Nasturtium, Purslane & Mallow Infused Vinegar

Written By Melissa Guzowski

This recipe is as easy as it gets. It is a simple vinegar infusion and a great way to use up some of your highly nutritious, edible but invasive garden weeds! I am very passionate about having the ability and knowledge to recognize edible and medicinal plants, and not to just buy what the grocery store tells me I can eat. I am passionate about growing my own food, foraging and wildcrafting medicinal plants and SO much of what we weed out of our gardens is not only edible, but it is probably higher in nutrients than the vegetables you’re pulling them out to be able to grow. So, let’s eat our weeds!

The first step is knowing your weeds, which is a term well stop using here. Knowing the plants native to your area and invasive to your area will help you navigate how to properly weed your garden. If you do not know these plants, learn about them first. Be able to correctly identify them. Never ever use a plant unless you are 100% certain of its identification. If you don’t forage or know how to find these plants, they are probably already growing in your garden. Check there. Purslane is an important plant to be able to identify as it had a poisonous look-alike: Spurge. Mallow is so common you can’t walk down the street without spotting it, and yet most people don’t realize what a value the mucilaginous medicine provides for your body. Nasturtium is in my opinion one of the most under utilized garden companions and has an incredible horseradish/mustard/peppery kick. These plants are high in nutrients as early spring bloomers usually are, AND the combination of these flavors leaves you with a medicinal, peppery, lemony red vinegar that is incredible in dressings, marinades, dipping sauces and just about anything else you use vinegar to flavor or cook. Vinegar is not only delicious, but it is the ideal substance to infuse because it leaches out the nutrients from plants very efficiently.

The best part of this recipe: there are no rules. The nasturtium flowers give your vinegar the fun color and a great taste, Feel free to use a combination of nasturtium flowers and leaves, purslane stems and leaves and mallow stems, flowers and leaves. You can make it with as much or as little as you have. Wash your plant material thoroughly to remove and bugs or dirt. Let moisture dry completely (the plant material does not need to be ‘dried’ like the way we preserve herbs, but cannot be put into the vinegar with excess water dripping from it as it will make the vinegar expire quicker). Fill a jar with plant materials to the top, pour distilled white vinegar into the jar until all of the plant material is completely covered. Seal jar (put a layer of parchment paper between lid and jar before screwing tight to avoid the vinegar corroding the metal of your lid). Label and store for 4-6 weeks. Strain out the plant material thoroughly (twice through at least) and voila! Homemade infused nutritious vinegar, using plants you would have probably thrown in the garbage or left to die. Use. Your. Resources!