What’s growing in your backyard? Could it be one of these 4 foods you didn’t know were grown in Oregon?
Chestnuts
Our Portland farmers have planted many French and Italian chestnuts trees. Chestnuts can be used in cakes, as flour, in beer, and simply eaten roasted.
Rhubarb
You can find traces of rhubarb in Oregon’s beers, ciders and pies. Rhubarb’s bitterness work well in these foods, and can also give them a bit of a tang. The redder the stalks are, the sweeter they taste. Be sure not to eat the leaves though, they are poisonous.
Olives
Did you know that we have an olive mill in Oregon? Olives are harvested from the fields and hard-pressed to make high quality olive oil.
Persimmons
Persimmons are brightly orange fruits most commonly associated with Japan and Asia, but they also thrive here in Oregon. Persimmon fruit needs curing before you can eat them. Place them with either bananas or apples in a sealed container for a few days to cure them.
If you’re thinking of growing a persimmons tree, expect to wait 7 to 10 years before you see fruits. Meanwhile, why don’t you start with rhubarb in your garden?
