Wild Stinging Nettle pancakes, a delicious, easy recipe
Wild stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) pancakes are a simple and delicious way to turn a humble foraged green into something truly special. Once cooked, nettles lose their sting and reveal a mild, earthy flavour that pairs perfectly with soft, fluffy pancakes. This easy recipe is a great introduction to cooking with wild ingredients, offering a nutritious, seasonal twist on a classic dish that’s perfect for breakfast, brunch, or a light meal.
Stingin Nettles:
Stinging nettles (Urtica dioica) are highly nutritious, packed with vitamins A, C, and K as well as minerals like iron and calcium. They’re known for their anti-inflammatory properties and for improving the purification of the lungs and blood.
How to prepare the wild stinging nettles for the pancakes:
Harvest wild stinging nettles in spring and the morning to maximise nutrient content. Wear gloves to cut the nettle tops.
For this recipe, you will need to blanch the stinging nettles to remove the sting. There are a couple of things you can use the nettle water from blanching for:
- Use as a broth or stock
- Use it to cook grains or boil pasta.
- Drink it as a tea.
- Put in your compost heap
- Use it as a fertiliser for your plants (high nitrogen content)
Cut the nettle leaves and wash them.
In a pan, add 200 ml of water and bring to the boil. Blanch the nettles in the hot water for 5 minutes.
Let cool in a colander, then chop the nettles either by hand or in a food processor.
Squeeze with your hands to take the excess water.
Ingredients for nettle pancakes:
- 80 grams of Stinging Nettles (blanch).
- 1 egg
- 1/2 a cup (125 ml) of milk
- 1/2 a cup (125 ml) of natural yogurt
- 1 tbsp of melted butter
- 1 Grated lemon peel
- 1 cup (120 grams) of spelt flour
- 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder
- A handful of broken walnuts (optional)
- Sea salt
- paper
- Nut meg
How to make nettle pancake batter:
In a mixing bowl, beat the egg with the melted butter, add the milk and yoghurt, and mix.
Then add the Spelt flour.
Add the chopped nettles, mix, then add lemon peel, nuts, and condiments.
Add a little butter to a heated frying pan, pour a ladleful of the batter into it, and cook over medium heat until you see tiny bubbles. Turn the pancake and cook for another couple of minutes.
Enjoy these nettle pancakes warm with a fresh green salad and some crumbled goat’s cheese on top. The fluffy pancakes, crisp leaves, and creamy, tangy cheese just work so well together—simple, tasty, and really satisfying.
The nettle pancakes will be green and golden brown, with a crispy edge and will take 4-5 minutes to cook.
Variations:
You can replace the yoghurt with 1/2 a cup (125ml) of sour cream or just use milk.
Nuts are a wonderful addition, but if you are allergic or just don’t like them, the nettle pancakes will still taste delicious.
You can use wholemeal flour, plain flour or self-raising flour (omit the baking powder if using self-raising flour) if you don’t have spelt flour.
Storing:
Keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Wild Stinging Nettle pancakes, a delicious, easy recipe
Equipment
- A bowl
- a wisk
- a pan
- soup ladle
Ingredients
- 80 grams of Stinging Nettles blanch.
- 1 egg
- 1/2 a cup 125 ml of milk
- 1/2 a cup 125 ml of natural yoghurt
- 1 tbsp of melted butter
- 1 Grated lemon peel
- 1 cup 120 grams of spelt flour
- 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder
- A handful of broken walnuts optional
- Sea salt
- paper
- Nut meg
Instructions
- Start by cutting the nettle leaves and washing them.
- In a pan, add 200 ml of water and bring to the boil. Blanch the nettles in the hot water for 5 minutes.
- Let cool in a colander, then chop the nettles either by hand or in a food processor.
- Squeeze with your hands to take the excess water
- In a mixing bowl, beat the egg with the melted butter, add the milk and yoghurt, and mix.Then add the Spelt flour.
- Add the chopped nettles, mix, then add lemon peel, nuts, and condiments.
- Nuts are a wonderful addition, but if you are allergic or just don’t like them, the nettle pancakes will still taste delicious.
- Add a little butter to a heated frying pan, pour a ladleful of the batter into it, and cook over medium heat until you see tiny bubbles. Turn the pancake and cook for another couple of minutes.
- Enjoy these nettle pancakes warm with a fresh green salad and some crumbled goat’s cheese on top. The fluffy pancakes, crisp leaves, and creamy, tangy cheese just work so well together—simple, tasty, and really satisfying.
- The nettle pancakes will be green and golden brown, with a crispy edge and will take 4-5 minutes to cook.
