Sorrel: sour leaves from the meadow – in moderation
Sorrel grows in sunny meadows and tastes pleasantly sour, almost like lemon. A few leaves make soup, salad and simple supplies fresher. The sourness comes from oxalic acid – so you only eat it in small amounts, and some people should avoid it completely. Young leaves can be confused with the poisonous lords-and-ladies. Here you learn the leaf shape, the stem sheath and the site that together give sorrel away.
- Collecting 10–15 minutes; a handful is enough
Eenvoudig uitgelegd
Sorrel grows in meadows and tastes sour like a lemon. Children sometimes chew a leaf while playing. A few leaves make soup or salad fresh.
The sour acid is called oxalic acid. A little of it does no harm, but a lot of it is not good for the body. So you only eat a few leaves, not a whole bowl.
You recognise sorrel by the leaves that look like an arrowhead with two lobes pointing down, and by a thin little skin on the stem. It grows in the sun. Similar leaves in the shady woods often belong to the poisonous lords-and-ladies – you leave those.
Hoe het werkt
Sorrel stores oxalic acid and its salts in its leaves. They give the sour taste and protect the plant from being eaten. In the body oxalic acid can bind calcium, forming poorly soluble crystals. In small amounts that is insignificant for healthy people; in large amounts it can irritate mouth and stomach and favour kidney stones in sensitive people.
That is why two simple tricks help: cooking and pouring away the first cooking water, because part of the soluble oxalic acid passes into the water. And eating sorrel with dairy products, because the calcium binds the acid already in the food.
The papery sheath on the stem is called an ochrea. It is a mark of the knotweed family, which also includes rhubarb – which also contains a lot of oxalic acid, by the way.
Waar het om gaat
Site, leaf and sheath must fit together. Sorrel grows in the sun among grasses. The leaf lobes point down towards the stalk. On the stem a thin, translucent cuff sits above each leaf.
Young leaves before flowering are more tender and milder. A handful per meal is completely enough to give freshness to a soup, a salad or herb quark.
Choose clean meadows. Meadows that are heavily fertilised, sprayed or used as dog runs are not good places to collect. Ask the owner before you collect in a meadow.
Veiligheid: hier moet je op letten
Lords-and-ladies is the most dangerous look-alike. It grows in moist, shady deciduous woods, has veins like a net and often dark spots. Its leaves contain sharp substances that strongly irritate mouth and throat. If a leaf burns in the mouth, spit it out at once and rinse your mouth.
People with kidney stones, kidney disease or gout and small children are better off not eating sorrel. For everyone else: as seasoning in moderation, not daily in large amounts.
With strong symptoms after eating call the poison line, and with breathing problems or swelling in the throat the emergency number 112 or 144.
Stap voor stap
Where sorrel grows
Sorrel grows in sunny meadows and pastures, along paths and on banks, often among grasses. In spring you first see rosettes of leaves on the ground; from May reddish flower stems shoot up to about knee height. Collect in meadows that are not heavily fertilised, sprayed or visited by dogs, and ask the owner.
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Where sorrel grows
Sorrel grows in sunny meadows and pastures, along paths and on banks, often among grasses. In spring you first see rosettes of leaves on the ground; from May reddish flower stems shoot up to about knee height. Collect in meadows that are not heavily fertilised, sprayed or visited by dogs, and ask the owner.
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Arrow-shaped leaves
The leaf is elongated, smooth and about as long as a hand. At its lower end it has two pointed lobes pointing downwards, towards the stalk – like the barbs of an arrow. The lower leaves have long stalks; the upper ones on the stem sit almost directly on it and clasp it.
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The papery stem sheath
Look at the place where a leaf sits on the stem. With sorrel a thin, translucent, often brownish skin wraps the stem there like a small cuff. This sheath is typical of the knotweed family to which sorrel belongs.
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Rule out lords-and-ladies
Lords-and-ladies grows in the shade of moist deciduous woods, not in the sunny meadow. Its arrow-shaped leaves stand on long stalks straight out of the ground, the veins form a net, some leaves have dark spots, and there is no papery sheath. It is poisonous, and even a small bite burns fiercely.
If it burns in the mouth: spit it out at once, rinse your mouth.
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Taste as confirmation
Only when site, leaf shape and sheath fit may you chew a small piece: sorrel tastes clearly sour and fresh, not hot or burning. If it burns, it is not sorrel – spit it out. The taste test always comes last.
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Young leaves, small amounts
Pick young leaves before flowering; they are more tender and less sour. Only take a handful for one meal. That is enough for a sour taste and keeps the oxalic acid within healthy limits.
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Bereiden
Wash thoroughly. Raw, sorrel tastes good finely cut in salad, herb quark or on bread. For soup you can briefly boil the leaves and pour away the first cooking water, which lowers the oxalic acid. Eating it together with dairy helps because calcium binds the acid.
Veelgemaakte fouten
- Grote hoeveelheden eten
- Collecting in shady woods where lords-and-ladies grows
- Only looking at the arrow shape
- Collecting on fertilised, sprayed or dog meadows
- Giving children a lot of it
Kort overzicht
Materiaal
Mes (vast of met vergrendeling)
Of een schaar
Snijd van je lichaam af.
Regels over het meedragen van messen verschillen per regio – controleer de plaatselijke regels.
Luchtige verzamelzak of mand
Verzamel elke plantensoort apart, zodat er niets onbekends tussenkomt
Geen plastic zakken voor langere tijd – groen gaat erin zweten en bederft
Voedselveilige waterzak
For washing
Alleen voor drinkwater gebruiken, nooit voor chemicaliën of brandstof.
Metalen pan (roestvrij staal, aluminium, titanium)
For soup – pouring away the cooking water lowers the oxalic acid
Heet – gevaar voor brandwonden door heet water of stoom.
Geschikt voor
- April into autumn, young leaves
- A fresh sour taste for soup and salad
- Small amounts as seasoning
Niet geschikt voor
- Large amounts or eating it daily
- Small children, people with kidney stones, kidney disease or gout
- Shady deciduous woods where lords-and-ladies grows
Voorwaarden
- Knowing lords-and-ladies
- Sunny, unfertilised meadows with permission
- No kidney stones, kidney disease or gout
Veiligheid
- Sorrel contains oxalic acid. In small amounts that is no problem for healthy people; in large amounts it can irritate mouth and stomach and bind calcium. Eat it as seasoning, not as a main dish. People with kidney stones, kidney disease or gout and small children are better off avoiding it.
- Plants close to the ground can be contaminated with soil, droppings and fox tapeworm eggs. Wash thoroughly or cook, and wash your hands afterwards.
- Do not collect by roads, on sprayed fields, dog meadows or in nature reserves. Only take a handful for yourself, never strip whole stands, and ask first in other people's gardens.
Hoe het werkt
Sorrel gives itself away by three things at once: its leaves are arrow-shaped with two pointed lobes that point downwards, there is a thin papery sheath on the stem above each leaf base, and it grows in sunny meadows. The sour taste confirms this at the end – and the acid is also the reason why you only eat a little of it.
Voordelen
- A fresh sour taste without lemons
- Common in meadows
- Long season
- A few leaves are enough
Nadelen
- Oxaalzuur beperkt de hoeveelheid
- Niet geschikt voor iedereen
- A poisonous look-alike in the woods
- Bijna geen calorieën
Achtergrondkennis
Vakinhoudelijke achtergrond
Sorrel used to be a soup herb in many parts of Europe, and French cooking still knows sorrel soup today. Its German name comes from its sour taste.
Survival manuals such as the US manual FM 3-05.70 point out that plants high in oxalic acid can irritate mouth and throat and should only be eaten in moderation. That applies to sorrel too: it is a seasoning, not a filler.
Varianten
- Sorrel soup
- Blanch a handful of leaves briefly, drain and add to a potato or bread soup. The sourness makes a simple soup fresh.
- Sheep's sorrel
- On poor, sandy soils the smaller sheep's sorrel grows, with narrow leaves whose lobes stick out sideways. It tastes similar and is likewise only eaten in small amounts.
Veelgemaakte fouten
- Grote hoeveelheden eten
- Collecting in shady woods where lords-and-ladies grows
- Only looking at the arrow shape
- Collecting on fertilised, sprayed or dog meadows
- Giving children a lot of it
Grenzen en risico's
- Geen volledige determinatiesleutel
- Geldt voor Midden-Europa
- Geen beloftes over genezing
- No exact amounts – when in doubt, less
Materiaalalternatieven
Afgeleid van materiaaleigenschappen: een vervanger moet alle relevante eigenschappen hebben. Let op de opmerkingen bij de vervanger.
- Luchtige verzamelzak of mand
- Metalen pan (roestvrij staal, aluminium, titanium) (Heet – gevaar voor brandwonden door heet water of stoom.), Enkelwandige roestvrijstalen fles (Verhit alleen enkelwandige flessen zonder verf of plastic; haal de dop eraf voordat je verhit.), Dubbelwandige geïsoleerde fles (Nooit rechtstreeks verhitten.), PET-fles (helder, max. 2 liter) (Niet verhitten en niet in een vuur zetten.), Voedselveilige waterjerrycan (Gebruik alleen bakken en jerrycans die nooit chemicaliën of brandstof hebben bevat.), Luchtdichte, voedselveilige voorraadbus (Vul alleen als de bak schoon en helemaal droog is. Gebruik nooit bakken waar eerder chemicaliën in zaten.), Opvouwbare jerrycan of waterzak (Beschermen tegen scherpe voorwerpen.), Maatbeker, Voedselveilige waterzak (Alleen voor drinkwater gebruiken, nooit voor chemicaliën of brandstof.), Fermentatiepot of gistpot (Gebruik alleen voedselveilige bakken van glas, voedselveilig geglazuurd aardewerk of voedselveilig plastic – geen metalen bakken voor zuur eten.), Hersluitbare voedselzakjes (Gebruik alleen zakjes die bedoeld zijn voor voedsel; gebruik ze niet met kokend water, tenzij de fabrikant dat uitdrukkelijk toestaat.), Stevig verzamelbakje (doos, mand of beker) (Elke soort in een eigen bakje – meng er nooit iets onbekends bij)
- Voedselveilige waterzak
- Enkelwandige roestvrijstalen fles (Verhit alleen enkelwandige flessen zonder verf of plastic; haal de dop eraf voordat je verhit.), Dubbelwandige geïsoleerde fles (Nooit rechtstreeks verhitten.), PET-fles (helder, max. 2 liter) (Niet verhitten en niet in een vuur zetten.), Voedselveilige waterjerrycan (Gebruik alleen bakken en jerrycans die nooit chemicaliën of brandstof hebben bevat.), Luchtdichte, voedselveilige voorraadbus (Vul alleen als de bak schoon en helemaal droog is. Gebruik nooit bakken waar eerder chemicaliën in zaten.), Opvouwbare jerrycan of waterzak (Beschermen tegen scherpe voorwerpen.), Fermentatiepot of gistpot (Gebruik alleen voedselveilige bakken van glas, voedselveilig geglazuurd aardewerk of voedselveilig plastic – geen metalen bakken voor zuur eten.), Hersluitbare voedselzakjes (Gebruik alleen zakjes die bedoeld zijn voor voedsel; gebruik ze niet met kokend water, tenzij de fabrikant dat uitdrukkelijk toestaat.)
- Metalen pan (roestvrij staal, aluminium, titanium)
- Enkelwandige roestvrijstalen fles (Verhit alleen enkelwandige flessen zonder verf of plastic; haal de dop eraf voordat je verhit.)
Resultaten komen uitsluitend uit gestructureerde items. Er worden geen geïmproviseerde instructies gegenereerd.
Bronnen (5)
- Headquarters, Department of the Army (USA) (2002): FM 3-05.70 Survival · Plants high in oxalic acid irritate mouth and throat; eat only in moderation; only eat reliably identified wild plants
- Bundesinstitut für Risikobewertung (BfR) (2017): Risiko Pflanze – Einschätzung und Hinweise · Lords-and-ladies as a poisonous plant in woods and gardens
- Bundesinstitut für Risikobewertung (BfR): Giftpflanzen: Wie kann man sich schützen und was ist bei einer Vergiftung zu tun? (Fragen und Antworten) · Confusion of edible with poisonous wild plants; what to do in case of poisoning
- Robert Koch-Institut: RKI-Ratgeber Echinokokkose · Overdracht van de vossenlintworm via ingeslikte eitjes; wassen, verhitten, handen wassen
- Gesundheitsportal Österreich (gesundheit.gv.at), Bundesministerium für Soziales, Gesundheit, Pflege und Konsumentenschutz: Vergiftungsinformationszentrale (VIZ) · Gifinformatielijn in Oostenrijk (VIZ), de klok rond bereikbaar; bij acuut gevaar 112 of 144