These little plants are not only easily identified, but quite abundant, and therefore make for a great forage plant. As the name implies, this family of plants contain some amount of oxalic acid, which is implicated in the formation of kidney stones. Consumption, therefore, should be limited to around a handful per day. This acid, which resembles microscopic crystals, should not be cause for much concern because little do most people know that this substance is found in small quantities in items consumed every day, such as common spinach. Oxalates are usually flushed from the body anyway assuming that one is drinking the amount of water that is recommended daily for optimum health. Also, these plants can be lightly steamed or boiled, which help break these crystals down and essentially will remove them as a concern. Moreover, in terms of edible parts of wood sorrel, it can all be used, meaning the leaves, flowers, tubers, and seedpods, which develop after the flowers are pollinated. These seedpods are actually the plant’s fruit and contain small seeds, reminiscent of a tiny peapod and sometimes referred to as ‘bananas.’ All parts of the wood sorrel can be eaten raw and lends it to being added to salads, soups, and stews or added to tea. Nutritionally, wood sorrels contain a significant amount of vitamin C, vitamin A, iron, vitamin B2, and fiber. They also contain other important vitamins, minerals, and macronutrients, and are notable sources of anthocyanins and other flavonoids, which are antioxidants. It is the plant’s vitamin C content that gives it a tangy flavor and also means it can be added to water or tea to create a tangy, lemony beverage.
Historically, wood sorrels have been eaten by our ancestors for millennia. As one author notes, the Kiowa Indian tribe would chew wood sorrel on long trips to alleviate thirst. Furthermore, the Potawatomi Indians would cook it with sugar and make it into a dissert; the Cherokee would eat it to alleviate sores of the mouth and sore throat; the Algonquians, on the other hand, considered it an aphrodisiac; and the Iroquois would eat it for its use in alleviating nausea, fever, and cramps. In fact, traveling sailors would even eat wood sorrels because of its vitamin C content to avoid scurvy, leading to one variety, Oxalis enneaphylla, receiving the name ‘scurvy-grass sorrel.’
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