The market · Vegetables · The Americas, East Asia
Fiddleheads
The tightly curled tips of young ferns — in North America, the ostrich fern — picked before they unfurl, and tasting somewhere between asparagus and green beans.
grassy · asparagus-like · green
Kinds
- Ostrich fern
- The one sold fresh: a smooth stem with a deep U-shaped groove inside, and papery brown scales.
- Bracken (gosari, warabi)
- Eaten in Korea and Japan only after long soaking and boiling, usually dried — not a fern to cook fresh.
Goes with
Knowing it
- Where to buy
- Farmers' markets and specialist greengrocers in spring: tight, bright green coils, with most of the brown scales rubbed off.
- Worth knowing
- Never eat them raw or barely cooked — undercooked fiddleheads have caused food poisoning. Rub off the scales, wash well, boil for 15 minutes or steam for 10–12, then finish in butter.
