• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

FORAGER | CHEF

Award-winning chef, author and forager Alan Bergo. Food is all around you.

  • Home
  • About
  • Mushrooms
    • Mushroom Archive
    • Posts by Species
      • Other Mushrooms
        • Lobster Mushrooms
        • Huitlacoche
        • Shrimp of the Woods
        • Truffles
        • Morels
        • Shaggy Mane
        • Hericium
        • Puffball
      • Polypores
        • Hen of the Woods
        • Dryad Saddle
        • Chicken of The Woods
        • Cauliflowers
        • Ischnoderma
        • Beefsteak
      • Chanterelles
        • Black Trumpet
        • Hedgehogs
        • Yellowfeet
      • Gilled
        • Matsutake
        • Honey Mushrooms
        • Russula / Lactarius
          • Candy Caps
          • Saffron Milkcap
          • Indigo Milkcap
      • Boletes
        • Porcini
        • Leccinum
        • Slippery Jacks
    • Recipes
      • Fresh
      • Dried
      • Preserves
    • The Basics
  • Plants
    • Plant Archive
    • Leafy Green Recipes
      • Leafy Green Plant Varieties
    • Ramps and Onions
    • Wild Herbs and Spices
      • Spruce and Conifers
      • Pollen
      • Prickly Ash
      • Bergamot / Wild Oregano
      • Spicebush
      • Golpar / Cow Parsnip
      • Wild Carraway
    • Wild Fruit
      • Wild Plums
      • Highbush Cranberry
      • Wild Grapes
      • Rowanberries
      • Wild Cherries
      • Aronia
      • Nannyberry
      • Wild Blueberries
    • From The Garden
    • Nuts, Roots, Tubers and Grains
    • Stalks and Shoots
  • Meat
    • Four-Legged Animals
      • Venison
      • Small Game
    • Poultry
    • Fish/Seafood
    • Offal and Organ Meat Recipes
    • Charcuterie
  • Recipes
    • Pickles, Preserves, Etc
    • Fermentation
    • Condiments
    • Appetizers
    • Soup
    • Salad
    • Side Dishes
    • Entrees
    • Baking
    • Sweets
  • Video
    • Field, Forest Feast (The Wild Harvest)
    • Foraging Videos
    • Lamb and Goat Series
    • YouTube Tutorials
  • Press
    • Podcasts / Interviews
  • Work
    • Public Speaking
    • Charity and Private Dinners
    • Forays / Classes / Demos

Elm Samaras

edible elm samaras in a bowl ready to eat

Samaras are a vision of spring and a wild food worth knowing. 

Spring is here and with it comes elm samaras: a tree seed you can eat that tastes like fresh green peas, and one of the most unique wild edibles available to foragers in the spring. 

Today I’ll share with you what I’ve learned about these over the past few years of gathering. I’ll go over how and when I harvest, as well as how I cook with them.

Pheasant back soup with fiddleheads and samaras

Bowls of green food are what spring is about.

The seeds of elms are called samaras. All elms I’ve seen have seeds that are edible, but, for the purposes of this post, I’m going to focus on Siberian elm samaras (Ulmus pumila) as they’re the best I’ve had.

Sam Thayer says Slippery elm (Ulmus Rubra) seeds are equally good as good as Siberian elm. I’ve been told other species like Chinese elm (U. parviflora) are good too, but they’re not as widely available. 

Close up of edible Siberian elm samaras
Siberian Elm (U. pumila)
American elm samaras close up to show tiny hairs
American Elm (U. americana)

The only others species of elm samaras I’ve had are American (Ulmus americana), which aren’t quite as good as Siberian elm. American elm samaras have more tiny hairs and are smaller than the rounded, winged fruit of Siberian elm. 

Sam Thayer writes that some people have reported developing an allergic reaction to American elm samaras, so make sure to try small amounts if those are the only ones available to you. 

Cluster of Ulmus americana samaras on a tree

American elm samaras also mean you can look for morels. 

Siberian elm: An invasive edible

Sustainability is a big topic in the foraging and wild food world. The good news about samaras is that arguably the best tasting ones come from an invasive tree.

Siberian elm samaras on a tree

Siberian elms are invasive. They’re also my favorite to eat. 

As Sam Thayer writes in the Forager’s Harvest, Siberian elm trees were brought to the U.S. in the 1860’s from Northeastern Asia. The tree is rugged, hardy, and, unlike American elms, resistant to Dutch Elm Disease. Now, if only those invasive trees could start producing morels!

Close up of Siberian elm samaras

Each fruit has a single seed. 

Hunting and Harvesting

The harvesting window is very short for these, so you need to work quickly. On a good year, I can easily harvest a couple grocery bags full of samaras in an hour from one or two trees, but timing is crucial.

Edible American elm samaras on a tree
Clusters with no leaves are ideal.
Edible American elm samaras on a tree
Too old. Avoid this tree unless you want to eat elm leaves.

Here’s some quick tips I think are helpful.

Quick tips

  • You’re looking for trees right as the leaves begin to unfurl. For me this is usually Mid-April, depending on the year.
  • Walk on the edge of the woods, sunny fields or trails. The trees there will have lower branches you can reach. As these trees get more sun, they give the largest amounts of samaras, from my experience.
  • Choose light-green, tender samaras in bountiful clusters without too many elm leaves. Fruit with tough or papery wings are too old.
  • U. pumila is often planted as an ornamental or shade tree. Sometimes I’ll harvest from trees on the street if it doesn’t see much traffic (pollution).
  • When they’re ready, hit all of your spots. My areas produce for one week.
  • I bring a metal coat hanger, uncurled, and use the hook part to gently lower hard to reach branches.
  • Bring a blickey or a container you can secure to a belt. Having two hands free will double your harvesting speed.
Harvesting Siberian elm samaras

Harvest by stripping the young fruit from the branch.

Cooking

Once you bring them home, you want to chill the samaras down by putting them in a zip-top bag in the fridge. Don’t forget to channel your inner deer by stuffing your mouth full once or twice. They’ll never be fresher than the moment you pick them. 

Dried seeds

Besides eating fresh, you can also collect the fruit to harvest the central seed. Some people have compared the nutty taste to sunflower seeds. I don’t doubt they’re good, but processing these is a lot of work for a little return, so I don’t see myself trying that any time soon.

Salad with elm samaras and lambsquarters

In a salad with lambs quarters and chickweed.

The way to eat

The golden nugget of wisdom I have to share with you here is a mindset, not a harvesting hack. Samaras are small, and there’s a difference between having a couple as a trail nibble or putting a few on a salad, and eating them like a vegetable. 

Basswood leaf salad with elm samaras and hickory nuts

Salads are a good place to start.

To really appreciate them as more than a garnish or a cute sprinkle, you need a bunch. I recommend starting with at least a gallon bag.

Pheasant back soup with fiddleheads and samaras

Samaras are great in soup.

The real beauty of this fleeting, gourmet ingredient is hard to appreciate until you eat them in a portion similar to other foods. You can eat them in salads, and they’re good, but cooking opens up a new world.

Toasted Elm Samaras in a cast iron pan

Seasoned with ramp oil and toasted as a snack.

If I cook samaras, it’s usually in soup or broth. Toss them in at the last minute and watch their color transform to a vibrant green. Lightly oiled and toasted on low heat they also make a fun garnish or snack (see above).

The tender, papery covering softens and reminds me a bit of tiny pasta I used to chase around my bowl as a kid. To me it’s a bit like eating elf food, and the kind of eating spring is all about. 

Resources and further reading 

The Forager’s Harvest 

Backyard Forager 

Wild Food Girl 

Related

Previous Post: « Shaggy Mane Ink Compound Butter
Next Post: Ramp Leaf Garum (Vegan Fish Sauce) »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Marilyn Buss

    May 14, 2022 at 10:55 am

    That is something I’d like to try. We are a little short of elm trees here in Northern CA. Is there a similar seed from other trees, like Bigleaf Maple or Oregon Ash?

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      May 18, 2022 at 5:58 am

      I know some people cook with maple blossoms. I haven’t yet.

      Reply
  2. Kelly Chadwick

    May 14, 2022 at 12:44 pm

    Grateful for this enlightening rundown on Elm samaras. Surprised I didn’t realize it. Will employ

    Reply
  3. Betsy True

    May 16, 2022 at 9:03 am

    Also the Camperdown elm in my yard has edible samaras.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

2022 James Beard Nominee

beard award

Subscribe (It’s free)

ORDER THE BOOK

UPDATED OPTIONS FOR CA / EU / US the forager chefs book of flora by Chef Alan Bergo

Forager Chef

Forager Chef

Footer

Instagram

foragerchef

FORAGER | CHEF®
🍄🌱🍖
Author: The Forager Chef’s Book of Flora
2022 James Beard Nominee
Host: Field Forest Feast 👇
streaming on @tastemade

Alan Bergo
I made vegan fish sauce from ramp juice. You tak I made vegan fish sauce from ramp juice. 

You take the pure juice of the leaves, mix it with salt, Koji rice, and more chopped fresh ramp leaves, then ferment it for a bit. 

After the fermentation you put it into a dehydrator and cook it at 145-150 F for 30 days. 

The slow heat causes a Maillard/browning reaction over time. 

After 30 days you strain the liquid and bottle it. It’s the closest thing to plant-based fish sauce I’ve had yet. 

The potency of ramps is a pretty darn good approximation of the glutamates in meat. But you could prob make something similar with combinations of other alliums. 

The taste is crazy. I get toasted ramp, followed by mellow notes from the fermentation. Potent and delicate at the same time. 

I’ve been using it to make simple Japanese-style dipping sauces for tempura etc. 

Pics: 
2: Ramp juice 
3: Juicy leaf pulp 
4: Squeezing excess juice from the pulp
5: After 5 days at 145F 
6: After 30 days 
7: Straining through Muslin to finish

#ramps #veganfishsauce #experimentalfood #kojibuildscommunity #fermentation #foraging
Oeufs de Gaulle is a classic morel recipe Jacques Oeufs de Gaulle is a classic morel recipe Jacques Pepin used to make for French president Charles de Gaulle. 

You bake eggs in a ramekin with shrimp topped with creamy morel sauce and eat with toast points. 

Makes for a really special brunch or breakfast. Recipe’s on my site, but it’s even better to watch Jacques make it on you tube. 

#jacquespepin #morels #shrimp #morilles #brunchtime
Morels: the only wild mushroom I count by the each Morels: the only wild mushroom I count by the each instead of the pound. 

Good day today, although my Twin Cities spots seem a full two weeks behind from the late spring. 2 hours south they were almost all mature. 

76 for me and 152 for the group. Check your spots, and good luck! 

#morels #murkels #mollymoochers #drylandfish #spongemushroom #theprecious
The first time I’ve seen fungal guttation-a natu The first time I’ve seen fungal guttation-a natural secretion of water I typically see with plants. 

I understand it as an indicator that the mushrooms are growing rapidly, and a byproduct of their metabolism speeding up. If you have some clarifications, chime in. 

Most people know it from Hydnellum 
peckii-another polypore. I’ve never seen it on pheasant backs before.

Morels are coming soon too. Mine were 1 inch tall yesterday in the Twin Cities. 

#guttation #mushroomhunting #cerioporussquamosus #pheasantback #naturesbeauty
Rain and heat turned the flood plain forest into a Rain and heat turned the flood plain forest into a grocery store. 

#groceryshopping #sochan #rudbeckialaciniata #foraging
Italian wild food traditions are some of my favori Italian wild food traditions are some of my favorite. 

Case in point: preboggion, a mixture of wild plants, that, depending on the reference, should be made with 5-23 individual plants. 

Here’s a few mixtures I’ve made this spring, along with a reference from the Oxford companion to Italian food. 

The mixture should include some bitter greens (typically assorted asters) but the most important plant is probably borage. 

Making your own version is a good excercise. Here they’re wilted with garlic and oil, but there’s a bunch of traditional recipes the mixture is used in. 

Can you believe this got cut from my book?!

#preboggion #preboggiun #foraging #traditionalfoods
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Privacy

  • Privacy Policy

Affiliate Disclosure

 I may earn a small commission for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this website. Your purchases help keep this website free and help with the many costs involved with this site as it has continued to grow over the years. 

Copyright © 2022 ·