Wild Vegetables and Food Plants

Rediscovering wild vegetables and food plants

For a long time Canadians relied on wild berries, fruits, mushrooms and edible plants as an important element of their staple diet. This component of non-cultivated products has gradually diminished with the development of mechanized agriculture and urbanization. Many people today are simply unaware of the benefits and the flavours of some of these foods.

In recent years these natural products have become fashionable, and many small businesses began to harvest and package wild foods. OGourmet has decided to add a new line to its collection of fine products – wild foods, featuring more than 50 products from many small Canadian firms.

Consumers are often unfamiliar with many of the wild berries, fruits, mushrooms and plants that are available. To make up for this lack of knowledge, OGourmet presents information on the nature and use of these natural products. We hope that it will either refresh your knowledge or introduce you to these exciting products, providing tips on getting the best from these wild foods.

Wild vegetables and food plants

Cattail (Typha latifolis): Did you know that most parts of this plant are edible and that it is considered the caviar of Canadian wild plants? If that’s the case, start your apprenticeship with cattail hearts. It evokes hearts of palm but with a more delicate taste and a finer texture. Try marinated cattail hearts from Marché Transatlantique or from Gourmet Sauvage.

Cedar (Thuja occidentalis): Also called northern white cedar, arborvitae and swamp cedar. The name arborvitae or “tree of life” dates from the 16th century when the French explorer Jacques Cartier learned from Amerindian tribes how to use the tree's foliage to treat scurvy. Follow Cartier’s example and treat yourself to jellied cedar, surprising and pleasantly scented, from Gourmet Sauvage.

Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis): Little known to consumers, the elderberry has long been popular with landscapers, gourmets and healers. The elderberry jelly from Gourmet Sauvage is sweet and tasty.

Fiddlehead (Matteuccia strupthiopteris): Among the hundreds of ferns that grow in Canada, only the ostrich fern or fiddlehead is considered a delicacy, like those produced by Gourmet Sauvage.

Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca): Also called butterfly flower, silkweed, silky swallow-wort and Virginia silkweed. To rediscover the flavours of this plant that was well-known to our ancestors, try the pickled milkweed pods offered by Marché Transatlantique, or the milkweed pod ketchup from Gourmet Sauvage.

Ox-Eye Daisy (Chrysanthemum leucanthemum): The marinated un-opened buds can be used similar to capers. Nice and delicious. Try those offered by Marché Transatlantique.

Red Spruce (Picea rubens): Red spruce is a species of spruce native to eastern North America. The leafy red spruce twigs are boiled to make spruce beer, which is sometimes an alcoholic beverage but more often a flavoured beverage. Try the spruce tips from Gourmet Sauvage. You will be pleasantly surprised!

Salicornia (Salicornia europaea): Common names for the genus include salicornia, glasswort, pickleweed, sea beans and marsh samphire. The stalk and leaves of one of our numerous edible seaside plants are delicious. Try the salicornia mustard from Gourmet Sauvage. A wonderful replacement for ordinary mustard in any recipe.

Wild vegetables and food plants at the best price possible

For all these benefits you pay no more than what you would pay in any gourmet store, if you choose to fill up your cart above the free shipping level.

Our pricing policy is simple. We offer prices on gourmet food products that are lower than those of competitors, with handling and shipping fees included. When you fill up your basket to the “free delivery” level, you'll pay less than what our competitors charge. Take advantage of this winning formula to add gourmet food products to your order so that you get free delivery.

Satisfaction guaranteed

At OGourmet, we are confident that the quality of our wild products will meet, if not exceed, your expectations. If you are not satisfied with the quality of the products received from OGourmet, we will refund or exchange them if returned within 7 days of receipt.