Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Palo Verde harvest

Last evening I noticed how loaded the palo verde trees are with green seed pods.
I had read that palo verde seeds when green are like fresh peas, so I decided to
try one. It was a beautiful evening and so I ate my dinner of palo verde seeds
just as I would eat fresh shelled peas right out of the garden. They are very
similar in taste, filling and "YUM"
I am learning a lesson about the desert. There is a great deal of food that
many would just overlook. These seeds are so abundant and tasty yet if I had
not read that they could be eaten like peas I never would have tried them.
This morning I picked this basket and sat on the back porch shelling and eating
Palo Verde seeds. I don't know the nutricional value but since it is a nitrogen
fixing tree, I might guess that the seeds are similar to beans or peas. Next,
I'm going to try the dried seeds as cooked beans and flour. The picture of the
shelled beans didnt' come out. They look very similar to edamie. I will take
another picture, later.
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2 comments:

mysticalgypsy said...

The Cahuilla Indians were known to harvest the seeds during the months of July to August. The seeds were dried and ground in mortars to produce a flour which could be used to make a mush or to make cakes. Palo Verde seeds were also a known food source for the Pima and Papago Indians of Arizona.

See, you made me go research today :D Now you make me want to try them! Glad you found them tasty

Jessi

Unknown said...

I also learned that they are very high in protein and fiber. The green seeds are very much like peas but according to my research one should not eat too many raw. Don't know why at this point.