# poke weed question



## swamp man (Dec 25, 2005)

I have lots of poke here,and have recently started harvestig it again,but it's mostly a little too big to eat now.It seems like when I was a kid,we'd cut it,and harvest the new leads from the same plant as it grew back,but I'm not sure if I'm remembering it correctly.So,my question is..........Is the toxicity the result of mature root stock,or mature vegetative growth?Can I cut and re-harvest it without poisoning myself,as long as I don't let it get too large?
Thanks


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## rufus (May 25, 2006)

My Grandma cooks Poke through three waters but she says not to use any shoots longer than 6 inches or so.


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## Ozarka (Apr 15, 2007)

I have known folks who simply steamed and ate the sprouts. They claimed to not have died. By the time you have boiled it in three waters you have thrown away most of the nutrients, as most vitamins are water soluble...just curious. I wonder how one would proceed to find out about the toxicity? I have simmered it (once), eaten it just like spinach, I ain't dead.


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## vicker (Jul 11, 2003)

I quit the mutiple boiling method many years ago. Heck I even quit the boiling part period. I eat the leaves at all stages. If they are old big leaves I strip the spine from the leaves. I chop them up and saute the greens with garlic. I don't eat them often, but when I do I eat a large amount. No ill effects.
I also eat the berries as an anti-inflamatory for osteo artharitis. I eat 5 or 6 three of four times a day. They lose their affectivness when dried or frozen, and the best way to preserve them is to make wine of the berries.


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## Bear (Jan 25, 2005)

Back on the farm my Mom used to pick poke shoots in spring, and than just boil them. She said to pick them when they're about 6 inches or so high and that the leaves should be fairly tight together and the stem green. Once the stem starts turning purplish and the leaves unfold it's unsafe to eat. I've been eating them for 40 years this way and never had a problem.


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## harrisjnet (Jul 13, 2006)

I am with the rest of y'all on the boiling. I used to boil several times, now I boil once in the early spring harvesting. As summer makes the poke more potent, I boil twice. Not for the poioson aspect, but for the taste. I also fry my poke with several eggs. Bacon grease is the best for flavor. In fact I have some ready for frying for supper tonight. MMMMM!


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## MELOC (Sep 26, 2005)

i have so much of that stuff it ain't funny...and i don't eat it, lol. 

here is the root of one i dug out of a manure compost pile...


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## PyroDon (Jul 30, 2006)

May just be an old wives tail but I wouldnt pick it if the berries are formed . 
tend to wonder how much of the toxicity stories are from people who picked curlydoc instead of poke .
I need to be asparagus hunting  
we always soaked in in salt water boilled and ate it like spinich never did try to freeze any though has anyone else ?


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## Spinner (Jul 19, 2003)

Yes, you can freeze it. My dad likes the small tender leaves that are picked at any time, before or after berries are formed. I pick it and freeze it in zip lock baggies for him, then deliver it when I go to visit. He cooks it like spinach and changes the water at least 2 times. He said the change of water is to cook off the bitter taste. 

I've always heard that the berries are poisonous. Never heard of anyone eating them before.


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## wildhorse (Oct 22, 2006)

Acording to poison control 10 berries can kill a child.


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## bee (May 12, 2002)

most of the poison is in the root..I was always told to trim or peel any red from the bottom of the harvested shoots and my favorite size is the 6 to 10 inch still tightly spear shaped shoots.boil in 2 changes of water and the make cakes of the poke,toasted bread cubes and beaten egg, fry in bacon fat..only thing I ever did with the berries was use them for dye.
As for the "curly doc" it is a recongnized edible using the newest young leaves in salads and older leaves boiled in several changes of water as a green....


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## Tango (Aug 19, 2002)

Neighbor has been cooking poke salad for me for the past year and I love it. She's taught me how to id them and cook them. One change of water she said. She went out collecting poke, which she freezes for the year, and brought me some. We went through instructions again. I made my first poke salad and have had to stay close to bathroom for two days but I ain't dead yet  I think I just didn't boil them down long enough. Leaves were around 6 inches. She says you don't pick mature leaves but you can pick the fresh leaves year round.


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## RedEarth (Sep 21, 2005)

MMMM, poke. Tried it for the first time and loved it. Meloc, if you like greens or asparagus at all, you should try some!

Nice to see a few different ways to use it, listed in this thread. Those cakes sound good, and I'd like to try freezing some, too.


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## Spinner (Jul 19, 2003)

Dad won't eat any leaves that are more than 4-5 inches, in my area there is so much poke that there is always small leaves so I don't bother picking large ones. He likes it with egg, bacon, and onions cooked in. I've only ate it once, with dad showing me how to cook it. I didn't like it, but I don't like asparagus or green beans either. I've not picked shoots, didn't know they were good to eat.


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## ilovetodig (Apr 15, 2007)

I eat poke at all stages. The smaller leaves are of course best, but the larger ones are good, too. I usually boil it for 1 minute, pour off the liquid, then cook again. I sometimes mix it with other greens, but they are really good by themselves. I served some to my family (unknown to them) who didn't think they would like poke and they loved them. My DIL said they were the best greens she had ever eaten. I freeze them just like I do my other greens, also.


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## MoonShine (Mar 17, 2003)

Some people boil it several times and some people don't. Everybody in my family eats poke and I've been eating it since I was a baby,and no one has ever gotten any ill effects from it. Not saying that it can't happen,but I've never known anyone to get sick off poke or any other wild greens. 

Bee,sometimes I add greens to salmon cakes...canned salmon,bread crumbs,egg,and cooked greens(whichever type you like),and it's really good. I'll try your recipe,too.


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## bopeep (Apr 2, 2007)

I have eaten poke most of my life, not so much lately, I really do love them, after you cook them until they are tender put them in an iron skillet with bacon grease and then break a couple eggs and scramble them up good. GOOD!! bopeep:stirpot:


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## Wildcrofthollow (Apr 20, 2005)

I too have been eating poke all my life. I will take them up to about 10". They just taste too strong after that. I boil twice and then add some butter, S&P, and balsamic vinegar. make your tongue slap your brains out.


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## harrisjnet (Jul 13, 2006)

I have picked and used poke in all growing stages. You can take the stalk, peel it, chop it in 1 in pieces, boil then rolling in batter and fry like okra. It is great. I have canned it and frozen it. Both ways are good.


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## 3ravens (Mar 16, 2006)

To answer the original question.......  Yes, you can whack it off at ground level and it will usually resprout. I like them best at 5-6 inches or under. They get bitter when bigger. I haven't tried boiling more than once tho. :shrug:


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## swamp man (Dec 25, 2005)

3ravens said:


> To answer the original question.......  Yes, you can whack it off at ground level and it will usually resprout. I like them best at 5-6 inches or under. They get bitter when bigger. I haven't tried boiling more than once tho. :shrug:


Thanks,3ravens! That's what I needed to know.I've got some 8-footers out there that'll be good for the compost heap.


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## 3ravens (Mar 16, 2006)

Ummmmm, Nick, all I ever whacked were 1-2 footers, I don't know what those biguns will do, but give it a try and report back!


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