Hostas are edible!

[Annemieke]

Or so I heard, from a friend in Sweden of all places. But not having hostas in my garden (I never much went for ornamentals!) I haven't tried them yet. I suppose they are best young, like so many. I've asked some neighbours but haven't heard yet. When do they come up? Have any of you heard this/ever tried them?
Love, thanks! A.

[Annemieke]

[Obelixx]

I grow lots of hostas in pots and in the ground and love them for their structural, ornamental qualities.  It would never have occurred to me to eat them but I found this;-

http://rawedibleplants.blogspot.be/2014/06/hosta-species.html

[ACE]

Well that is a surprise. I like mine too much as garden plants to think about eating them. But as hemerocallis is rampant in one part of the garden we always decorate a salad with the flowers which can be eaten. I often end up chewing a bit of root when we are splitting them up, a bit carroty in taste.

I will try a small bit though, as the variegation in the leaves will make an interesting salad, I am wary of slugs in lettuce, god knows what I shall be like with hosta.

[alkanet]

called urui in Japanese

serving suggestion

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLSyEZv6ZMw

[plotstoeat]

couldn't eat a whole one!

[ancellsfarmer]

Slugs have been showing us that for years!

[plotstoeat]

That's true. They know about the best greens to eat!

[Vinlander]

I believe the first young hosta shoots are used  to make a kind of spinach pie in Greece - it is supposed to be a seasonal delicacy - so I assume it tastes different in some way. If I'm ever there in Spring I'd try and find some but I'm assuming the chance of finding them in tourist areas is nil (?).

If I tried to harvest some here I'd have to be darned quick to beat the slugs in my garden - they are probably forming queues as I write...

Cheers.

[Annemieke]

I haven't got hostas (yet) so can't try, but I always use slugpubs  by my vegs (as I keep being given horrible cheap beer). Won't they help?

[alkanet]

you know, i'm going to have a go

when the hostons come up :)

https://scottishforestgarden.wordpress.com/2012/05/07/hostas/

http://emmacooper.org/files/hostas.pdf pdf file downloads so care needed