Sea Fennel (Samphire) - An uncommon herb that packs a punch! - Amazing Plants

[@matthewwillson6515]

Fun fact: we have this growing along motorways in the UK because we salt our road.

[@tennesseehomesteader6175]

It's definitely similar to my Mexican fiance! Spicy a little bitter and a lot of flavor 😁

[@matthewwillson6515]

@@tennesseehomesteader6175 it depends are you going north or south?

[@mimilune2746]

Why I salt my road and not my steak

[@nicholas8479]

What is the connection with salting?

[@matthewwillson6515]

@@nicholas8479 it needs salts in the soil to grow

[@damonroberts7372]

Your taste in T-shirts is Divine.

[@CliffordHubert]

If you check, I'm pretty sure the deal is that you can't forage anything in the UK by pulling it up by the roots. You can pick the leaves in public areas. Most of the coastal foraging UK channels recommend this and sea beet leaves highly. Sea beets would be a good show for you.

[@yangtse55]

Indeed - a halophilic show would be good. I have plans to grow a bunch of these when I move to the coast and need somewhere in my garden to wash and drain my kayak and wetsuit ...

[@AtomicShrimp]

I believe that's correct - as a general rule, foraging leaves, fruit, flowers and fungi is legal for private individuals in the UK. Commercial harvesting requires licences; endangered and otherwise protected species are off limits; uprooting plants generally requires permission from the landowner, but outside of those constraints, general purpose foraging by picking is not forbidden.

[@darriendastar3941]

I love samphire (the rock or sea samphire rather than the marsh version). But I prefer it when it's been lightly blanched and then tossed in melted (unsalted) butter or olive oil. It's best, though, if you quickly deep-fry it in a light tempura batter. The secret is to NOT add any salt when you're cooking it - it provides enough of its own.

[@peervermeiren8902]

As tempura sounds delicious, an excellent idea.

[@dimwittwit]

In restaurants here in UK we usually use marsh samphire. Fish is commonly served on a bed of it that has been fried in butter. Marsh samphire just tastes like salt water and doesn't have much of a flavour. I really want to try rock samphire now.

[@mrslinkydragon9910]

golden samphire is a nice one too, sort of like salty coconut! (although its rare)

[@MeAuntieNora]

@@mrslinkydragon9910 whoa that sounds nice

[@mrslinkydragon9910]

@@MeAuntieNora its very strong tasting however!

[@JK-xz6mj]

you call kale cavolo nero as well, wtf.

[@mrslinkydragon9910]

@@JK-xz6mj different cultivar. Its still kale

[@MM-fg4tw]

This grows everywhere in cornwall, I love how salty it is when you find a good patch by the sea!

[@Lu_Woods]

You bring the most interesting things to the table ; )

[@Kenneth_Ben]

Indeed... Indeed.

[@simonmusson5643]

Cornwall, UK here as well. I work as a chef and have used samphire extensively, goes beautifully with fish.

[@Kikilang60]

This is why I have your channel set to chime, while I'm at work. You know Jared. You have to pop that cherry, and explore into mushrooms. There whole new world of strange out there.

[@pattheplanter]

The only way you'll persuade him is to recommend the one that is least like a mushroom. Giant puffballs when fried are like eggy bread (French toast in the US) with the texture of marshmallow. You have to be lucky to get them, though.

[@jamescanjuggle]

I love this stuff so much! Its basically crunchy sea spinach! Used to get it all the time working at a fish market here in Ireland. Although make sure to eat the youngest shoots, the old ones have this woody center which is kinda prickly

[@A_Casual_NPC]

I'm a professional cook with various tools to help me discover new ingredients, yet non are as great as your videos, you really find the gems

[@WeAreAllOneNature]

'Limelon' is something Weird Explorer should consider reviewing. It's a new sort of melon with a very refreshing lime flavour.

[@LuigiDude647]

huh never heard of that.

[@anne-droid7739]

That sounds wonderful!

[@EJSaxton]

There's a ton of this on the beaches where I go in the summer, personally I didn't even know it was edible. We call it Saint Peter's herb

[@yangtse55]

there are two species of samphire.

[@stumccabe]

The name Samphire is a corruption of "Saint Pierre".

[@KGBgringo]

We call that rock samphire around my parts I find it on the cliffs at the coast, there's also a marsh samphire found in the mud banks of rivers. I see your other comment left by a viewer and I'm also in Cornwall.

[@RedPandad]

Oh yeah i know that plant! It's really good with salmon! It is a seasonal vegetable that's consumed often where i live

[@hagg23]

We have a relative of the rock samphire growing here in maritime canada, samphire greens are what they are called here, and they are usually pickled. A member of the Salicorniacea family. Either Salicornia virginiana or Salicornia europaea. Great post!

[@erikjohnson9223]

Same habitat and perhaps the same as the "Marsh samphire" greens some Brit mentioned above. However it isn't related to the plant Jared reviewed. Salicornia is part of the Amaranthaceae (pigweed, beet, & spinach family). Rock samphire / sea fennel is in the Apiaceae (carrot, celery, parsnip, chervil, dill, fennel, anise, angelica, etc family--umbellifers).

[@hagg23]

@@erikjohnson9223 yes, i was just reading up on " Salicorniacea" spp. Here in the maritimes .

[@Mark-zu6oz]

Sea Fennel. See Fennel run. Run Fennel run.

[@sooobyrooo5763]

oooooh pho broth herbs

[@WadWizard]

I remember watching something that was talking about someone trying out growing this in japan on land that had been flooded by seawater cause the land wasnt very good for the usual plants due to the salt, i think they got it to work idk to what extent its caught on though

[@MrChristianDT]

Yeah, I imagine about all they could grow would be samphire greens, Saltbush or some seaside grasses.

[@XcaptainXobliviousX]

pickled on a burger perhaps? definite garnish potential

[@Ultracity6060]

"...you probably want me to pickle this, don't you?" K E T C H U P .

[@arminhappel2541]

As you where describing the flavours, I instantly thought: Put it in Ice-cream. Those flavours would go great with a vanilla type of flavour.

[@miskee11]

You quickled it! Get it? Quickly pickled... Hahahhah.ahah.gfbngf

[@ReeseAG00]

You should really try Florida betony. It is a tuber that when used in cooking is very similar to water chestnut. Ive been growing them for about 2 years now and have realized they are really versatile.

[@harveymilne1684]

Love this plant. Always take the opportunity to eat it whenever I'm down by the coast

[@sirgnobrot2999]

I'm so happy to sea rock samphire here! I've been growing this stuff for years

[@keatk_]

Never seen it eaten raw, good to know, I've only ever had it steamed then it's a great side green. Also had no idea it wasn't a thing in America.

[@stumccabe]

I think it is Marsh Samphire that is usually served in UK restaurants. Rock Samphire and Marsh Samphire are unrelated plants.

[@Ixquick979]

This herb grows on the stone shores all along Croatian coast, when it grows in its natural habitat it is also salty because it accumulate salt. .

[@derekclawson4236]

Once again a shout out for wanderlust nursery. They have great plants and I had a great experience with them. Very cool assortment of rare edible species.

[@trapdoorguppi]

Great video Jared! I always look forward to your newest videos. If ever you come to Vancouver BC Canada let me know and I will take you foraging

[@Alex-ju5xg]

Great species choice! I hadn't heard of this at all and was especially confused at the common name being samphire. So many species with that common name. Thanks for the amazing video!

[@Stupha_Kinpendous]

I used to eat that all the time when I lived in France. I love that stuff.

[@ronaldowens5025]

Pink Flamingo, huh, I see you're a man of taste and culture.

[@masamunesword]

Samphire is one of those names that gets applied to a lot of unrelated plants. Almost anything in the Salicornia, Tecticornia, and Sarcocornia genus seem to pick up the name, all being succulent salt loving plants.

[@Drewsalems_Lot]

Hi Jared, in Australia our samphire is Tecticornia sp. It is commonly known as sea asparagus or sea bean. It grows on the sides of our salty lakes, I forage it and do an easy lactoferment. The young material comes out beautiful and literally tastes like asparagus. The older growth can be a bit chewy but you can sty fry that. It's delicious and free. Hi from Oz

[@DankFroot]

Wanderlust is an awesome nursery. Got my Chilean guavas from them. Love my plants.

[@matiasvarela9077]

Wow 😮 smarter every day is your Patreon, that is sublime, congrats! See u from Uruguay 🇺🇾 amazing work

[@ikbintom]

Stirring with the branch huh, you can see that you've been to places without cutlery before 😀

[@meaningfulmakings]

I’m doing a costal walk in Portugal. I saw this plant, identified it with an app. Cross referenced it with a couple of KZbin videos amd I’m eating it now whilst I look at the sea. Thank you for your video. I didn’t even have to scramble down a cliff face for it, thank fully.

[@JTMusicbox]

I love the Shakespearian reference! Also the herb is really cool!

[@slownaturalliving3218]

I foraged it for the first time in Croatia this year on the beach. It was growing there in huge amounts! I made a tea out of it and it tasted really good. Also I dried the rest for the winter time. 😉

[@stefansauvageonwhat-a-twis1369]

I still remember the taste from a tour I did on vacation on the Atlantic coast of France, man I wish I could have some now the crunchy and overwhelming saltiness, so strange yet pleasant

[@jimgrude]

In Masterchef UK, I swear samphire is used in nearly every single dish. It's practically a competition for creative ways to use samphire.

[@stumccabe]

That's Marsh Samphire, not Rock Samphire - unrelated species.

[@stumccabe]

I live in Plymouth England. It grows in profusion around and on the rocks by the sea. Whenever I'm down at the beach I pick a few leaves to chew on - I love it's unusual flavour sort of a mixture of vegetal fennel mixed with celery and kerosene - or some other product of the petro-chemical industry! I've tried pickling it but my batch wasn't vey good, but pickled Rock Samphire was hugely popular in previous centuries.

[@forrest1979g]

Nice Divine shirt.

[@MrDojofighter]

its pretty heavily salty in the uk, not sure if its because of the growing environment or what, but i usually fry it in butter, its usually served as a cooked vegetable alongside a dish here, almost treated like broccoli or kale

[@JonnyJayKhan]

Samphire is super common in the UK and it is DELICIOUS (although its not a household name by any means). Its good with sushi too 😊

[@WeirdExplorer]

Interesting!

[@trex70]

Thank you for showing us allways something interesting new.

[@walkerpilling1860]

I love your shirt, my dude.

[@ice9tom]

I thought we had laws that permitted foraging for personal consumption. I've picked this many times. I norfolk we call it "samfur" and people sell it in honesty booths by the side of the road. It grows in huge expanses by the beach in muddy areas. I've always boiled it. tastes like asparagus to me. Love your content.

[@riocaz]

I don't believe it's illegal to forage it specifically. It's certainly listed in various foraging guides... However the habitats (in this case cliff faces) themselves can be protected. So you have to be careful where you are taking it from.

[@hiddengem6889]

When my cousin lived in the fens she used to cycle two miles to collect it fresh from the wash

[@iaw7406]

Its quite common in some UK supermarkets. Its quite salty and great on fish.

[@moileboi2947]

Merry Chrithmum maritimum to you too 😁🎅

[@electricjig]

This grows all over Saskatchewan, Canada and has a completely different look to it, it takes up all the salt in our ground and is extremely salty. It’s called marsh samphire.

[@richardbidinger2577]

A couple of foraging channels from the UK I sub to have referenced Samphire several times. The description they usually give is peppery and tastes like celery.

[@sleepybat_]

Here in the balearic islands it grows everywhere! We eat it pickled or marinated like you would a pickle

[@minokscreelawn9178]

Loving the pink flamingos shirt my dude

[@auds9738]

I've never heard of a salty plant, this is so interesting

[@terryholdenuk]

My local Samphire grows on the mud flats in the estuary

[@briankim0412]

This grows near our beaches in Korea!!

[@richardgaspar4590]

I like the reaction when you chew it.😂

[@alfwaibel4773]

I got some close to dry stocks from my short vacation on a croation island last september and put them in sandy soil. After three weeks, some small green tips starting to grow, now the plants are starting to grow very pretty, small and strong. I have the pot in my greenhouse, around 10-12 degrees over the winter, very bright. And give them some sea salt every third time, I water it. I hope to get it multiplied in the end of summer, because I like it a lot. Usual method to preserve it, is to wash it, fill it in jars and cover it with a mix of olive oil, vinegar and salt. I enjoy it together with tomatoes, olive oil, over hot spaghetti, or in a salad, especially nice with tomatoes and onions. It´s rich in minerals and vitamines, especially vitamine c - the sailors collected it (and stored it for sure in vinegar and salt water in barrels) for to have fresh vitamines with them during the long travels on the ocean.

[@alfwaibel4773]

Update (if anybody is interested ;) - 1 year later, the plants are growing great - the pot is in the greenhouse in the winter - and I water it from time to time with a little bit of sea salt to keep the salty taste. Needs tons of light, especially in summer time.

[@ankiolebring8388]

Great in vinegar!💗

[@Myriako]

Thank you for this video ! 🌻

[@feedbacker89]

These plants! A variation of this also grows in Canada in salt marches/beachsides The acadians (french first settlers in the atlantic coast) have a really funny name for them that roughly translates to "mouse nipples" (no idea why LOL) We serve it very differently than how youve tasted it. Traditionally its boiler in water (no salt needed) and sometimes served with butter. You only eat the skin on it and it peels right off. Ive also heard this called Samphire Greens or "Sea Asparagus"

[@erikjohnson9223]

I think you are talking about Salicornia instead. It is in the spinach and pigweed family. While salty (like most beach greens), it isn't spicy like sea fennel is.

[@gabrielhicks6297]

I love these herb videos!

[@BME00]

Peep the Divine shirt!! We loveeee

[@aloneinthedark99]

Grows all over the place on the CT shoreline

[@-jank-willson]

I'm guessing, because it is so strong, that it would hold up well to cooking...? So you could probably cook a lot with this herb, in a similar way to thyme or oregano

[@pattheplanter]

Related to fennel and dill, very tasty stuff. There are a few different chemotypes. The one I found in Spain tasted very like dill but salty and succulent. Recommended by me. In the UK, best found on the RHS Plant Finder - 13 suppliers.

[@Xonica124]

I recently got to try Chinotto fruit (Citrus myrtifolia) in Southern Italy and instantly thought of this channel. If you're ever in Southern Europe I'd recommend trying it. Very bitter but strangely nice.

[@pleasedontfeedthe6235]

You have a Pink Flamingos shirt? That's it. I'm joining the Patreon.

[@WeirdExplorer]

thanks! John Waters is the best filth elder around

[@ContraryMary]

We buy that in the store in Ireland. It's really good with fish.

[@Scharrelese]

This stuff grows like crazy on the coast of brittany or maybe france in general

[@jonathandill3557]

Edgar says the line about samphire to sell the idea that they're standing at the edge of White Cliffs of Dover where he's ostensibly taken blind Gloucester to jump off. Then Gloucester face plants into the dirt and can't figure out why he's not dead. It's a darkly humorous moment in the tragedy. There's a great TV production with Sir Laurence Olivier late in his life.

[@stumccabe]

There are two unrelated species known as Samphire: Rock Samphire and Marsh Samphire. Some commenters are confusing these two species.

[@jeb-zf4un]

You do have to mist with a sea salt saline solution it loves it. You don't have to mist it if you live by the sea.

[@timothygreer188]

I think a hot quick pickle night work for this

[@quearesteestavia7495]

Love your divine T shirt

[@curlygurly2112]

interesting that pickling it made the flavor more mild. I bet you could put the pickled version, or raw even, on a nice sandwich. god I love sandwiches.

[@implausibleimpossiblehypot4006]

I second this,I really like sandwiches I wouldn’t say I live them but I like them.

[@curlygurly2112]

@@implausibleimpossiblehypot4006 an average sandwich enjoyer. respect 🤙

[@sedoniadragotta8323]

Okahijiki It's actually land seaweed and its native to Japan, China, Korea, Russia. Grows to 20 50 cm its cultivated as a vegetable.

[@70good91]

Love how jared says it's illegal to forage, and the comments are full of foragers lol.

[@Bmonkeygurl]

Have you had Virginia Pepperweed? This brought it to mind. I love finding it in a meadow.

[@rosejuliette9180]

In the north east of England we eat a ton of samphire. You can get it on pizza. I used to collect it as a kid. I still do. Didn't realize I was breaking the law. 😂

[@war5561]

It looks like saltwort. Which is worth a try, btw. Saltwort: Batis Maritima Maritima, maritime? Coastal plants? Maybe that’s why they look similar.

[@wormswithteeth]

I'd try it up it's mega high FODMAP.

[@jasonsummit1885]

Sounds similar to sea asparagus, although that tastes more like green beans and it looks more like really thin asparagus spears.

[@stockicide]

I was just looking this up the other day, because it's used as a botanical in some brands of gin.

[@SY-ok2dq]

Really? I have only heard about juniper berries. How does it affect the taste of the gin?

[@GranulatedStuff]

Slow growing usually means more flavour.

[@azael1474]

Warning to people in the comments: many plants get called Samphire ij english. This one is aromatic, related to fennel and celery. Other plants, much more common both on the wild and commercially, but with similar appearance and habitat, are related to spinach and beets and have a salty, mineraly, green flavour.

[@azael1474]

The most common in the second group is Salicornia and it's sometimes served with fish in fine dining restaurant.

[@prab-vh8mk]

Yes you can freely forage rock samphire it's only illegal to up root any plant I've been foraging and eating rock samphire for over 30 years 😊

[@sirllamalot1980]

When you crack the leafy parts and smell them, i always thought it smells very similar to cola.

[@craigchastain7016]

That sounds nice.

[@Lee-k1k9i]

it was one of our rights to gather in the uk.iys just another right striped away.cheers

[@ThePreting]

Is that a pink flamingos shirt? Cool

[@Wulv]

Good video, I need to get my hands on this for cooking

[@mandab.3180]

yumm pickled things, i love them.

[@debbiehenri345]

I used to love Samphire (used to grow around Norfolk and Essex). I do like it when it's pickled, as this makes it easier to take the flesh off the stringy core of older leaves. Didn't know it was illegal to pick it now. Shame. I did try and grow it from seed, but it hates where I am in Scotland and stubbornly refused to grow. As an alternative, I got a pot of Seablite instead.

[@pattheplanter]

You would probably like okahijiki (Japanese = land seaweed) and agretti (or barba di frate), which are Japanese and Italian varieties of _Salsola._ Both available from Chiltern Seeds.

[@williamcozart8158]

Weird herb explorer.

[@whelpyourewrong4036]

For any other English person they sell it at Tesco if you want to try it.

[@pattheplanter]

Are you thinking of samphire rather than rock samphire? Long succulent stems rather than curly divided leaves.

[@elizabethshaw734]

A little bit is also good added into stir fry and fried rice. :-)