Pine Tip Rub Pork Belly 松尖豬腩肉

Pine tip is a very good seasoning; it has the mix of citrus and gin flavour that goes well with pork and fish. Prior to the picking, you will want to do a little taste test around different trees, looking for one that produces the great citrus flavour. I had some great pine tips before, but I also had some were equally bad. Just try a few different trees to do a comparison. My son and I enjoy nippling the trees while taking a walk. He always knows the pine tips is a source of vitamin C and he is so proud of himself for eating them. Personally, I like the tips are still with the brown casings, just because they look the freshest to me. But it is totally fine if they are without the case too. 

Pine tips in their casing.

INGREDIENTS:

20 Pine Tips

1 pc Pork Belly, cut into chunks

4 tablespoons Soy Sauce

1/3 teaspoon Salt

2 tablespoons Sugar

1 teaspoon White Pepper Powder

3 tablespoons Vegetable Oil

Honey (for serving)

DIRECTION:

1. Remove the brown casings from the pine tips. Chop the pine tips until fine.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except the oil. Rub the pork bell until it is well coated with the seasoning; marinade it for 30 minutes.

3. Heat up the oil in a skillet. Place the pork belly on top; fry it until golden brown over medium heat; about 10 minutes.

4. Turn the pork over, and fry the other side for another 10 minutes. Transfer the pork on a serving plate. Brush a think layer of honey on top before serve.

Cider Tea

Cider contains vitamin C, good for boosting immune system or treating a cold, my husband and I always like to grab a handful of it and make a pot of cider tea beside a campfire whenever we go on a hike in winter.

INGREDIENTS:

Cider Leaves, fresh

Honey (optional)

DIRECTION:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Put the cider in a tea cup. When the water comes to a rolling boil pour it over the cider. Let it steep for 10 minutes before enjoying it.

Pine Tip Mayonnaise Dip

They are called pine tips, but they actually grow from fir trees instead of pine.  Pine tip is one of the delicious wild edibles my son enjoys eating.  Every spring when the bright green pine firs start to emerge from their brown and papery skins, we are excited.  Before collecting pine tips, you should give it a taste test to see if you like the flavour.  While many people like that citrus and piney flavour, some others find it too strong or bitter.  And the taste of pine tips can be very different from tree to tree.  Try to look for the tips that are still half wrapped inside the brownish case.

This recipe is dead simple that I actually don't even think it is necessary to write an article.  However, it is a tasty recipe and everyone likes tasty food.  So, I believe there is a need to share this delicious gift from Mother Nature.

We eat this pine tip mayonnaise as a dip with vegetable sticks or French fries, but it is also tasty to serve as a spread on ham sandwich. 

INGREDIENTS:

1 Cup Mayonnaise (I used full fat)

12-15 Pine Tips

1 tablespoon Sugar

1/8 teaspoon Salt

DIRECTION:

1. Soak the pine tips in water to remove the papery case; drain well.  Finely chop the pine tips.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients together and mix thoroughly.  It can be serve as a dip or sandwich spread.

Pine Tip Vinegar | 嫩松葉尖浸醋

Spring is the time to pick the young green pine tips.  They are the sprouts of the new branches.  Try to take one and nibble.  You will find it tastes like citrus.

Our family likes to add the pine tips directly into salad green, or chop them up to mix it with mayonnaise.  But I use pine tip vinegar the most.  I use it for salad dressing, marinade, or even for adding to my Chinese noodles snack.

Just like any vinegar, this vinegar seems to last forever! Each year I make two large bottles and they still taste great until the end of the year when I use up the last drop of them.  Though, the longer the tips sit in the vinegar, the browner the vinegar will become.  So don't be alarmed.  I hope you enjoy this spring flavour.

INGREDIENTS:

Young Pine Tips, about 20-30 pcs

1-2 cups White Wine Vinegar

DIRECTION:

1. Rinse the fresh pine tips with cold water; drain well.

2. In a large mason jar, add the pine tips.  Pour vinegar until the pine tips are completely submerged.  Store it in the pantry for at least a month before using it.

Spruce Pine tips and recipes ｜ 嫩松葉食譜

Around early May until mid June, the young shoots of the pine and spruce start to come out from their brownish papery shields.  These bright green young shoots are edible, tender, lemony-pine like, and rich in Vitamin C.   

My family and I were walking in the woods, looking for some other edible plants when we spotted a huge spruce tree that filled with these yummy tips.  Many tips had just emerged, while many others were still waiting for their time.

Young spruce tips are always best collected when they just come out from their papery casings.  After the tips become bigger and the colour turns deeper green, they lose the delicate citrus flavour and I will not collect them anymore.  After a few taste-tests to make sure we found a good tree, we started to collect the tips.

These tips are actually the young shoots of the tree and they will turn into branches and needles once mature.  So we paid careful attention not to accidentally over harvest the tips from the same branch or from the same area.

My son said he had to give each spruce tip a "taste test".


My son wasn't in the mood to stop and watch his mommy pick the spruce tips, which seemed to take forever.  He wanted to keep walking.  He stared at me while I chewed my second spruce tip.

"Do you want to try some? It's delicious." I handed him a tip.  He shook his head.  Frankly speaking, my son often hesitates to try wild edible plants although we forage all the time.  Perhaps many wild plants are rather pungent or bitter for his taste.  My husband and I just have to try different ways to teach him to enjoy the gift from the wild.

"Are you sure? It taste like spring." I nibbled again on the tip and handed it to my son.  "What does spring taste like?" He said curiously.  "Kind of like lemon or some type of citrus, but with the taste of pine," I answered.

He picked a green tip from the tree and took a teeny-tiny bite.  "Mmm, it's so yummy!" He smiled and slowly savoured the rest of the tip.  "Can I have another one?" he asked.  Since I wasn't sure how many pine tips a kid should have per day, I told him he could only have one or two.  Later, I saw him sneaking a few more into his mouth on the other side of the tree.  Well, it's really hard to stop him when there were thousands of tips dangling on the branches in front him.  So, we moved on.






Last week when we visited my in-laws, we found their spruce tree was also filled with the young tips.  My son immediately picked one and introduced it to his grandma and grandpa.

"It's packed with Vitamin C.  You will just need to eat two pine tips to fill your need every day!" my son said, announcing his new find.  Although my in-laws are not wild-edible enthusiasts, they nibbled a little.  "Oh yeah, it does taste a little like citrus, " Grandpa said.

"Just eat two, okay?" my boy said, with a very proud smile on his face.

Thanks for stopping by.  I hope you will enjoy these recipes.





Spruce Tip Sea Salt



INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup Spruce Tips
1.5 cups Sea Salt


DIRECTION:
1. Rinse the spruce tips with cold water; pat dry.

2. Finely chop the pine tips with a knife.

3. Mix the sea salt with the pine tips and stir until combined.  Loosely cover it with plastic wrap and allow it to completely air-dry; stirring it once every day to even out the drying.  Store it in an air-tight container and it can be kept up to three months.

Pine salt is good to be used on white fish, frittata, or roasted root vegetables.




Spruce Tip Mayonnaise 



INGREDIENTS:
1 cup Japanese Mayonnaise
10 Pine Tips
2 tablespoons Lemon Juice
1 tablespoon Honey



DIRECTION:

1. Rinse the pine tips in cold water; pat dry.

2. Finely chop the pine tips.  Mix it with the rest of the ingredients.  Chill it before using it.  Can be stored in refrigerator for two days.

Spruce tip mayonnaise is delicious as vegetable dip, or served with white fish.

Spruce Tip Sugar

INGREDIENTS:

1/3 cup Spruce Tips

1.5 cup Sugar

DIRECTION:

1. Rinse the spruce tips with cold water; pat dry,

2. Finely chop the spruce tips.  Mix it with the sugar.  Cover the mixture loosely with plastic wrap.  Allow it to completely air-dry; stirring it once everyday.  Store it in an air-tight container and it can be kept up for three months.

Spruce tip sugar is perfect as an additional flavour for cookies and drinks.