Even though the weather is cool for spring, fiddleheads will soon be ready for picking. My grandfather would pick them every spring when I was a kid and loved to cook them with bacon, because everything is better with bacon right?

So what are they exactly? “Fiddleheads are the coiled tips of young ostrich ferns that grow near brooks, rivers and lakes in Maine during late April, May and early June, depending on when the snow has melted,” an article on Visit Maine states.

Now because these are young ferns, they need to be picked while they are still quite young to be tender. Like I said, my Gramp, a true Mainer, liked to find and pick his own as lots of folks do. That said, if you are wandering to find them make sure you have the land owners’ permission where you are searching for them.

And now to top it all off, they are good for you. According to Wikipedia they contain vitamins, mineral, omega-3, omega-6 and they are rich in potassium.

Keep in mind though because they like to grow in wet places, they can harbor microbes so they need to be well washed and cooked properly. Don’t know how? Watch the video above and you’ll be all set to go pickin.’

Here, from our friends at the cooperative extension of Maine,  is how to identify the edible fiddlehead.

And if you get a little over-zealous and pick more than you can eat, good news! They freeze well, too.

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