Getting to Know Epazote

According to Professor Miguel Gutierrez, “Epazote is a prevalent plant in Mexican culture and cooking. I grow it in my garden here in Altadena, where it grows very easily. In fact, it’s a prolific seeder, so once it grows in your garden and it goes to seed, it’s pretty safe to say you’ll have it around for many years to come. It’s not uncommon to find it here in Southern California where it has become naturalized in some areas. My family lives in Nebraska where the epazote seeds survive the harsh winters and come back each year to repopulate the garden.”

Where to Find Epazote

Epazote is abundant along inland stream beds in sandy soil and common in seaside salt marshes. The plant, which is sometimes cultivated, generally prefers waste locales and areas with somewhat poor, sandy soil. It seems to prefer the semi-shade along the bank of a sandy river or stream but will do well in rich garden soil when cultivated. Believed to have originated from central Mexico, it’s now well-naturalized throughout parts of the United States.

Miguel Gutierrez reports that once while fishing in Pyramid Lake, NV, “I ran into a thicket of wild epazote right at the edge of the water.”

You can find sources of the seed and leaf on-line.

Another source for epazote is Survival Seeds, Post Office Box 41-834, Los Angeles, CA 90041, for $4 per seed packet (price includes postage).

Uses

According to herbalist Michael Moore (author of Medicinal Plants), “The leaves and seeds of epazote are a classic Mexican bean spice. It’s called for in many traditional recipes, both to reduce the flatus levels, and to jazz up the taste.”

Epazote has long been popular in Central and South American and Mexican cookery as a culinary spice, especially in bean dishes, since it prevents gas.

According to Dr. James Adams, author of Healing with Medicinal Plants of the West, “Two of the treasures from Mexico are the prickly pear cactus and the epazote herb. I always add fresh epazote on top of my black bean dishes.”

Processing

Though fresh leaves can be added to dishes, the plant is usually dried first, which somewhat mellows the fragrance. The dried leaves are then crumbled into the pot shortly before being served.

According to Miguel Gutierrez, “Epazote is frequently used as a flavoring agent for beans, but by far, my favorite use of epazote is to make quesadillas. There’s a particular style of quesadillas very popular in Mexico which includes flor de calabaza (squash/zucchini flowers), epazote, sautéed onions, and fresh serrano chiles. It has a very strong scent and potent flavor, which I really like. When you first bite into the raw leaf, you get a rush of ‘minty’ freshness through your mouth. It has a bit of ‘bite’ in it and can have a slightly bitter aftertaste. This very strong flavor is what gives these quesadillas their signature taste. The potent flavors of epazote and chiles are tempered by the more subtle flavor of the flor de calabaza.

“In the early summer, when my kids find a small epazote plant hiding behind the tomato plants, they get excited and ask me to make them quesadillas with flor de calabaza. There must be something in the flavor that is agreeable to children because my kids and younger siblings loved to rip off a few leaves and chew on them for a bit.”

Advice for Growing

Epazote can be successfully grown from cuttings that have been rooted in good soil or vermiculite, however, most gardeners start them from seed. Soak the seeds for a few hours in water before planting, and then plant them in a flat or directly into the garden. The seeds seem to take longer than other seeds to sprout, and gardeners often forget they even planted them, so make sure to label your plantings.

Availability

In colder climates, epazote will live as an annual. In the South and warmer environments, it will act more as a perennial, and will come up for a few seasons.

Harvesting the mid-sized epazote plants is easy. Just pinch off the top new growth. Pinch off just what you need at the time or pinch back a lot if you plan to dry some of the herb for storage.

The leaves are best harvested young, and dried. I prefer only the leaves in my cooking. However, you will observe that in Mexico, the entire above-ground plant — including the stem — is harvested, dried, and ground up for use in cooking.

Medicine

Besides as a way to prevent or stop excessive gas, herbalist Gene Matlock says, “Epazote is also excellent for expelling worms from the body. The tea is an excellent cure of the nerves and digestive organs. Epazote has become one of the most highly valued herbs in the Chinese materia medica. The Chinese use it as a diaphoretic, to strengthen the eyes and the circulation, to cure coughing up blood, and for dysentery.” Matlock advises that one take this either in powder form or infused into a tea.

Dolores Miller-Nyerges of Los Angeles reported positive results with using epazote to rid cats and dogs of worms. She simply sprinkled a small amount of the dried and powdered leaves into their food. She also discovered that when she put epazote seeds and leaves in her chickens’ water, it prevented some diseases common to fowl.

Cautions

Pure oil of Chenopodium is toxic, so you sometimes see epazote listed in books of poisonous plants. However, epazote leaf contains only 1% of this oil, and such small amounts are ideal as a vermifuge or anti-flatulent. A teaspoon or so of the seeds added to dog and cat food works wonders as a de-wormer and does not pose a threat to the animal’s health in such low dosage. Eating moderate amounts of the cooked greens poses no health hazard whatsoever. However, due to the strong aroma of epazote, it is rarely cooked alone. Generally, epazote greens are mixed with other greens before cooking.

Cooking with Epazote

Cooking with epazote is easy! Add approximately one tablespoon of the herb — both the chopped stems and the leaves — to a pot of beans. You can use it fresh or dried. The epazote herb can also be added to soups, stews, and made into tea. The powdered leaves can be added to salads, such as potato and bean salads.

Here are some simple recipes I’ve developed for using epazote.

Maya Black Bean Soup

• 1 cup black beans
• sage, pinch
• water
• oregano, pinch
• 3 onions
• epazote, two tsp.
• 3 small potatoes
• salt and pepper, to taste

Cook the beans first for about an hour until tender. Then add the onions and potatoes and cook until tender. Add the seasonings. Let simmer on low temperature for 15 minutes before serving.

Lentil Soup

• 1 cup lentils
• 1 bay leaf
• 5 to 6 cups water
• 2 tsp. dried epazote
• 1 red onion, diced
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 2 carrots, diced

Wash the lentils, and then simmer for an hour and a half. Add the other ingredients when the beans are nearly soft. Simmer `til the vegetables are soft. (Add salt or kelp to taste, if desired.)

About the Author:

Christopher Nyerges has been teaching ethnobotany since 1974. He is the author of “Guide to Wild Foods and Useful Plants,” “Foraging Wild Edible Plants of North America,” and other books on the uses of wild plants. He can be reached at www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com.