KYI | Nettle

By Organic Fusion Kitchen

Nettle, excellent natural source of iron

Stinging nettle is a very nutritious, versatile and healthy, as well as resilient and adaptive plant. In Finland the quality of nettle is excellent, but still due to it being widely available it is most definitely underrated as both a health remedy and cooking ingredient.

"The world is a nettle; disturb it, it stings. Grasp it firmly, it stings not."

Robert Bulwer-Lytton

OFK Chefs Corner Tip

Fresh nettle can be used in the same way as spinach, for example in soups, stews and flatbreads. It is good to allow the nettle to brew in hot water before use, but make sure to use up the nettle infused water in your cooking.

Nettle is obviously also an excellent choice for tea, when allowing 1 teaspoon to fuse for 12-24 hours it will give you 1-2 litres of super nutritious nettle tea or broth for cooking.

Did you know this about nettle?

Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) can be found in Europe, Africa, Asia, and North America. Especially nettle root and seeds, are also considered "nature's viagra".

Nettle root and leaves have extensive medicinal properties. Stinging nettles are best collected during spring time before flowering, preferably when the shoots are 5-10 cm long.

Natural nettle oil or extract is extremely potent and can be applied topically to treat skin conditions. The burning sensation of nettle disappears when heated and dried.

Nettles can be used to for making paper and fabrics. Before cotton became the fabric of choice, the tough fibres of the nettle stem were realied upon widely in fabric weaving.

Active Ingredients & Health Benefits

Stinging nettle root and leaves contain plenty of vitamins (A, C, K and B vitamins). The leaves are rich in terpenoids, carotenoids, fatty acids, essential amino acids, chlorophyll, and minerals. Furthermore nettle contains important polyphenols, which have potent antioxidant and detoxing properties.

Folklore & Legend

In Norse myth, nettles are associated with the god of thunder Thor, as well as Loki, whose magical fishing net is made of nettle. In Celtic lore, thick stands of nettles indicate that fairies are close, and the sting of the nettle itself protects against fairy mischief, black magic, and other forms of sorcery.

Things To Be Mindful Of

Excessive use of nettle can result in side effects including mild stomach upset and diarrhea, sweating, fluid retention, sweating. When handling nettle it is important to be careful, as stinging nettle can cause an allergic rash.

The role of nettle in "The Wild Swans" fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen

This legendary saga, of two brothers who are turned into swans by their evil stepmother. A kind fairy instructs the sister of the brothers to gather nettle in the graveyard by night, spin their fibre into a green yarn, and then knit the yarn into a coat for each swan to break the spell by the evil stepmother (all of which must be done without speaking a word to her brothers or they will die).

The nettles sting and blister her hands, but she keeps working, spinning and knitting, until the nettle coats are almost done. She however runs out of time to finish the sleeve on one of the two coats. As she places the coats on her swan-brothers they magically transform back into young men, except for the younger one, with the incomplete coat, who is left with a wing in the place of one arm.

This is a great example of how strong of an influence a plant can have on culture and reminds us that courage can be as painful as knitting coats from nettles, and that good deeds are never in vain and can even break the most challenging of spells. Love is the highest vibration and strongest magic of them all.