Are acorns edible?
Mike Haught
Yes.
Indians used to leach the tanin (bitter, semi poisenous content) by filling
a basket with acorns and leaving it sit in a running stream for a week or
so. You can simmer a pot full of acorns and change the water around 4-5
times and get similar results.
Usually pounded into a flour for porridge, etc.
--
-mwh
SKHaine wrote in message
<199803300001...@ladder01.news.aol.com>...
>Are acorns digestible by humans? If so how should I cook them? Acorns are
>surely more appealing than bugs as an emergency food source.
Jeannie Williams
SKHaine wrote:
>
> Acorns are surely more appealing than bugs as an
> emergency food source.
Ah yes, but bugs have more protein. You just need the right condiments.
SKHaine
Are acorns digestible by humans? If so how should I cook them? Acorns are
Margaret E. Glen
If not, someone should explain to the anthropologists just what those
California coastal natives did eat for all those millenia.
Acorns *are* bitter. And it takes a lot of gathering to create enough to make
any substantial volume. As I recall the preparation technique is to pound into
flour then leach several times with hot water.
Corvato
I have heard of people grinding acorns into flour, and making acorn pancakes. When
I was in elementary school, I read the book "My Side of the Mountain" wich had a
boy who went into the woods and lived off the woods, very interesting book, and he
survived for years off of acorns, along with other wild suppliments.
Tim Hewitt
If you plan to eat acorns for survival in the woods, try them first - you may
find that grubs and insects are more to your liking :).
Acorn flour is heavy, and can be very hard to digest. Mixed with cattail
flour, it's somewhat better, the cattail flour adding more starch.
You can remove nearly all the bitter taste (tanin) from the acorns by soaking
the nuts in warm water and changing it often. You want to simmer the nuts, and
change the water until the water pours off cleanly. This is generally an
all-day process - 10-15 changes of water.
Dry the nuts and then mash them into flour. Dry the flour. As a nut flour,
it's heavy and can be difficult to digest. If you decide to "bake" a cake, or
fry a pan-cake with acorn flour, be prepared for a _very_ heavy bit of bread.
Eat just a little and drink lots of water.
That said, a little acorn flour mixed into wheat flour ads in interesting
taste and texture to camp breads - say 20% acorn flour.
-Tim
Carole Nelson
Yes! and Very delicious! I prepared them by hulling them, grinding them
in my meat grinder then placing in a large bowl under a slowly running
faucet overnight to leach them of the tannin. (taste test for
bitterness) They are ready for use after this. It's been so long I can't
remember how I dried the meal (probably in a slow oven) but can't forget
the nutty flavor of the biscuts! Enjoy!
Carole
R. Pierrehumbert
Acorns are edible, and were used as a major food source by
many native American groups. Their problem is they are
high in tannin, which must be removed to make them digestible
(unless you're a squirrel). This is done by repeated boiling
in many changes of water.
This makes them rather unlikely as a source of emergency
food. You need a pot, a lot of fuel (maybe that's OK,
if you're someplace where acorns are), and a lot of time. Lots.
In contrast, bugs can be eaten "as is," or perhaps lightly
toasted.
Think of them as a kind of shrimp.
Different breeds of acorns vary widely in tannin content. Getting
the right sort reduces the amount of processing time needed.
I've done acorns a few time. By the time you boil out the
tannin, the taste is gone, too.
B.Casinger
My wife is Korean, and is always finding stuff while camping that she used
to eat back in Korea. Once we gathered up trash bags full of acorns and
took them to the local Korean store, where they used them to make something
similar to tofu (tubu in Korean). It was great with a little soy sauce!
Sorry, I don't know how they made it.
--
Bryan R. Casinger
El Paso, TX
SKHaine wrote in message
<199803300001...@ladder01.news.aol.com>...
Pat O'Connell
B.Casinger wrote:
>
> My wife is Korean, and is always finding stuff while camping that she used
> to eat back in Korea. Once we gathered up trash bags full of acorns and
> took them to the local Korean store, where they used them to make something
> similar to tofu (tubu in Korean). It was great with a little soy sauce!
> Sorry, I don't know how they made it.
I'll quote from Foxfire 3, which is one of a series of books about
Appalachian crafts and folklore first printed in the 70s.
"White oak acorns were used to make flour when...'times were rough.'
It was usually mixed half and half with regular flour. To make it,
peel and roast acorns until they are thoroughly dry, but not burned.
Pound them into a powder and use this powder as flour."
Also used as a meal. "Grind acorns, spread meal 1/2 inch thick on a
porous cloth and pour hot water over the meal. Repeat several times.
Meal can be used instead of cornmeal."
Chestnut oak acorns are also edible, but aren't as sweet as white oak
acorns. Other species are notable by their omission.
Summary: sounds like a _lot_ of work for a foodstuff.
> SKHaine wrote in message
> <199803300001...@ladder01.news.aol.com>...
> >Are acorns digestible by humans? If so how should I cook them? Acorns are
> >surely more appealing than bugs as an emergency food source.
I suspect the bugs are a whole lot less work.
--
Pat O'Connell
Take nothing but pictures, Leave nothing but footprints,
Kill nothing but vandals...
Paul Weiss
In article <352049...@midway.uchicago.edu>, "R. Pierrehumbert"
<rt...@midway.uchicago.edu> wrote:
> Acorns are edible, and were used as a major food source by
> many native American groups. Their problem is they are
> high in tannin, which must be removed to make them digestible
> (unless you're a squirrel). This is done by repeated boiling
> in many changes of water.
>
What about simply putting them into a stuff sack and letting them soak in
camp overnight (especially if they were put into a MOVING water source),
or putting them into a Nalgene bottle for a day, repeatedly changing the
water, of course. Wouldn't that do the trick?
--
Cheers,
Paul Weiss
E-mail: cpw...@netaccess.on.ca
Personal Home Page: http://www.netaccess.on.ca/~cpweiss/
Quote:"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us."
"Does anal retentive have a hyphen?"
Pete Hickey
In article <199803300001...@ladder01.news.aol.com>,
SKHaine <skh...@aol.com> wrote:
>Are acorns digestible by humans? If so how should I cook them? Acorns are
>surely more appealing than bugs as an emergency food source.
Once you get used to the sweetness, bugs aren't too bad. At least
the small ones are sweet. With the big things, it's the crunchy-ness
you have to get used to.
Here's a tip: If you're going to eat a caterpiller, chomp on it quickly.
Those little legs kicking around on your tongue
can be annoying.
--
Fight Spam! Join CAUCE (Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial Email)
at http://www.cauce.org/
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It is there as an experiment to see if email spammers scan content
--
Pete Hickey | | VEIWIT
Communication Services | Pe...@mudhead.uottawa.CA | Makers of transparent
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Ottawa,Ont. Canada K1N 6N5| (613) 562-5800x1008 | dyslexics.
Frank Miles
In article <352049...@midway.uchicago.edu>,
R. Pierrehumbert <rt...@midway.uchicago.edu> wrote:
>Acorns are edible, and were used as a major food source by
>many native American groups. Their problem is they are
>high in tannin, which must be removed to make them digestible
>(unless you're a squirrel). This is done by repeated boiling
>in many changes of water.
AFAIR acorns were a food of last resort. Available, yes. Appealing, no.
-frank
R. Pierrehumbert
>My wife is Korean, and is always finding stuff while camping that she >used to eat back in Korea.
Please make sure to lay off the mushrooms, though, unless she
has training in local varieties. Many deadly N. American
species resemble edible Asian species. I am not a mushroom
expert myself, but I have read of several tragedies in
the Seattle area that have stemmed from this problem.
Richard & Bonnie
Acorns are not only digestible but also delicious if you fix them right.
All acorns have to be leached first. The tannic acid in them is bitter.
Best way to do it that I've found is shell out the acorns, crack in
pieces and boil changing the water as many times as it takes til the
water is clear. This could take some time but the end result is really
worth it. Acorns are a great source of vegatable protein and are
nutricous. After the acrons are leached, drain off liquid and place on
cookie sheet in oven set at just warm. Dry acorns, grind for meal or
flour. Makes great muffins, pancakes, bread. White Oak acrons work best
cause they're sweeter. Any acorn will do.
You can also roast them with salt and butter for a snack. They're very
tasty.
B. Farner
Yuno Hu
In article <6frigo$qpl$1...@nntp5.u.washington.edu>, f...@u.washington.edu
bedrock formations in many parts of the state.
Richard & Bonnie
Eugene Miya
In article <352148...@midway.uchicago.edu>,
R. Pierrehumbert <rt...@midway.uchicago.edu> wrote:
>expert myself, but I have read of several tragedies in
>the Seattle area that have stemmed from this problem.
The SF Bay area gets a few deaths due to liver poisoning each winter
mostly in the Asian and hispanic populations, but others aren't immune.
Jeannie Williams
Pete Hickey wrote:
>
> In article <199803300001...@ladder01.news.aol.com>,
> SKHaine <skh...@aol.com> wrote:
> >Are acorns digestible by humans? If so how should I cook them?
> > Acorns are surely more appealing than bugs as an emergency food
> > source.
>
> Once you get used to the sweetness, bugs aren't too bad. At least
> the small ones are sweet. With the big things, it's the crunchy-ness
> you have to get used to.
>
> Here's a tip: If you're going to eat a caterpiller, chomp on it
> quickly.
> Those little legs kicking around on your tongue
> can be annoying.
Saute, saute. In a light ginger sauce.
Mike Nowacki
B.Casinger wrote:
> Once we gathered up trash bags full of acorns and
> took them to the local Korean store, where they used them to make something
> similar to tofu (tubu in Korean).
^^^^^^
When in the Philippines I had the pleasure of sampling their TUBA (your "tubu"
reminded me of it). It's a very potently fermented concoction of coconut milk.
Their version of moonshine. <hick!>
Cheers,
Mike
--
Expedition Leader, Inc.
http://www.expedition-leader.com
Makers of the Canadian Shield 4-season composite camping mattress.
Online distributors of technical outdoor apparel, canoe packs and accessories.
My personal backcountry journal - http://www.expedition-leader.com/journal
Rich
In article <6frs3l$i...@darkstar.ucsc.edu>, eug...@cse.ucsc.edu (Eugene
Miya) wrote:
>
> The SF Bay area gets a few deaths due to liver poisoning each winter
> mostly in the Asian and hispanic populations, but others aren't immune.
Amanita virosa and another Amanita species apparently resemble an edible
'shroom in SE Asia. A. virosa is a strikingly white 'shroom that
practically gleams when the sun hits it. It contains a chemical that reacts
with digestive juices to form a nasty poison. Ill effects are suffered
12-24 hours after ingestion, so you can't just have your stomach pumped.
Destroying Angel is a painful way to go.
For newby mushroom hunters: if the spore print is white, don't eat it. This
is not to say that there aren't edible 'shrooms with white spores (white
'shrooms at the grocery store have white spores), but it can keep you out
of some trouble.
--
--yer favorite State Soil Scientist of South Carolina
e-mail: soilguyATcyberstateDOTinfiDOTnet
Eugene Miya
In article <6fpr7u$789$1...@monster.cibola.net>,
B.Casinger <casi...@cibola.net> wrote:
>My wife is Korean,...
>...It was great with a little soy sauce!
Bryan, this is a great answer. It's a very Asian answer.
And I will designate you as a honorary Asian if you wish.
This answer also appears in Robert Collins' book:
"Ameri-Think, Japan-Think" in the Chapter on food and eating.
Jack
>All acorns have to be leached first. The tannic acid in them is bitter.
According to various references I have, the acorns of gambel oak (a
southwestern US species) are very low in tannins and do not have to be
leached. Unfortunately, I've never been able to try them since the damn
animals always seem to get them first!
Donald R. Newcomb
I think it is important for everyone to remember that all acorns are
not equal, just as all grass seeds are not equal. The acorn is the
nut of any oak-type tree. The acorn of the "live oak" would probably
be poor fare at best, even after processing. The chinquapin acorn
(Castanea pumila) is delicious just as it comes from the tree.
--
Donald R. Newcomb * University of Southern Mississippi
dnew...@whale.st.usm.edu * "The God who gave us life gave us liberty
dnew...@medea.gp.usm.edu * at the same time." T. Jefferson (1774)
Rork D. Kuick
For newby hunters: study! Get some books, walk with folks who know, study
the bad shrooms harder than the good ones. Don't believe every thing or
even anything you read on usenet. Start by learning the genus Amanita if
you want to pick gilled shrooms. Know what "the usual precautions" means.
-rork.
" ..... but there are no old, bold mycophagists"
PS: learn and use scientific names, common names of shrooms in North America
is (like insects and fish), a horrid tower of Babel.
[ What species is "white 'shrooms at the grocery store"? Cause if it is the
common one (Agaricus bisporus) I think you may find the spores are chocolate
brown, like most Agaricus sp. I eat, from the grocery store or not. (button
shroom, Portabella, A. rodmani, A. campestris.....) ].
Rich (soi...@cyberinfo.com) wrote:
: For newby mushroom hunters: if the spore print is white, don't eat it. This
John S. Watson
In article <sCtU.300$3C1.1...@news.itd.umich.edu> ro...@umich.edu (Rork D. Kuick) writes:
> For newby hunters: study! Get some books, walk with folks who know, study
> the bad shrooms harder than the good ones. Don't believe every thing or
> even anything you read on usenet. Start by learning the genus Amanita if
> you want to pick gilled shrooms. Know what "the usual precautions" means.
Good advise ...
In every case of poisonings I've ever heard about,
the victim never bothered to open a book on mushrooms.
They were all like, "Hey, those mushrooms popping up in my
yard look tasty, let's eat them."
Also, don't believe anyone that has never opened a book
on mushrooms. Around here in the S.F. bay area,
because there are a lot of people from other parts of
the world living here, you get all sorts of "help" on
what is good and what is not. Most of that will
just "help" you into your coffin a lot sooner than you were
intending. Or helping to advance liver tranplantation technology.
Wild mushrooms taste good, but they don't taste all that much
better than store bought to risk your live over.
They don't even taste all that much better than store bought,
to risk getting mildly sick over.
John Watson
NASA Ames Research Center
wat...@george.arc.nasa.gov
http://george.arc.nasa.gov/~watson
HOMEBREW NAKED!
Pete Hickey
>Pete Hickey wrote:
> tip: If you're going to eat a caterpiller....
In article <352189...@spiritone.com>,
Jeannie Williams <jean...@spiritone.com> wrote:
>Saute, saute. In a light ginger sauce.
Sure, that is what I do when I'm at home, but we
were talking about emergency survival. (although
to tell you the truth, my 10 essentials are actually
12 essentials. I also carry ginger & garlic.)
Jeannie Williams
Pete Hickey wrote:
> >Pete Hickey wrote:
> > tip: If you're going to eat a caterpiller....
> >Saute, saute. In a light ginger sauce.
>
> Sure, that is what I do when I'm at home, but we
> were talking about emergency survival. (although
> to tell you the truth, my 10 essentials are actually
> 12 essentials. I also carry ginger & garlic.)
That's why I so highly recommend Marmite as the condiment alternative
for survival kits. Keeps away vampires too.
Ilana Stern
John S. Watson wrote:
> They don't even taste all that much better than store bought,
> to risk getting mildly sick over.
You haven't had the right wild mushrooms, then :-)
Next time you're in the area in the fall, we'll go on a shroom
hike (to repay for the nice redwood hike!) and you can decide
then!
But we had someone show us the basics, we have several guidebooks
and use them, and we don't mess with any mushrooms that can
possibly be mistaken for anything remotely poisonous.
Eugene Miya
In article <3522BE...@ncar.ucar.edu>,
Ilana Stern <il...@ncar.ucar.edu> wrote:
>Next time you're in the area in the fall, we'll go on a shroom
>hike (to repay for the nice redwood hike!) and you can decide then!
Does this mean we end with Rocky Mtn. sushi?
Ilana Stern
We'll drive to the bar in Severance that serves Rocky Mountain
Oysters. Or we can have buffalo burgers at Turley's. Or
White Wave Tofu (made in Boulder).
Or if we find any good mushrooms we'll just go back to my
house and cook 'em up. Mmmm.
maohai huang
Jeannie Williams (jean...@spiritone.com) wrote:
: That's why I so highly recommend Marmite as the condiment alternative
: for survival kits. Keeps away vampires too.
a little cannibalism never hurts.
- mh
Eugene Miya
Your leg looks a bit gamey.
I'd prefer eating hers.
With a little Vegamite(tm) of course.
Jerry M. Wright
On 2 Apr 1998 21:48:31 GMT, mhu...@bu.edu (maohai huang) wrote:
>Jeannie Williams (jean...@spiritone.com) wrote:
>
>: That's why I so highly recommend Marmite as the condiment alternative
>: for survival kits. Keeps away vampires too.
>
>a little cannibalism never hurts.
>
>- mh
>
*************************************************************************
He's dead Jim. Uh, are you as hungry as I am?
Ed Jones
eug...@cse.ucsc.edu (Eugene Miya) wrote:
>In article <6g113f$fhv$1...@news1.bu.edu>, maohai huang <mhu...@bu.edu> wrote:
>>Jeannie Williams (jean...@spiritone.com) wrote:
>>: That's why I so highly recommend Marmite as the condiment alternative
>>: for survival kits. Keeps away vampires too.
>>a little cannibalism never hurts.
>Your leg looks a bit gamey.
>I'd prefer eating hers.
>With a little Vegamite(tm) of course.
What? No ketchup? Are you a barbarian?
Ed Jones / Denver
Jeannie Williams
Eugene Miya wrote:
>
> Your leg looks a bit gamey.
> I'd prefer eating hers.
> With a little Vegamite(tm) of course.
-Phfttt- [poison dart launched from hollow reed]
Isn't there a soccer team in the Andes someplace that you need to go
attend to?
Mike Nowacki
Pete Hickey wrote:
> Here's a tip: If you're going to eat a caterpiller, chomp on it quickly.
> Those little legs kicking around on your tongue
> can be annoying.
>
Eeeeeeeeechh. Do you really do this Pete? Or did you just say this to make us
all wince? I at least pan fry mine, sautéed in lots of butter and lightly
seasoned with various spices (depending on the species).
Mmmmmmmm
LISARanger
Acorns were a staple in the diet of the Chumash indians in California.
But they taste AWFUL
Due to a recent influx of spam email, I have been forced to block all email
from unknown addresses. If you wish to contact me outsidethe NG go to my
website @ http://members.aol.com/Lisaranger/index.html and leave a message in
the guestbook. Thank You
Eugene Miya
In article <6g113f$fhv$1...@news1.bu.edu>, maohai huang <mhu...@bu.edu> wrote:
Jeannie Williams (jean...@spiritone.com) wrote:
>>>: That's why I so highly recommend Marmite as the condiment alternative
>>>: for survival kits.
eug...@cse.ucsc.edu (Eugene Miya) wrote:
>>With a little Vegamite(tm) of course.
In article <6g6j6g$3...@examiner.concentric.net>,
Ed Jones <Jabb...@pop3.cris.com> wrote:
>What? No ketchup? Are you a barbarian?
I must be. (A barbarian.)
I'll take ketchup, sometimes.
OutDrs111
>Acorns were a staple in the diet of the Chumash indians in California. <BR>
><BR>
>But they taste AWFUL
The red oaks do....try white oak, they're not as bitter
hobbs
Acorns are edible but are bitter tasting due to large amounts of tannin.
Boiling them will remove most of the tannin but it is a considerable effort.
Indians would gather acorns, place them in baskets and bury them in streams
for long periods and let the stream water remove the tannin over time.
Keith
OutDrs111 wrote in message
<199804062235...@ladder03.news.aol.com>...
Bob Miller
In article <6ftn9i$e...@whale.st.usm.edu> Donald R. Newcomb (dnew...@whale.st.usm.edu) wrote:
: I think it is important for everyone to remember that all acorns are
: not equal, just as all grass seeds are not equal. The acorn is the
: nut of any oak-type tree. The acorn of the "live oak" would probably
: be poor fare at best, even after processing. The chinquapin acorn
: (Castanea pumila) is delicious just as it comes from the tree.
Castanea pumila (chinquapin) doesn't bear acorns. It is a chestnut, bearing
its nuts clustered 2-3 in small hairy-spiny burrs like it's other big-burred
relative C. dentata. Quercus muehlenbergii, the chinquapin oak, is a true
oak and bears acorns (a woody-shelled seed borne singly in a scaly or hairy
cup-like base). I know nothing first-hand about their sweetness, but I
believe C. muehlenbergii is a red oak (it has spines on the leaf tips). Red
oak acorns are generally quite bitter as others have stated.
Because of their similar names, growth habits and leaf shapes, these two
species are often confused.
Which species were you really describing? The one with tasty nuts or the one
with acorns?
Oaks and chestnuts *are* related, along with beeches, hickorys, walnuts and
other nut-bearing trees/shrubs with catkins for flowers. But C. pumila is
no more an oak than a pecan (Carya illinoinensis). And bears tasty nuts
which aren't any more acorns than a store-bought chestnut is an acorn.
Bob (married to a forestry major) Miller
r...@hpfirhm.fc.hp.com
Rork D. Kuick
If you are still reading: I recall from a history book on Michigan, the
mention of a sect in ohio or penn. that set up a community whose mainstay
was white oak acorns. I think they had religion about this matter
(I could check).
It had always struck me as the height of sophistication to be technically
advanced enough to win one's living off the A-stratum trees (and other
products of old growth) without the need for much disturbance. If we
were really smart, we should be able to extract what we need with little
impact. The hand of a truely great engineer is nearly invisible.
The context in the book was the optimism of early settlers/invaders
regarding some of the native nut trees, and that many vast forests would
require only mild husbandry as the only human modification (eg pecans).
I found humorous the start of this thread which mentioned survival.
If there are oak trees around, walk to the next road, and ask for
a sandwich. In places I have been, if there are oaks there are many
other food sources. Perhaps "subsistence" was meant. - rork.
Rod Bittick
>> Here's a tip: If you're going to eat a caterpiller, chomp on it
>> quickly.
>> Those little legs kicking around on your tongue
>> can be annoying.
>
And, if you have several to eat, start with the biggest one.
- - Rod
http://home.inreach.com/pixub/rod.htm
"Where are we headed? And what's with this handbasket?"