Salsify AKA Goat's Beard - Identification, Description, and Cooking

Here's my Facebook page
/ okanagangardenerandfor...
Here is my Instagram page
/ okanagan_gardenerandfo...
Salsify or Yellow Salsify - Tragopogon dubius AKA goat's beard and Jack-go-to-bed-at-noon
Yellow salsify is an edible and medicinal plant you can find all over North America. In this video it is identified, described, and it is cooked as well. Salsify is a biennial or occasionally annual herb introduced from Europe. It is also known as goat's beard and Jack-go-to-bed-at noon.
Etymology of Salsify
Salsify is derived from the French word salsifis which is derived from the Latin solsequim which breaks down further to sol - sun and sequim - follower.
Description and Identification of Yellow Salsify
Yellow salsify flowers open in the morning and close around midday or on overcast days. This is part of the explanation for the Jack-go-to-bed-at-noon name.
Salsify grow 30 to 100 cm tall from a taproot. The stem is leafy with grass-like leaves that clasp the stem and are cottony-hairy when young. The stem often branches and exudes a milky juice when broken and is swollen just below the flowering heads. Yellow salsify is a member of the sunflower or Asteraceae family which has a common trait of having composite flowers. The yellow salsify flowers are composite flowers with ray flowers and no disc flowers. They are 3 - 6 cm across with bracts that extend farther than the ray flowers when the flowers are open. When yellow salsifies go to see, they look a lot like dandelions only bigger.
Other Closely Related Salsify Species
Common salsify - Tragopogon porrifolius AKA oyster plant
Common salsify is different from yellow salsify by having purple flowers. The roots are said to taste like oysters and to be the most delicious of the three species.
Meadow Salsify - Tragopogon pratensis
Meadow salsify also have yellow flowers, but the bracts are shorter than the ray flowers. They are also edible.
Salsify is Edible
The roots of salsify before the flower stalks appear can be eaten raw, roasted, fried, or boiled. Some describe the flavour as similar to parsnips. They can also be dried, ground, and roasted to be used as a coffee substitute. The young leaves, flowers, buds, and stems can be eaten raw or cooked. The young stalks can be simmered or fried like asparagus, and I think they taste like asparagus.
Medicinal Uses of Salsify
The milky juice of salsify has been taken to relieve heartburn and stomachaches. The milky juice has also been applied to wounds to stop oozing and bleeding sores.
Other Uses for Salsify
Some indigenous groups collected the dried sap and rolled it up and chewed it like gum.
Please consume wild plants at your own risk! Consult multiple reliable sources before consuming any wild plants! This video is for information and entertainment only!
References
MacKinnon, A. Edible and Medicinal Plants of Canada. Lone Pine Media Productions (BC) Ltd. 2014.
Parish, R.; Coupe, R.; and Lloyd, D. Plants of the Inland Northwest and Southern Interior British Columbia. BC Ministry of Forests and Lone Pine Publishing. 2018
Pojar, Jim and MacKinnon, Andy. Plants of Coastal British Columbia including Washington, Oregon & Alaska. BC Ministry of Forests and Lone Pine Publishing. 2004.
Warnock, Caleb. 437 Edible Wild Plants of the Rocky Mountain West. Familius LLC. 2018.

[@sherriparkin]

Thank you the birds dropped off the the seeds in my neighbors yard and one in my front yard and now I know more about them because of you I appreciate ❤😊

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Volunteers for your yard, haha! You're welcome! Thank you, too!

[@margaretelizabeth555]

Thanks for the video. I love when foragers taste the plants on their videos 😊

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

You're welcome! Thank you, too!

[@georgejennings9959]

Niccceeeeeeee! Sauteed in Coconut oil and salt. I direct sowed my black salsify in raised beds on concern of rodents. They cant tunnel up into the bed, but would have to climb the walls. Crossing fingers on this one, I now have a very active animal population here. A bear visited our garbage can this evening, fortunately I have a fence around the garden, its something anyways!

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Wow! That sounds like you've got a very nice place. Thank you!

[@therosses5]

In Spokane, I've seen them at least 4 ft high. The plant does look like some Jurassic version of the dandelion especially when the seeds show. Great vid.

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Wow, that's huge! Thank you!

[@TRanCOraVE]

In deer Park. I have to cull these from my yard because the school won't cut the field down. They're everywhere lol didn't know what they were and now I do! Good to know about this stuff.

[@shazzam532]

I’ve just planted my first black salsify. Can’t wait until it’s ready to try 😀

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Good luck! I hope it goes well!

[@kathisweeter3889]

This is super helpful! I have them all over my garden area this year. I have not planted them. So cool find and information from you! Thank you

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

You're welcome! Thank you for watching! We have a few volunteers around. I kinda like how they look, and I know I can eat them, so I like to keep some around.

[@lrrerh8090]

I clicked expecting a salsa cooking recipe. Lol. I didn’t know the name for those. Like you, I just called them big dandelions. Excellent video

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Thank you! I always saw them around, and now I really see them everywhere. I'm happy to know they are pretty delicious!

[@jennyanimal9046]

The roots are like carrots or turnips. You can snack on the raw make a puree or a root gratin, pan fry them like a hash,or add them to soups.

[@homeworshipwithmartyandamy7754]

Thank you for this informative video. We just saw this plant on a roadside in IL.

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Oh, that's good! Thank you!

[@jennyanimal9046]

Hi there,mine have purple flowers,. The plant has been prolific this year in between me and my neighbors house. On my side of course. She doesn't have so called weeds because of pesticides. My yard is completely organic and one giant salad. Good thing given today's times and a potential GOVERNMENT👿👈 MANDATED FAMINE on the way. Anyways today I discovered it's glorious roots and was so happy to find out it's a super food. I'm looking for recipes and such for this plant. Found a few. Take care🙏🏼🌻🌼🌱

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

My yard is full of all kinds of wild edible and medicinal plants, too! We can't have too many around I think. Thank you! You take care, too!

[@jessicalisec7859]

I found one of the flowers in my yard and became obsessed because it's so beautiful. And I'm grateful for this video! I now have been able to see that they are bountiful here in the desert of Central Oregon haha I remembered what you said about the young buds and successfly foraged them yesterday! I love that new ones actually grow off the main stalk of the original! I stir fried them in avocado oil with S&P and cayenne! YUMMM! Thank you for this helpful video 🙏🌱🌿

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

I think they're really beautiful flowers, too! You're welcome! I'm glad the video was helpful. Thank you, too!

[@tiffif]

I had no idea these were edible, thanks!! ✌

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

You're welcome! Thank you, too!

[@LH-zw7dg]

I’ve been seeing these everywhere! So cool to now know about them! Thanks

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

I'm glad it helped! Thank you, too!

[@JayWoodford]

Love it, keep up the good work Jimmy! I have a feeling with the way things are headed, foraging is going to becoming an increasingly important thing for people to educate themselves on.

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Thank you, Jay! I think it's always been a good idea to support local food sources, and I think that's getting even more important now. Grow your own, support local farmers, forage for local plants and more!

[@nikvonschulmann6299]

That looks very tasty...I need to try that sometime

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

You should! It's really good. Thank you!

[@emmalee478]

Pretty and delicious!

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Yes, I agree. Thank you!

[@dallen4482]

I’ve been pulling them out! They grow wild across my fence. I’ll have try some!

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Thank you! I have a hard time weeding now that I know so many "weeds" are actually potentially edible and medicinal!

[@ryanw6920]

I found one that went white and is at the stage where you blow the seeds off the plant. I was looking forward to eating the root but it probably isn’t good at that stage.

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

You could try it, but I think you're right, and it would be better to wait.

[@SofioVenida]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤1 year ago

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Thank you!

[@Pixics]

I would have thought it is just a dandilion, but it does have a different shape.

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

I think it looks a lot like dandelion. Thank you!

[@hikarinosakura]

The purple ones grow wild on my front yard and we like them as morning flowers. They are seeding now, covered with aphids (now I know why lol), which attracted a population of ladybugs. Is it too late to forage?

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

If they are going to seed, I would say they are too old to forage. You might still be able to find some young shoots though!

[@sakotahampshire3239]

Mine won't get that limp when I cook it! I put it in a pressure cooker for 30 minutes! Still won't get soft enough for me to chew the stems! What did I do wrong? Harvest them too early? How do cook oml I've tried 3 different ways so far.

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

It sounds like they might be too late. Try some of the young stems and buds. I find the older ones get very stiff and fibrous. I hope that helps!

[@delldirks3726]

Are you in Washington?

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

No, but I'm not far away. I'm in the southern interior of BC, Canada, in the Okanagan Valley.

[@sydneygrace2665]

So the roots are only edible before flowering?

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

I think they would still be edible but maybe less palatable or less nutritious if harvested after it flowers like with other plants, but I can't say for sure. I'm not aware of any toxicity or any other risks with roots at all. I hope that helps!

[@MaritsaDarman]

I would like to obtain seeds of goat’s beard any ideas who might sell them?

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

I haven't bought them myself, so I don't know about any particularly good ones. I did a Google search for salsify seeds, and there were lots of results that came up.

[@KerriEverlasting]

From Australia my cultivar is called "Sandwich Island". It doesn't give me the scientific name.

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Interesting. The common names are so different all over the world. Thank you!

[@meramaroldo4839]

Can you still eat the root after the plant has flowered?

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

I'm sure you could, but it will just be kind of old and depleted so likely not as good as before flowering.

[@meramaroldo4839]

@@OkanaganGardenerandForager I've seen salsify prep/cooking videos that show massive roots several inches long and 1-2 inches in diameter (already removed from the plant before filming) and it's hard to tell if it's the same type of salsify. I can't imagine a young salsify would have roots that huge, is that a specific variety? Or do you have to wait for it to be in a second or third year of growth to harvest roots that large?

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

@meramaroldo4839 I'm not sure. It probably depends a lot on growing conditions. Carrots and other root vegetables we start from seed in the spring can get pretty big by fall. There could be other varieties out there that probably grow very quickly.

[@meramaroldo4839]

@@OkanaganGardenerandForager great point! Thanks for the response 🥰 appreciate you!!

[@drrahilakurdi5943]

💙🩵💜

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Thanks!

[@myXmasOldies]

This is an invasive weed as far as I'm concerned. We have lots of native plants that are missing medicinal.

[@OkanaganGardenerandForager]

Yes, it is introduced, and that's part of why I said we should not feel bad about harvesting it! Thank you!

[@emmalee478]

Hopefully he can lower the population with all the ones he eats!