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Dock Seed Flour

Dock Seed Flour is a modern British recipe for how to make wild food flower from curly dock or broad-leaved dock seeds by soaking in salt water, drying and grinding. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Austrian version of: Dock Seed Flour.

prep time

10 minutes

cook time

10 minutes

Total Time:

20 minutes

Additional Time:

(+over-night soaking and drying)

Makes:

1 jar

Rating:

Tags : Wild FoodBritish Recipes

For the forager, dock leaves are most commonly used, however in Autumn when docks turn brown and die down, they present a profusion of seeds. Typically, curly dock (Rumex crispus) and Broad-leaved dock (Rumex obtusifolius). For me broad-leaved dock is commonest. I collect the seeds by stripping the seeds from the flower heads with my hand, stuffing in a bag until I have enough. The small seeds are surrounded by papery bracts (see image). Some people remove these, but that’s a lot of work and I haven’t really found it necessary. When you get home, remember to pick through the seeds. Remove any leaves, pieces of stem and insects that might have fallen into your bag.

As to why make dock seed flour, the genus Rumex, to which dock belongs is a member of the Polygonaceae flour and therefore is closely related to buckwheat, Fagopyrum esculentum. As a result, dock seed flour can be substituted in any recipe where buckwheat is used. Dock seed flour can be used as an adulterant (up to 20% to any recipe that uses wheat flour). It’s very good used instead of, or as an addition to buckwheat flour in pizzoccheri.

Ingredients:

Dried dock seeds
Salt

Method:

Seeds from some dock plants can be bitter (most are not). However, just in case I tend to soak my dock seeds in lightly salted water over night to reduce any potential saltiness.

Pick over the dock seeds and place in a large bowl. Add enough lightly-salted water to just soak the seeds. Cover with a cloth or plate and set aside to soak over night. The following day, drain the seeds in a fine-meshed sieve and wash under plenty of cold, running water.
Transfer to a non-stick baking tray and arrange in a single layer. Place in a low oven for a couple of hours until dry.

After this time, grind the seeds to a flour in a coffee or spice grinder then transfer to a lidded jar. Once you have ground all the seeds heat your oven to 120°C (250°F). Place the jars in the oven (without a lid) and bake for an hour. At this point, add the lids but do not screw down. Heat for a further 10 minutes then secure the lids and turn the oven off. Allow the jars to cool in the oven. At this point the flour will be dry and the jars will have a vacuum seal which will help preserve the flavour of the flour. When the jars are opened re-seal and store in a cool, dry, dark, place.