Wild Edibles of the Mediterranean Winter: Wild Beet Greens

February 28, 2024 Blogs

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In my small yard, in central Israel, I count at least seven edible wild species: mustard; nettles; chickweed; sow thistle; goosefoot; mallows, and wild beets. These, and other wild edibles, are native to the Mediterranean. We’ve written about nettles and mallows, and about growing chickweed at home. Today I’m focusing on wild beet greens.

Right now, late winter in the Levant, is prime time to forage beet leaves. I’ll keep harvesting them until mid- or late March. In North America and Europe, wild beets (and many other wild edibles) become available months later, in springtime through summer.

I love popping out of the house in the morning, still in pajamas, making my way to the tangled plot where the wild beets raise their leaves. Quickly, I cut enough young greens to fill a quiche, enhance a soup, or make a simple stir-fry. I leave the root alone as hardly being worthwhile harvesting: it’s a spindly white thing, best left in the soil to push up a a new cluster again next year.

If I get worried that I’m over-harvesting my yard, all I have to do is take a walk around my neighborhood, and I’ll find plenty of wild beets. The soil here is heavy, a mix of clay and sand, which beets love. I find them in abandoned lots and on the side of roads, some already quite mature.

These wild beets are the foremothers of Swiss Chard, known here as Mangold. They grow from a single point in the ground, and their leaves vary in size, the young ones being smaller and lower down on the stalk. They’re triangular to oval, with scalloped edges, very glossy and dark green, with deep, lighter-colored veins running through them. As the plant matures, the stalks take on the familiar red color.

And no, beet greens aren’t related to spinach, nor do they taste like spinach. Their taste is similar to Swiss chard, naturally. Still, you can swap beet greens for spinach in any recipe: soup, quiche, omelets and fritattas – you name it.

Nutrition? Beet greens have plenty of vitamins K, C, and A. Minerals in them worth mentioning are magnesium, some iron, and calcium. Lots of fresh green fiber, too.

I’m already thinking of summer, when the landscape here will be sere and brown, and the late-winter greens will have died away. To preserve some for the summer, I cut more greens than I need, rinse them in cool water and examine them for any little freeloaders like snails, which also love the warm, damp conditions of the Mediterranean late winter.

Then I chop the greens, sauté them with onions and garlic in olive oil, and freeze them. Now they’re ready to use in just about any dish. Alternatively, I set the leaves out in a dry, shady place and let them dry thoroughly. I crumble the dried leaves into soups and stews.

There’s only one safety warning with wild beet greens themselves: the large, mature leaves are are best avoided by people with kidney stone issues, as they have a relatively high oxalic acid content. The small, younger leaves growing farther down the stalks are fine. I eat the young leaves as often as I like, with no harm done.

However, it’s important to keep in mind that at first glance, some very toxic wild plants resemble wild beets. For example, lords and ladies, known here as loof. I’ve read reports of people gathering wild mandrake leaves too, mistaking them for wild beets. Look for dark-green, very glossy leaves. Other plants are not so glossy.

Always make 100% sure that you’ve identified your foraged greens correctly.