Fiddlehead Fern Recipe Stir-Fry with Garlic Ginger Shrimp
How to Cook a Quick Fiddlehead Fern Recipe:
This fiddlehead fern recipe is sauteed up with ginger and garlic and served over thin rice noodles. Fiddlehead ferns are edible, and easy to cook and use in many different recipes. Always blanch fiddleheads before using in any recipe, fiddleheads when cut from the wild contain trace amounts of an unknown toxin, so it is important to follow the steps of any recipe, (this recipe included!) to ensure safe handling.
Fiddleheads used in recipes can be baked, sauteed, fried, and stewed. I prefer for aesthetic reasons to keep my fiddleheads intact when using fiddlehead ferns in recipes.
“The fiddlehead season is fleeting and in my opinion gone too soon, so I enjoy the novelty of a tightly furled frond on my kitchen table and plate.“
What do Fiddleheads Taste Like:
If you are asking “What do Fiddleheads taste Like?” Fiddleheads have a flavor that is akin to green beans, asparagus and broccoli rabe, with a touch of earthiness and a moss like smell. Keep this flavor profile of the fern in mind if you chose to create some fiddlehead recipes of your own. This foraged fronded vegetable lends itself wonderfully to multiple cuisines and cooking techniques.
Gather your ingredients for this Fiddlehead Stir-fry:
This is a super quick, easy recipe to incorporate fiddlehead fern into an enticing entree with delicious results. Gathering all of the ingredients together will make throwing this stir-fry dish together a snap! Any rice noodles will do here, I prefer a medium flat variety, the sauce sticks to the noodle creating a sumptuous, stick to your belly one pan meal.
How to Use Fiddleheads in a Recipe:
How to use Fiddlehead fern recipes? Fiddleheads can be sauteed, baked, fried, or slow cooked into a soup, the kitchen techniques you can use fiddleheads in a recipe is quite extensive! This recipe uses sauteing for quick, simple, healthy dinner or lunch option. A few simple ingredients pull this recipe together fast and really let the flavor of the fiddlehead shine.
Shrimp adds protein and rice noodles are a light carbohydrate that mixes well with the other ingredients. As always I instruct to blanch the fiddleheads for several minutes to remove any unknown toxins before proceeding with the rest of the recipe.
Where to Find Fiddleheads:
Where to find fiddleheads? Emerging in the early spring, fiddleheads are one of the first signs of spring. Protruding from the ground amid last years now browned fern leaves, they have a tell tale curled appearance. Fiddleheads are the furled fronds of a young fern, and several varieties are edible. The most commonly consumed fiddleheads come from the ostrich fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris), known for their distinct flavor and texture. It’s important to properly identify ferns before consuming them, as not all varieties are safe to eat.
If you are not a forager: Fiddleheads are readily available at most farmers markets, farm stands and surprisingly Hannaford Supermarkets, if you are in the North East.
Fiddlehead Fern Recipe Stir-Fry with Garlic Ginger Shrimp
Equipment
- 1 Frying Pan
Ingredients
Blanch Fiddleheads
- 1 Bowl of ice water several 7-10 ice cubes in large bowl with about 2 cups of water poured over
- 1/2 Pound Fresh Fiddlehead Ferns
Fiddlehead Shrimp Stir-Fry
- 10 Medium Shrimp
- 2 cloves Garlic
- 1 tsp Ginger
- 1 tsp soy sauce or coconut amino
- 1 tbsp Vegetable or Olive Oil
- 1 tbsp Water
- 4 oz Rice Noodles, or half a pack of a normal sized rice noodles any size will do, I prefer medium, but feel free to use what you have on hand
- 1 tsp Toasted Sesame Oil
- Sesame Seeds garnish
- Red Pepper Flakes garnish
Instructions
Blanching Fiddleheads
- Firstly, blanch your fiddleheads to remove any unknown toxins. To do this fill a sauce pan with 3 cups of water and bring to a boil. Boil 5 minutes and strain. Immediately dump fiddleheads into a bowl of ice water. this will not only remove the toxin, but the ice bath will shock the fiddleheads into remaining a vibrant, green color.
Fiddlehead Shrimp Stir-Fry
- Peel and finely mince garlic and ginger, set aside
- Heat frying pan to medium heat and add tablespoon of oil.
- Add ginger and garlic to hot pan, I prefer to scrap my ginger and garlic into the pan using the same knife I used to chop the ingredients, I find that helps cut down on dishes that need to be cleaned.
- Next add the shrimp to the frying pan and let sizzle up until the shrimp turn a light pink color.
- While shrimp cook, cook noodles in a separate small saucepan, until just al dente.
- Add 1 tablespoon water, soy sauce or aminos whichever you are using, and stir. Cook for 3 more minutes, until water is cooked down.
- Add Fiddleheads and lightly toss to incorporate.
- Strain the rice noodles and add to the frying pan along with the toasted sesame oil. Mix into the stir-fry and place equal portions into 2 separate plates. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and red pepper flakes and enjoy!
Nutrition
looks amazing and attractive. heading to grocery to get the ingredients. excited to try this one soon. 🙂
I’ve heard that fiddlehead ferns are really good, but I have yet to find any in my area. Do you know if they’re available at specialty stores?
I absolutely love Fiddlehead Ferns! This is an amazing recipe and the flavors are just brilliant. I am so happy to have found it, thank you so much!
This was my first time making fiddlehead fern and it was excellent! Such a fun new ingredient!