The Reason You Should Never Eat Fiddlehead Ferns Raw

Fiddlehead ferns grow wild in some parts of the country. In others, they're the type of product you're more likely to find — and probably pay top dollar for — at an upscale grocery store. Some farm-to-table restaurant suppliers sell them too, charging over $23 per pound for these trendy greens. Is it a scam if a farm-to-table restaurant claims it foraged its ferns when it simply ordered them online? That may be neither here nor there, but if you're shelling out big bucks on a vegetable — whether in the produce department or a hipster bistro — you'll want to make sure it's properly cooked. And cooked these ferns must be, since not only do raw fiddleheads have an unpleasantly bitter flavor, but they can also be dangerous to consume.

Researchers have yet to identify the toxin in fiddlehead ferns, but in 1994, several dozen people in upstate New York and Canada were reportedly sickened by eating raw or undercooked fiddleheads, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Among the symptoms they experienced were abdominal cramps, diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting. The effects lasted from several hours to several days and started, on average, about six hours after eating the ferns.

In response to the 1994 foodborne illness outbreak, Health Canada issued an advisory stating that all fiddlehead ferns should be steamed for 10 to 12 minutes or boiled for 15 minutes to render them safe for human consumption (per CDC). Whether you're an enthusiastic layman foraging for fiddleheads or you simply bought a pack at Trader Joe's, you'd do best to follow these precautions, as well. 

Once you've cooked your ferns, what should you do with them? Some fiddlehead fans enjoy the fern's grassy flavor dressed with little more than butter, lemon, or a vinaigrette dressing. Others, however, prefer a more elaborate preparation. Fiddlehead ferns have a taste similar to that of asparagus, and just like asparagus, they can be used to make a creamy soup. They can also be folded into an omelet or used to flavor a pasta salad or risotto. For a fancy brunch dish, you can top English muffins with smoked salmon, poached eggs, and steamed fiddleheads, and cover the whole thing with hollandaise sauce. You can also chop the ferns, cook them in butter, and then mix them with breadcrumbs to make a stuffing that is perfect with trout, salmon, or rolled-up chicken breasts.