Content
When preparing various side dishes and salads, it is important to know how long to cook the nettle so that it stops being hot, but remains healthy. After heat treatment, the product becomes softer and more tender. Instead of boiling, the plant can be scalded with boiling water or soaked in it.
Collection and preparation of nettles
It is better to use young plants for food. They are considered this way until mid-May, until flowering begins. You can collect raw materials from April. You should choose a clean place, so that there are no busy roads, factories, landfills or other negative factors nearby.
In young plants, not only the leaves, but also the upper stems are suitable for food. It is better to choose specimens no higher than 20 cm. Collect raw materials with gloves so as not to get burned.
It is better not to tear the burning leaves with stems, but to cut them with scissors - this way more valuable elements and juiciness will be preserved
You can collect the plants whole, then trim or pick the leaves immediately before cooking. The prepared raw materials must be washed in a sieve under running water - it must be cold.
How long should you cook nettles?
In order for the grass to retain the maximum of useful elements, heat treatment must be reduced as much as possible. For salads or as a side dish, boil the nettle mass for no more than three minutes. For young raw materials, 1-2 minutes is enough, since it is not too hot yet. The time must be noted after boiling.
Scalding with boiling water
In order for nettle to retain more useful elements, it is better not to boil it, but to scald it with boiling water. You can do this:
- Place the nettle leaves in a deep bowl.
- Pour boiled water over the green mixture.
- Wait a minute.
- Drain the liquid or remove the leaves with a slotted spoon.
- Rinse the greens with cold water.
- Place the leaves on a paper towel to remove excess moisture.
- If necessary, chop the finished greens.
You don’t have to soak the nettle mass in boiling water, but pour it generously over it. To do this, the greens need to be placed in a colander or sieve. After treatment with boiling water, it must be rinsed with cold water. This option is especially good for preparing fortified salads.
Pouring boiling water over cooking should be preferred when further heat treatment is required - boiling, stewing, baking, frying, sautéing. In these cases, the pungency must be removed in order to painlessly chop the greens. If the leaves can be used whole, then there is no need to additionally boil or scald them.
How to cook a side dish of nettles
Thermal treatment of a plant is more correctly called blanching, since it is short-term. The algorithm is like this:
- Pour a large amount of water into a suitable container.
- Boil.
- Add some salt.
- Dip the nettle leaves for 1-3 minutes.
- Drain the green mass in a colander.
- Use a spoon to squeeze out excess moisture.
To chop cooked greens, it is better to tear them with your hands or cut them with a ceramic knife.
Both leaves and young stems can be used as a garnish. It is better to remove the hard parts of the plant so as not to spoil the consistency of the dish.
If you are preparing a side dish from several ingredients, then the nettle mass should be added a couple of minutes before the end of cooking. It is better to put boiled or scalded greens into a ready-made dish.
Conclusion
You only need to cook nettles for a few minutes so that the maximum of valuable elements are retained. This treatment can be replaced by scalding with boiling water. Both options achieve the main goal - to remove the sting of the plant. Without treatment, it will burn not only your hands, but also your mouth while eating.
