Watercress1. Q: What is the difference between watercress, creasy, and dryland cress? Do you have any idea how to prepare watercress for consumption?
A: Water-cress is a hardy, perennial, European herb (Nasturtium officinale) which grows naturally in wet soil along and in spring brooks, dithces and pond margins and is cultivated under such condition for use as a garnish and a piquant salad. It must be harvested before flower buds appear or the leaves become too rank in flavor to be edible. There are many types of cress such as Garden Cress or Pepper-grass (Lepidium sativum), Upland or Winter cress (Barbarea vernapraecox) , Bitter-cress (Cardamine pratensis), Indian-cress (another name for nasturtium) or Tropaeolum majus, Penny cress or species of Thlaspi, rock-cress or species of Arabis, Stone-cress or genus Aethionema and Wart-cress or species of Coronopus. I wonder if one of these might be also known as creasy, and dry land cress?
Store this stuff in the refrigerator with its stems in water and the leaves loosely covered with a plastic bag. Most Westerners eat watercress raw. In the East it is blanched, the moisture wrung out and then chopped and tossed with a light sesame oil dressing. Chinese often stir fry it with a little salt, sugar, and wine or use it in soups.
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