Stinging Nettles: 8 Recipes for Spring Cooking

Stinging nettles seem to be having their time in the sun, as it were. In years past, we've spotted one recipe, maybe two, mostly begging people to "pretty please, just give nettles a chance!" This year, recipes like the ones below are popping up all over the place with enthusiastic reviews! Have you tried stinging nettles yet?

Stinging nettles deserve their name - they have tiny little hair-like stingers on the leaves and stems that make touching them very unpleasant. But never fear, cooking removes the stingy stuff and leaves only the woodsy-tasting leaves behind. Just handle fresh nettles with gloves and all will be well.

1. Garlicky Nettle Pesto from Hogwash - Terrific tossed with a bowl of spaghetti or rubbed into spring lamb.

2. Spinach and Nettle Crustless Spanakopita from Stitch n' Boots - A strata of nettles and spinach made rich with eggs and feta. (Gluten-free!)

3. Spring Lasagna with Asparagus, Peas, and Stinging Nettles from The Bitten Word - All the best flavors of spring in this one.

4. Nettle Gnudi from Salty Seattle - These are a cousin of gnocchi made with ricotta and wilted nettles.

5. Nettle-Mushroom Pie with Pine Nuts from Voodoo & Sauce - An easy savory pie for dinner, lunch, or brunch.

6. Nettle Aloo from Just Cook It - A hearty Indian stew with nettles, sweet potatoes, and chickpeas.

7. Stinging Nettle Ravioli with Butter and Sage from La Travola Marche - Little pillows of nettle-stuffed goodness.

8. Nettle Pizza with Fontina, Taleggio, and Pancetta from Serious Eats: Slice - Actually a review of a pizza from Lovely's Fifty-Fifty restaurant, take this one as inspiration to make your own seasonal pizza!

How are you using nettles right now?

Related: Seasonal Recipe: Nettle Soup

(Images: Kathryn Hill and Jess Thomson/Hogwash)

Comments (10)

So once you cook the nettles, no more sting? Any particular cooking method, or will anything do? The last time I encountered nettles was as a child, running through a patch of them with bare legs. STING. The idea of putting them in my mouth is a little off-putting.

@cmcinnyc - Yup! Once cooked, no more sting! The preferred method is to blanch the nettles for a few seconds in boiling water and then use them in whatever you're cooking. Most of the recipes I've seen include instructions for de-stinging the nettles, so you should be good to go if you just follow one of those!

I've had them before and I just don't find the pay-off big enough for the effort.

They are a lot of effort, but they taste so wonderful.

Last year I found a Red Admiral caterpillar in some and kept it until it turned into a butterfly.

I totally agree that they're a bit too much effort -- unless maybe you were harvesting them yourself (and getting them for free...). I made nettle pasta recently. It was great, but I think I may make it with another green next time.

http://eatlovedrink.com/2011/04/13/stinging-nettle-pasta-ribbons-with-roasted-cauliflower/

Stinging nettles are at a great height for gathering the tops right now in the northeast. Do not pick them when they are making flowers, nettles will make you ill then. We have a recipe on our wild food blog:

http://the3foragers.blogspot.com/2010/04/stinging-nettles.html

I love stinging nettle tea. One of my favorite treats in February, when I'm starting to tire of winter, is to drink a cup of nettle tea and eat some warm, stewed rhubarb (that I made the spring before). It gives me the inspiration to make it through those last couple of months.

I tried a very simple nettle dish once, and although I liked the taste, I found their texture to be a bit too fuzzy. Maybe something like the pesto, where they'd be processed, would take care of that problem.

Huh.

Dad always had a patch of stinging nettles growing in the corner of the garden (it was some kind of Slovene folk medicine). He actually sought out a wild patch, dug it up, and brought it home. He would take a bunch and whip his arms until they were red and covered in blisters- said they were good for the rheumatism. I never thought there would actually be a way to ingest the stuff.

I guess a big plus is that they will never have the caché ramp and fiddleheads have gotten.

Emma -- Thanks for featuring our lasagna recipe!

(Can't take credit for this recipe but it's yummy and easy... )

NETTLE SUPPER PANCAKES

MIX TOGETHER
2 cups steamed and chopped nettle leaves (I steamed for 2+ minutes - and I imagine other greens would work well too!)
2 egg YOLKS
1/2 cup crumbled feta
1 tbsp crumbled blue cheese - optional but YES!
(feel free to vary your cheeses!)
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1/4 cup chives or green onions (I used a mix)
1/8 cup finely chopped green peppers
1/4 cup (whole wheat) flour
salt & pepper to taste
FOLD IN
2 well beaten egg WHITES
FRY SLOWLY in butter (or oil) until firm and golden

SERVE with a little sour cream or yogurt (Maybe a nice glass of white wine?)