Sorrel

Description

Sorrel is a hardy perennial herb, quite common in meadows throughout the Italian peninsula, whose leathery leaves give off a grassy smell and have a sour taste.

Stem

The stem of sorrel is erect, branched, reddish in colour, and always exceeds half a metre in height; that of sheep's sorrel, on the other hand, grows to thirty centimetres at most.

Leaves

The leaves of this herb are arranged alternately along the stem and have an oblong, lance-like shape; the upper ones are narrower than the lower ones. They have a characteristic smell and a decidedly sour taste which, milder in spring, then intensifies as the seasons advance. Sorrel leaves contain vitamins, in particular vitamin C, and mineral salts.

Flowers

From late spring until August there bloom, on separate male and female plants, the tiny reddish flowers gathered in small terminal panicles. To encourage new leaves, it is advisable to cut off the flower heads.

Exposure

The ideal position for sheep's sorrel is decidedly shady.

Propagation

Sorrel can be propagated by sowing, in spring on a moist substrate (in this case germination takes about ten days), or by dividing the clumps, this method should be carried out in the autumn.

Growth

Growing common sorrel normally presents no particular difficulty: one need only bear in mind that snails are greedy for its shoots, and therefore scatter a few slug pellets on the soil or protect the seedlings in other ways. To have leaves rich in juice, the plants should be watered regularly.

Harvesting

Leaves can be picked as early as two months after sowing.

Storage

It is enough to cover the plants with a cloth, or to plant them in sheltered positions, to have fresh leaves available at any time of year. CULINARY PROPERTIES: Sorrel leaves can be eaten like spinach, that is, after boiling them, or they can be added to soups. One way of making this vegetable more palatable is to change the water once during cooking, so as to reduce its typical sour taste. The tender leaves can also be eaten raw in salads. Another use of sorrel is to make a green sauce particularly suited to poultry and fish; the method is as follows: wash and then boil a handful of sorrel leaves and half a handful of watercress leaves together with an onion (which is then removed), then mix everything with oil, vinegar, salt and pepper until a creamy mixture is obtained.

Beauty

A pack of fresh leaves, chopped and spread on the skin of the face, closes dilated pores and makes so-called “blackheads” disappear.

Health

Sorrel leaves have a digestive and refreshing action; the root, dug up in autumn and steeped in an infusion or made into a decoction, acts as a laxative and diuretic.

Curiosity

Because of their high content of calcium and mineral salts, sorrel and sheep's sorrel are inadvisable for anyone suffering from kidney stones.