Back in the day- and I mean way back- one had to hunt and gather their food…caveman style. As society evolved, many cultures still rummaged through their local fields in search of ingredients to provide for their next meal. Today, this ancient movement is getting a lot of traction, and we call it foraging. Although this may be considered a culinary trend, urban hot spots such as San Francisco, New York and Los Angeles have actually been bringing the farm to the table for quite some time, as well as small towns and hillsides throughout the country, motivated by its fresh and natural sustainability.
Becoming even more prominent of late, foraging has been on the radar of almost every chef and gourmand it seems, well aware these wild foods make for great cuisine. Popular television food shows- such as Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern- have been touting the tastiness of milkweed, burdock, and clover, and view these as food…not something you would need a pest repellent to be rid of. Foraging is done for various reasons, some do it simply as a hobby, or the love of food and outdoors, while others are in it for the ethical or spiritual component. It can be satisfying to collect your own food, especially these days when we aren’t sure where our food comes from, or for that matter, what we are actually eating. And with modern-day technology spending billions trying to kill off these foods- which are considered weeds– it may not be a bad idea to plan your next foraging event.
While my idea of a good outing would be chasing down truffles in Italy- yes…a touch decadent, I know- there are classes, and even apps to best serve this transitional gastronomy. For those who prefer to partake- as opposed to participate- in this process, Jason Kim opened his restaurant Forage three years ago in LA’s hipster-ville Silver Lake. A hybrid of Mediterranean, French, and California cuisine, the seriously trained Kim- who spent time in the kitchens of LA’s notable Lucques and L’Orangerie- envisioned collecting locally grown fruits and vegetables from the community, while preparing savory dishes to pair with. Maybe we’ll eventually revert back to cavemen sensibilities…however, I’d like to go on that truffle treasure hunt first. www.foragela.com
