Oyster, cheese and vegetable sausage… here is a selection of three incredible edible plants, perfect for curious gardeners and more particularly for vegan gardeners who want to discover surprising flavors, which are naturally present in the plant world! 🙂
1.) The vegetable garden oyster, the taste of mollusk in a leaf!
Originally from the Atlantic coast, this edible plant with an iodized flavor has blue-green, slightly crispy leaves that exhale the very characteristic taste of the oyster. Once you put it in the mouth, the taste resemblance to the mollusk is really striking. It is often used in cooking in combination with fish dishes. It can be eaten raw, cooked or preserved in vinegar such as samphire. In its natural environment, especially on the Normandy coast, the vegetable garden oyster has almost disappeared due to irrational picking. Today it is a rare plant and highly prized by restaurateurs, especially great star chefs. Find out more: Vegetable garden oyster.
2.) The cheese plant, the taste of camembert in a plant!
Belonging to the same family as the coffee tree, this rare plant native to Asia in the surprising taste of old cheese, close to Camembert ! In the kitchen they can be used in hot and cold, sweet or savory preparations. The typical cheese flavor of the leaves goes very well in a salad, in pesto or in an omelette. The harvest of the leaves of the cheese-flavored plant is done all year round as needed. They will keep for about a week in the refrigerator. This fast-growing vine is easy to grow and requires regular pruning for good leaf production. Find out more: Cheese plant.
3.) The vegetable sausage, a vegetable with the taste of smoked meat!
The sausage-scented plant is a Mediterranean perennial of the Lamiaceae family. Its crumpled leaves give off a surprising smell of peppery sausage. In Morocco, it is still widely used in cooking and folk medicine. The aromatic leaf is usually used to flavor sauces, salads and cheeses. Very easy to grow, the sausage plant appreciates dry, well-draining soil and sunny exposure. Highly resistant to drought and poor soils, this strain requires little or no maintenance. Learn more: Sausage plant.
