All About Pocket Knives

Today's menu contained a delicacy of the upland south. Poke sallet! Mmmmmm

Poke and eggs, your teeth will jump out of your head just to get a bite of it!

Gator gotchur granny.

Ever wonder how they figured out the leaves have to be cooked three times before they're fit to eat? Things that make me go, huh?

Y'all are bringing up some old memories talkin' about Poke. When I was very young, I can remember traveling to my grandmother's house between Orlando and Apopka. Some where along the way, my uncle would always stop the truck and pick a mess of Poke greens. That would have been in the early 1950's. We've been in LA for almost 40 years and very few folks even mention Poke as a food, it's just poke weed and it's poison! Lots of articles about it on the web and near about every article says to boil it 3 times to remove any toxins. It grows all around our farm, think I may try some. Thanks Colonel26 for bringing it up . Treefarmer

We never picked polk greens, but when I was a kid we'd go for a ride and stop and pick paw-paws. It's my understanding that you can not cultivate paw-paws, they have to grow wild. Don't know if that's true or not

treefarmer wrote:Y'all are bringing up some old memories talkin' about Poke. When I was very young, I can remember traveling to my grandmother's house between Orlando and Apopka. Some where along the way, my uncle would always stop the truck and pick a mess of Poke greens. That would have been in the early 1950's. We've been in LA for almost 40 years and very few folks even mention Poke as a food, it's just poke weed and it's poison! Lots of articles about it on the web and near about every article says to boil it 3 times to remove any toxins. It grows all around our farm, think I may try some. Thanks Colonel26 for bringing it up . Treefarmer

In Mississippi we pick Poke when it is just a young sprout ( less than 10 in. ) and cook them with green onions.

In PA we got NO idea what you boys are talking about???????

TJ, I read an article from UK I believe (the university, not the country for you foreigners) about growing paw paws. Seems if I remember correct you can order them from the state Forrest service. The problem with digging a wild one is that they grow in colonies from a mother plant. You might dig one and it be one of the shoots instead of the main plant. I think that's the gist of what I read.

OK, that makes good sense to me, the off-shoot would die if you tried to replant

Never ate poke salad. My Mom did. She said you had to pick the greens while the plant was young and definitely before the berries turned purple.

Anything that will give a Blue Jay diarrhea has to be toxic.

Charlie

gino wrote:In PA we got NO idea what you boys are talking about???????

Gino -- They're talkin' 'bout eatin' weeds.

Yep, weeds. But they're good.

I like about any green there is (except that slimey a$$ okra) and polk is my favorite. Fried polk stalks are good too. I've heard
that the roots and berries are poison, but not sure. Other greens that we ate were wild lettuce, crows foot, lamb quarter, sour dock
and mustard greens. I know there's more that I have forgotten and that's kinda sad.

griz

griz1200 wrote:I like about any green there is (except that slimey a$$ okra) and polk is my favorite. Fried polk stalks are good too. I've heard
that the roots and berries are poison, but not sure. Other greens that we ate were wild lettuce, crows foot, lamb quarter, sour dock
and mustard greens. I know there's more that I have forgotten and that's kinda sad.

griz

I've never had boiled okra. But now fried okra is mighty fine!

I've got turnip greens coming out of my ears in the garden. I like them pretty good, but the best part about turnip greens is tat you get raw turnips! Those are one of life's great pleasures.

Anybody need some turnip greens? Come on down. I'll load ya up!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMfRG1FnsRA[/youtube]

Jerry Clower is one of the best ever. I've heard him talk about how slick and slimy it is. As one man I know would say, "you can eat it, but you'll have to cross your legs to keep it from going straight through!"

jlw257 wrote:

treefarmer wrote:Y'all are bringing up some old memories talkin' about Poke. When I was very young, I can remember traveling to my grandmother's house between Orlando and Apopka. Some where along the way, my uncle would always stop the truck and pick a mess of Poke greens. That would have been in the early 1950's. We've been in LA for almost 40 years and very few folks even mention Poke as a food, it's just poke weed and it's poison! Lots of articles about it on the web and near about every article says to boil it 3 times to remove any toxins. It grows all around our farm, think I may try some. Thanks Colonel26 for bringing it up . Treefarmer

In Mississippi we pick Poke when it is just a young sprout ( less than 10 in. ) and cook them with green onions.

....where in south miss.????....i'm from tupelo, and we have some kin folks in hattiesburg!!!............

Hey carrmillus I live in Lucedale just west of Mobile, Al.

....welcome to aapk, jlw257!!!!..... .........good to have another mississippian aboard!!!....i have 4 grandkids and 3 great-grandkids living in the hattiesburg/petal area!!...... ...........

carrmillus wrote:....welcome to aapk, jlw257!!!!..... .........good to have another mississippian aboard!!!....i have 4 grandkids and 3 great-grandkids living in the hattiesburg/petal area!!...... ...........

Hey Hattiesburg is about 70 miles and we go there a lot (Doctors ) and we are glad to be aboard AAPK

..you will enjoy it!!!.....great bunch of guys!!!...btw- was there anything in the local papers down there a couple of months ago about the eastern diamondback rattlesnake killed in leaksville(later, i heard it was a different town, but now i can't remember where), it was 9 1/2 feet long, weighed over 100 lbs. and had 21 rattles on it?????........ ...........

carrmillus wrote:..you will enjoy it!!!.....great bunch of guys!!!...btw- was there anything in the local papers down there a couple of months ago about the eastern diamondback rattlesnake killed in leaksville(later, i heard it was a different town, but now i can't remember where), it was 9 1/2 feet long, weighed over 100 lbs. and had 21 rattles on it?????........ ...........

I heard it was a big snake but think it was in Quitman but we have quite a few 6 footers down here, loss a good dog a few weeks ago due to a rattlesnake bite. You have to be very careful when picking Poke Salad.
Larry

i never heard of such a THANG.........poke salad
I DO KNOW POKE....

and salad....

but never the 2 together

but lemme get this straight .........
ya go pick WEEDS.....so toxic or bitter er whatever ...that ya gotta boil em 3 times?????
then they taste AWESOME if ya add other vegetables to them,and call it salad????

INQUIREING MINDS WANNA KNOW....HEHEH

Naaa, no other veggies, just some whipped up eggs and you fry itall together.

I don't know that the leaves are toxic, just STRONG. You pour the water off a time or two to get the taste right.

My grandmother used to make poke salad - she made us kids pick it for her. Her sister (my great-aunt Evy) was born in 1888, and lived with her. Aunt Evy always had a little bit if W.E. Garrett powdered snuff dripping down her chin....she lived to be almost 100.

We always grew okra in our garden, and mom would fry it up. It always smelled wonderful, but was too slimy for me to eat. I love seafood gumbo, too, but always pick out the okra.

I always told my mom that to me, okra tastes like those times when you have a bad sinus infection, and you swallow a big - well, never mind.

When I was a kid my mom would make a big mess of green beans and lay the okra on top of the beans to steam. At supper we kids would fight over who got the most of the okra. Just sucked it right off the stem. To this day, it's still my favorite veggie.

Paul