands during the cooler months; by late spring, the plants dry up and go to seed.
3. 3. Chicory (Cichorium intybus): This scrubby, woody plant has edible roots you can roast, dry, and grind to form an earthy, bittersweet coffee substitute. The leaves are also edible.
4. 4. Curly dock (Rumex spp.): This wild edible green has thick, deep-growing roots that you consume for food and medicinal purposes. The seeds can be ground into flour, somewhat like buckwheat, and the greens can also be consumed.
5. 5. Dandelion (Taraxacum officionale): Dandelion is one of the most common edible wild plants, found everywhere from backyards to forest meadows. Every part of the dandelion is edible: the flower, roots, stems, and leaves. Dandelion greens slightly resemble arugula, though longer, and have a similar spicy and bitter taste. You can harvest the blooms and leaves, when they begin to appear in late winter and early spring, to make salads and sautéed dishes and use the roots to make tea.
6. 6. Garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata): Garlic mustard has slightly bitter, mustard-like leaves. Garlic mustard has an aroma is similar to garlic, hence the name. It is safe to eat this plant when it is young—you can consumer older plants after thoroughly cooking.
7. 7. Lamb’s quarters (Chenopodium album): Also known by the common name of pigweed, lamb’s quarters is similar to wild quinoa, which, if allowed to go to seed, will produce similar grains that can be eaten. The leaves can make for a delicious, nutritious wild salad. You can also sauté them as you would spinach or Swiss chard, or process them to make a wild food pesto.
8. 8. Mallow (Althaea spp.): You can use many species of the mallow plant for a variety of purposes. Use the leaves to make a great salad green or cook the roots to prepare a soothing digestive remedy.
9. 9. Pigweed amaranth (Amaranthus spp.): The leaves, flowers, seeds, and flower shoots of these wild plants are edible. Young leaves are the most tender and flavorful.
10. 10. Plantain (Plantago spp.): The broadleaf plantain features edible seed pods and leaves. The leaves are best to eat young, when the flavor and nutritional profile are at peak. Although a bit tough, plantain leaves are a good substitute for spinach.
11. 11. Purslane (Portulaca oleracea): The leaves, flowers, and seeds of this wild plant are edible. Purslane has a mild taste similar to lettuce, but this plant has succulent leaves and a crunchy texture, making it an excellent addition to salads.
12. 12. Sheep sorrel (Rumex acetosella): The leaves, stems, flowers, and flower shoots of sheep sorrel are edible. The leaves have a lemony flavor, making them a great addition to salads. (Sorrel has high concentrations of oxalic acid, which in large enough quantities can damage the kidneys, so it is best eat sorrel in moderation.)
13. 13. Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica): This edible wild green grows dense stands of serrated leaves covered with tiny, stinging hairs. Exercise caution when gathering them and use sturdy gloves to pick and place them in a container or bag. The nettles lose their ability to sting after cooking and become tasty, nutritious greens you can add to soups, pastas, or casserole dishes. You can also steep the leaves to make a healthy tea.
14. 14. Wild garlic (Allium vineale): The bulbs, leaves, bulbils, and flowers of this plant are edible. Wild garlic is similar in flavor and aroma to domesticated garlic. You can pickle the bulbs and bulbils, eat them alone, or combine them with other foods as a snack.
15. 15. Wood sorrel (Oxalis spp.): The leaves of wood sorrel resemble clover, and these common edible plants also form edible yellow flowers. The flavor is distinctly citrusy, making them a great addition to a wild greens salad.

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