I love living in Santa Fe, really I do. But one of my favorite wild greens, miner’s lettuce, doesn’t grow wild here. Native to the West Coast of the U.S. and Canada, it blankets hillsides there in early spring, when cool temperatures and moist growing conditions encourage lush, juicy growth. Whenever possible, I arrange to visit a friend in the Bay Area in March or April, so I can get my fill of this succulent, tasty green. I’ve even been known to hike with a small bottle of salad dressing so I can enjoy a picnic of miner’s lettuce on the spot.
About Miner’s Lettuce
Miner’s lettuce got its name during the gold rush when fresh vegetables were hard to come by. It was a plentiful green, and its high vitamin C levels kept scurvy among the miners at bay. Miner’s lettuce also contains good amounts of iron and vitamin A.
Succulent and crunchy, miner’s lettuce stays sweet and mild even after it flowers, unlike many greens. Most miner’s lettuce is easily recognizable by its round leaves perforated at the center by its stems and flowers. However, depending on the location or time of year, the terminal leaves may be more pointy or wing shaped. Small pink or white flowers are held, centered, above the disc-shaped leaves in spring and are also edible.
Old world explorers of North America were so taken with the flavor of miner’s lettuce that they brought seeds back to Europe. It was planted in Kew Gardens in London at the end of the 18th century, and was spread by British colonizers as far away as Cuba and Australia in the following decades.
How to Harvest Miner’s Lettuce
The entire miner’s lettuce plant is edible, but the tenderest and tastiest parts are the terminal leaves. Pinch the stem just above the bottom leaves, leaving them behind to continue growing. Young stems are often tender enough to use in salads, but if you don’t like how they look, you can pinch them off the round leaves when you get home. Plants growing in shade will be tastier and more tender than those growing in sun. Sunny, dry conditions stress plants and give foliage a reddish tint. These leaves may develop a bitter taste, so focus on picking green leaves from shady, moist places.
Despite it being classified as an annual plant, there are some people who swear miner’s lettuce is perennial, with the same plants returning year after year. At the very least, miner’s lettuce self-seeds freely, and as a result, it returns to the same area year after year. In many places it’s one of the earliest spring greens to appear. If miner’s lettuce doesn’t grow wild where you live, you can order seeds to start your miner’s lettuce crop. Because it’s a reliable self-seeder, you should only have to plant it once. It’s such an attractive plant, I’d grow it as an ornamental ground cover, although I’d probably end up eating it all. And let’s face it, the climate in Santa Fe is too dry, too hot, and too sunny to keep miner’s lettuce happy.
How to Eat Miner’s Lettuce
Miner’s lettuce is such a mild, tasty leaf, it’s best appreciated fresh and raw, either in a salad or tucked into a sandwich. It’s one of the few greens you could make an entire salad out of and find it neither boring nor overpowering. Miner’s lettuce needs nothing more than a simple vinaigrette and a few crumbles of goat cheese. Actually, it doesn’t even need the goat cheese.
I was wondering if miner’s lettuce could be transplanted? I found a stand of it along a path that is getting trampled on.
Yes, you can transplant miner’s lettuce. And the sooner the better. It’s better to do it when it’s not too hot, and before the plants set seed. That way, the seed will drop in your garden/yard, which will give you a bigger harvest next year.
what do the seeds look like? where are they at on the plant?
If you google Claytonia perfoliata seeds, you’ll find several photos like this: https://larnerseeds.com/products/claytonia-perfoliata-indian-or-miners-lettuce?variant=34178795864195 As for where they are on the plant, the flowers are borne on top of the terminal set of leaves and the seeds ripen within the flowers once the flowers are pollinated, so seeds would also be on top of the terminal set of leaves. However, they won’t stay there long. They’ll fall to the ground and germinate the following year.
what do the seeds look like? where are they at on the plant?
If you google Claytonia perfoliata seeds, you’ll find several photos like this: https://larnerseeds.com/products/claytonia-perfoliata-indian-or-miners-lettuce?variant=34178795864195 As for where they are on the plant, the flowers are borne on top of the terminal set of leaves and the seeds ripen within the flowers once the flowers are pollinated, so seeds would also be on top of the terminal set of leaves. However, they won’t stay there long. They’ll fall to the ground and germinate the following year.
Hi, I have miner’s lettuce all over my property. Is it possible to harvest and dry it out, into a dry ‘herb’ so to speak, for long term storage and use? Let’s say if the power is out for days, or for prepping/storage?
Yes and no. But first, LUCKY YOU! I’d love to have miner’s lettuce all over my property. This is a green that really shines when eaten raw. I’m sure you COULD dry it (although it’s a succulent leaf so drying times would be longer than for thinner-leaved greens), but I doubt it would have much flavor when dry. Think of miner’s lettuce as a green not as an herb. Yes, technically it’s an herbaceous plant, but it doesn’t have a strong flavor, like cooking herbs do. The reason most herbs dry well is because their flavor persists through the drying process. Miner’s lettuce is a mild green to begin with (like iceberg lettuce). And while some people dry their greens and use them as powders in soups, I find that most mild greens (like spinach, nettles, lamb’s quarters) don’t have much flavor that way. So if you want to preserve it for nutrition and prepping, give it a try. But to manage your expectations, I’d say the flavor would probably be nothing like the flavor of the fresh green. I love preserving the harvest, but this is one green I only eat raw because it’s just so much better that way! If you try it, let me know how it works out!
Hi thanks! I just feel so bad, I have it in abundance, big and beautiful, everywhere, much too much to ever consume myself. Seems a shame to let it go to waste! It’s actually kept the grass growth down on my property (less mowing! (we live in wildfire area so we have to keep our propertry mowed down) and it’s beautiful to look at. If I dried it, how about nutritional properties? Do you think it would retain the nutrition? Even if it had no taste, but had some nutrition? BTW your picture above inspired me to cut it and use it for bouquets in my house, it’s really a beautiful plant. I have a new appreciation for it. I used to just mow it down – gasp! No more. I love it, tastes great and it’s beautiful. If you ever come to Nor Cal in the early spring, you are welcome to harvest it at my place. It gets thicker and more prominent every year.
No need to feel bad! I’m glad you have such bounty. Unfortunately, I don’t have any expertise in the area of nutrition. I’ve heard that nutritional value is decreased by drying, but truly, I’m all about the flavor!
Freezedry it!
I’d love to experiment with freeze drying, but the equipment is so expensive! Any suggestions for a decent freeze dryer that doesn’t cost and arm and a leg?
I’m trying to find out if you must blanch miner’s lettuce before pureeing it and freezing it in ice cube trays. I want to have these on hand to throw in soups and smoothies. Does anyone know?
Well, I don’t know, but hopefully someone else will! As I’ve mentioned in some of the other comments, you won’t get the wonderful texture of miner’s lettuce this way, but you may get some of the nutrition. Blanching is usually done with greens to halt the maturation process, so it might be a good idea. But since vitamin C is water soluble and leaches out into the cooking water, you will probably loose some of the nutritional value by blanching and freezing. I can’t comment on how much because I’m all about the flavor rather than the nutrition/medicinal value, but you could try a small experiment. Try just pureeing and freezing a small batch, and try blanching and freezing another small batch. Then thaw and compare the texture and flavor and see what you think. And please report back!
I blend the fresh leaves with a little water or coconut water in my smoothie blender then freeze in ice cube trays to add to smoothies or pesto or last minute into soups. Works for me!
I do have Miners Lettuce all over my mountain property and am loving it immensely. I am, however, the only one in my family that eats this. Best eaten as a salad green; then found I could use it in a simple soup. I chopped up a few spring onions, handfuls of Miners Lettuce, handful of sliced mushrooms , and simmered in a rich vegetable broth
With a cup and a half of plant based milk. I simmered it for about half an hour and it was absolutely delicious. Try it! I’m sure leftovers could be frozen.
Sounds wonderful! I’ll remember this next time I find miner’s lettuce.