4 hours ago, Beebs said:Do cranberries count? Also seaweed (although technically seawater plant....).
Water chestnuts, which most of us have probably eaten before. I've never cooked a fresh water chestnut, even though I can get them easily enough. They're a real pain to peel, as a recall from watching my mom prep them. What are some good ways to feature fresh water chestnuts?
Water caltrops - I've had them only once ever, as a child. They are freakish black double-horned nut thingies that look like bats. Mom boiled them. I remember they smelled pretty funky and were difficult to peel open. I have seen them from time to time in the Chinese markets, but I've not had the nerve to attempt cooking them. http://www.thehongkongcookery.com/2014/09/boiled-water-caltrop.html
2 hours ago, dcarch said:
You mean these guys I made for Halloween?
dcarch
Speaking for myself I would say cranberries don't really count. They're grown in wet medium, yes - "bogs", marshy places, with specific characteristics (like acidity) but they don't grow submerged in water or with water flowing above the level of the ground. In fact, much of the actual whole cranberries we buy in the supermarket etc are also dry harvested, where the berries MUST be completely dry, and the "bogs" are definitely NOT covered with water in the least.
But water chestnuts (more specifically, Eleocharis dulcis) and water caltrops (more specifically, Trapa natans/bicornis/rossica)(Note that this is ALSO called "water chestnut") – why not? In particular, water caltrop plants grow floating in water so I would say they definitely qualify! Water caltrops are classified as "invasive" in North America, by the way – see here and here, for example.
In a continuing vein I would then add WASABI to the list. Although they can also be grown in wet soil, the traditional and current large-scale (in Japan) cultivation of them involves running water flowing over the terrain and in many cases over the bottom parts of the plants as well.
