How can oak leaves be made edible?
Based on some research, it seems the leaves contain tannins and so I imagine some number of rounds of boiling are required to extract those/reduce them to an acceptable level.
But the texture of oak leaves isn't ideal for eating based on what I remember as a kid. So I'm curious how to deal with that issue. Some type of fermentation seems necessary to break down the leaf compounds into softer/more edible compounds, and maybe even just pickling with vinegar might help?
I was curious if anyone has tried this before and had success rendering oak leaves edible.
Best Answer
I cannot find any internet source that recommends eating oak leaves, however treated. The level of tannins in oak leaves isn't just bad-tasting; it's sufficiently strong to cause kidney or liver failure. This is probably why there are extensive records of Native Americans tribes eating acorns but none of them eating oak leaves.
It's dubious that any amount of soaking of oak leaves could remove sufficient tannins to render them safe. Some recipes for Oak Leaf Wine involve soaking them for 5 days. If that actually leached the majority of the tannins, the wine would be toxic, and there's no evidence that it is.
So my overall answer is: you cannot eat them, use something else instead.
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Quick Answer about "How can oak leaves be made edible?"
The very young leaves of the oaks are edible. The tannins have medicinal virtues. The leaves are used against irritations, inflammation of the throat, mouth ulcers. They are also taken in decoction: use a handful per liter, boil lightly for 10 minutes then let infuse for 10 minutes.Are oak leaves poisonous?
As leaves mature, oak decreases in toxicity. Cattle may get as much as 50 percent of their diet from oak browse without showing signs of poisoning. More than 50 percent of oak browse in the diet will cause sickness, and more than 75 percent will cause death. The toxic substances are thought to be oak tannins.Can you make tea from oak leaves?
As mulch, oak leaves are just about perfect. They are clean, break down easily, and provide all the benefits of organic mulches; they moderate soil temperatures, suppress weeds, conserve moisture, and add nutrients to the soil as they decompose.What are oak leaves used for?
The acorns of the Oak Tree are the only edible part. They contain tannin which is a bitter chemical that prevents animals from eating them to abundantly. different species contain different amounts of tannin, some acorns are palatable right off the tree, but not many.How to Make Oak Leaf Compost
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Answer 2
- Take the oak leaves.
- Feed to a goat. (mix in some other feedstuffs: hay or grass).
- Eat the goat (or drink its milk)
Goats are browsers, and have a gut, kidneys and liver that can deal with oak leaves, in fact a moderate amount of leaves can avoid diarrhoea in goats. Using animals to process inedible vegetation, like leaves or grasses, to edible meat, milk and eggs is one of the foundations of farming.
Answer 3
A good indicator of whether there is a way to make something edible is whether it was recorded as a famine food. (Wikipedia) There are records of people eating dried lichen, tree bark, books, and machine oil in these horrible times. I can't see anything for oak leaves. Probably not possible to eat it.
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