As mentioned in my last post, I have harvested some Stinging Nettle Seeds and am so excited to begin experimenting with them. They have intrigued me for a couple of years now, and I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to begin to get to know them!
The Nettle plant has come to mean so many things to me:
- spring tonic (with tender new leaves)
- soups and teas (with tender spring leaves)
- my favorite soap and shampoo bar (with nettle leaves)
- handmade cordage, or string (with inner fibers of the nettle stalks)
- beautifully spun yarns (with inner fibers of the nettle stalks)
- natural dye material (the leaves produce a gorgeous gray/green tone)
- this incredibly nourishing wildcrafted salt blend (with nettle seeds)
I have eaten it, drunk it, worn it, created with it and more.
I feel an Ode to Stinging Nettle coming on, but that will have to wait till another day. For now, let’s take a moment for the seeds.
On Nettle Seeds
Like the leaves, Nettle seeds are edible. They are known to be beneficial for the adrenals. They’re also supportive for depression, anxiety and mental fatigue. Many people talk about the immediate burst of energy they get after eating them. Not the jittery energy from like a Red Bull or triple shot of espresso, but a deeper humming energy. A little life support, you could say. A boost in the darker, colder months.
Nettle seeds are an adaptogen and also highly anti-inflammatory. They’re often used to treat the kidneys and may even slow down renal failure. Also very supportive for the liver, the colon or any internal inflammation. In short, they are full of nutrients that boost your immune system and promote well-being on many levels.
They’re also local and abundant in my environment. And they’re free. Free in the sense that they don’t cost any money, just a gift from the earth, and free in the sense that they are utterly wild and bountiful.
Nettle seeds are great to use as preventive medicine. Great to use when you anticipate some extra stress coming. But they can also help if you’re already burnt out.
Just use pay attention to the amount you use. It only takes a little. If over-consumed, Nettle seeds can have the opposite effect. Instead of making you grounded and content, they can make you agitated and rattled. So begin with 1-2 ml (1/4-1/2 tsp) per day and see how your body feels.
How do they taste, you ask? Good! Like a milder version of the spring leaves. More salty than sweet. With a crunchy texture. Think poppy seeds or chia seeds but with more flavor and some feel good neurotransmitters. Some people suggest adding them to porridge or smoothies, but I honestly can’t imagine that. For me, they are destined for more savory applications. Crackers perhaps. Or condiments for sprinkling.
Which is why I decided to make a Nettle Seed Salt – a finishing salt with tons of benefits. A pinch added to salad dressings, or on top of my eggs at breakfast. Sprinkled over tomato soup. Or simply sprinkled on a piece of buttered sourdough bread. It’s addictive. Not only does is it an experience for my taste buds, but the immediate sense of vitality I feel is almost too good to be true. Mixing them into salt also ensures that I never consume too many Nettle seeds, because who wants to eat over salted food?
And though I prefer this salt used in savory dishes, I have to say – a little nettle seed salt is really, really amazing sprinkled onto dark chocolate. It’s a sweet-salty, crunchy, unami flavor combined with the bitterness of dark chocolate. I can highly recommend the combo.
Harvesting Nettle Seeds
I went out to our nearby forest, which is protected and still wild. Nettles are abundant there in certain areas. At this time of the year (mid-August), the Nettle plants are around a meter tall and are heavy with seed pods. I cut off the top third of the plant.
Something I did not know on my first harvest: Nettle has a female plant and a male plant. For seeds, you need the female plant, as their pods are full of seeds. The pods on the male plants contain pollen residues, not seeds. So if you’re after the seeds, go for the female plants! The pollen won’t harm you, but they don’t contain all of the nourishing qualities that the seeds do.
You want to harvest the seeds AFTER flowering but BEFORE they’ve turned brown. Green and plump is best.
Female Nettle ripe with seeds 
Male Nettle plant ripe with pollen
Also, some people claim that the mature Nettle plants do not sting as they do in the spring. Not true for me! Even with gloves on, I was being a bit careless and got stung so badly. Thankfully there was Plantain (Plantago Major) on the ground below, so I grabbed a few leaves, chewed them up and rubbed them on the sting. Immediate relief. Some people know how to handle Nettles, even in their spring potency, barehanded without getting stung. They say it requires an understanding of the plant, and a confidence in oneself. I apparently have not evolved to that level yet, but maybe one day I will get there!
With a small basket full of seed-heavy nettle tops, I came home and hung the Nettle plants upside down to dry in a cool room out of direct sunlight. In my climate, it only took a couple of days for the seeds and leaves to become completely dry.
Then it was time to process them, which, I’ll be honest, is tedious work. Get yourself a chair and settle in. This sort of tedious, repetitive work is hard for me to get into, but once I’m into it, time just flies. My mind is engaged, challenged, but since my hands are busy, my mind is also free to roam and reflect. It’s good work.
I decided to pass my seeds through a sieve, much like I do when processing wild Plantain seeds, to make sure I was left with just the potent green seeds. It may not look like much, especially considering how much of the plant you are not using, but remember that Nettle Seeds are to be used sparingly. Also, you can use both the leaves and stalks in a multitude of ways so nothing goes to waste.
Now you’re ready to make a wild supercharged salt.
Nettle Seed Salts
This can be very simple – just nettle seeds and salt – if you want. Or add in other things. Plantain seeds come to mind, since I recently harvested and processed those as well. Or ground up seaweeds, because I think they nicely complement the salty flavor of nettle seeds. Wild foraged mushrooms would also be nice for more flavors of the forest! Or any sort of robust, immune-supportive garden herbs.
For all of recipes:
- Use good quality salt. You can use fine grain salt, or you can use chunky salt and process it with the other ingredients. You may also need to adjust the amount according to your taste. The salt I used was medium grain, so 120 ml (1/2 cup) weighed around 150 grams. If you’re using very chunky salt OR fine-grained table salt, then your quantities will be different. Adjust as needed.
- Always make sure that your ingredients are completely dry. Moisture in the salt can easily make the blend go rancid.
- Process your ingredients in a coffee grinder OR with a mortar and pestle. A coffee grinder will probably turn it all into a finer, more powdery texture, while the mortar and pestle is more flexible, allowing you to control the texture. It depends on what consistency you’re after.
- Store your salt blend in a glass jar, or maybe a glass shaker jar. Just make sure it has a top on it. Before use, give the jar a good shake to ensure all ingredients are mixed well.
Ready to jump in? Here are some ideas! Try these blends, or your own…
Simple Nettle Seed Salt: 120 ml (1/2 cup) good quality salt + 3 Tbsp wildharvested nettle seeds
Wild Mushroom and Nettle Seed Salt: 120 ml (1/2 cup) good quality salt + 3 Tbsp wildharvested nettle seeds + 60 ml (1/4 cup) wild mushrooms – e.g. morels, chanterelle, karl johan, truffles, oyster mushrooms, etc. – dried and ground or pounded into the salt and seeds
Mega Skogen Salt: 120 ml (1/2 cup) good quality salt + 3 Tbsp wildharvested nettle seeds + 60 ml (1/4 cup) wild mushrooms – e.g. morels, chanterelle, karl johan, truffles, oyster mushrooms, etc. + 25 ml dried wildharvested lingonberries + 15 ml dried wildharvested rosehips
Herbal Nettle Seed Salt: 120 ml (1/2 cup) good quality salt + 3 Tbsp wildharvested nettle seeds + 60 ml (1/4 cup) dried herbs (thyme, sage, rosemary, oregano, garlic, dill, onion, etc.)
Nettle and Seaweed Salt: 120 ml (1/2 cup) good quality salt + 3 Tbsp wildharvested nettle seeds + 60 ml (1/4 cup) dried seaweed, e.g. dulse, kelp, wakame, kombu, etc.
Gomasio with Nettle Seed and Seaweed (adapted from Susan Belsinger): 120 ml (1/2 cup) good quality salt + 120 ml (1/2 cup) toasted seasame seeds + 3 Tbsp wildharvested nettle seeds + 50 ml (just shy of 1/4 cup) dried sea vegetables (dulse, kelp, wakame, kombu, etc.)
What else can you do with dried Nettle Seeds?
- Make a tincture. Use 1 part nettle seed to 5 parts vodka (80 proof) by volume. Crush the seeds and soak them in the vodka for a few weeks. Strain and use in very small doses throughout the day.
- Infuse crushed nettle seeds into honey and use take it like tonic as needed.
- Create a seedy blend – nettle seeds with chia seeds, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, etc. and use it in the same way you use any other seedy mixture. I’m not personally a big seed person, but if you are, then the addition of nettle seeds can make it really special.
- Grind into a powder and use as needed throughout the year as you would with the spring nettle leaves. Just pay attention to the quantity you use (see above).
- Make crackers.
- Sprinkle on top of dark chocolate. Yep. Or make your own nettle seed coated chocolate truffles.
- Or sprinkle on salad, potatoes, eggs, etc.
- Also a cool popcorn topping!
- Make an anti-inflammatory salve: infuse dried nettle seeds into your favorite oil (guide here) and then stir in some melted beeswax, pour into a container and let it cool until hardened.
Any other tips we should know about? Please share in the comments below!
