Japanese Knotweed Recipe: Knotweed Pop-Tarts
It is my favorite Japanese knotweed recipe yet! We have knotweed and strawberry jam, surrounded by flaky pastry, and topped with a cardamom glaze. This Japanese knotweed recipe came about with the goal of making my knotweed-disliking boyfriend eat his words. And while he still “doesn’t like knotweed”, he sure likes Japanese knotweed pop-tarts!
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How to Forage Japanese Knotweed
When I go outside, just about everywhere I go I can spot the shoots of early knotweed. Later in the year, the paths I walk will be surrounded by a small forest of Japanese knotweed stalks, climbing over my head. At that point, the knotweed will be beyond eating- Japanese knotweed is really only good to eat in the Spring, when the young shoots are tender. As they age, they become tough and woody. Japanese knotweed is native to- you guessed it- Japan, as well as some of the surrounding countries. It was imported originally as an ornamental plant, but once it had its roots in the soil it was there to stay. Japanese knotweed is so hardy, it can shoot up through cement, and is almost impossible to get rid of.
Japanese knotweed is sour, with crunchy stems. It can be eaten raw, although I generally don’t. You do never know who has been around your knotweed, and I always feel safer cooking foraged foods. It has a bit of a weedy flavor, that can be masked by other flavors if you’re not a fan (the cardamom in this recipe covers up any of knotweeds less desirable taste very well). It works really well in both sweet and sour applications. Knotweed is a great source of vitamin A and C, as well as potassium, zinc, phosphorus and manganese. It contains resveratrol, which can help to lower cholesterol. It also contains oxalic acid, and likely should be avoided if you have issues with your kidneys.
Identifying Japanese Knotweed
Japanese knotweed can grow just about anywhere, but it’s particularly fond of river banks, marshes, and other wet areas. The young shoots have dark purple or greenish triangular-shaped leaves that come out of joints in the hallow stalks. The stalks area lighter green, somewhat pink where the leaves meet the stalk. They also have a pink-ish speckled pattern on them. You want to pick knotweed in the spring, ideally when the shoots are under a foot tall. Remove the leaves, and use the stalks as you would rhubarb. You’ll also want to do your best to pick in areas you know haven’t been sprayed with pesticides. Since knotweed is a highly invasive and persistent plant, a lot of areas spray to try and control growth. A good hint that an area wasn’t sprayed are the dried, hollow, 8-foot stalks from last year. That’s not a guarantee though- always verify that the area you’re picking on hasn’t been sprayed.
Disclaimer- use caution when foraging wild edibles, and always be certain of your identification. While I assume responsibility for the accuracy of the information provided on this site, I can’t responsible for the accuracy of your information. Consult multiple websites, books and local experts, and when it doubt, do without.
And just a little remind, Japanese knotweed in the Americas and Europe is super, super invasive. Pick and eat as much as you want. But if you have bits leftover that you’re not using in this Japanese knotweed recipe, blast them in the microwave before discarding them. The tiniest piece of knotweed has the ability to sprout a root, grow ten feet down into the soil, and take over.
Looking for more Vegan Japanese Knotweed Recipes? Try one of these!
- Knotweed & Strawberry Compote Over Oatmeal
- Invasive Japanese Knotweed Vegan Chutney
- Strawberry and Japanese Knotweed Crisp
- Sour Japanese Knotweed Soup
- Invasive Japanese Knotweed Salsa (Vegan)
How to Make Japanese Knotweed Pop-Tarts
Get your sleeves rolled up, this Japanese knotweed recipe is a bit of a process. That’s mostly because we’re making our own pie crust- if you got some pre-made pie crust you could shorten the time needed considerably. But I don’t know, I really like to do things myself- it makes me think it tastes better. So start with your crust. It’s a simple combination of flour, salt, vegetable shortening, and vegan butter. The key to good pie crust is not to over work the dough, and to keep it as cool as possible. So before you get started, let your vegetable shortening and butter sit in the fridge for a while. Some people like to refrigerate their mixing bowl too, but I don’t think you need to. Honestly, I never have that much room open in my fridge. A pastry cutter is the best tool to integrate the vegan butter and vegetable shortening into the flour, without over mixing it, but you can make do with a few forks, or even your fingers if you work quickly. Once the fats are mixed in, you’re going to slowly add ice water until you get a dough. Then it’s into the fridge to cool down, while you get the filling going. The filling is equal parts knotweed and strawberries, with some sugar, lemon juice, and thickened with cornstarch. Simple. Roll out the dough next, and fill the pop-tarts. At this point, preheat your oven. We waited until the pastries were shaped to preheat the oven, because as the oven heats up we give the dough one more chance to cool down in the freezer. The last little trick is to wait until the pop-tarts are completely cooled before frosting them, otherwise the glaze will just melt into the warm pastry.
The Best Japanese Knotweed Recipe: Strawberry Knotweed Pop-Tarts
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/3 cup vegan butter, chilled
- ¼ cup vegetable shortening, chilled
- Ice water, as needed
- ½ cup cleaned and chopped young Japanese knotweed shoots
- ½ cup chopped strawberries
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
- 1 tbsp. cornstarch
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- ½ tsp. cardamom powder
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp. soymilk, or more as needed
Instructions
- Start by making the pasty. Add a few ice cubes to half a cup of water, and set aside. Combine the salt and flour and whisk. Use a pastry cutter to cut the vegan butter and vegetable shortening into the flour, until you have a course texture. Once you’ve cut in the fats, add ice water, about one tablespoon at a time, not adding more water than you need, and mix until you have dough that comes together. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, move it to the fridge, and prepare the filling.
- Chop your strawberries and knotweed. Place them in a small saucepan, along with the sugar. Turn the heat on medium-low, stirring, while the sugar melts and the strawberries and knotweed release their juice. Once the fruit has broken down a good amount, add the lemon juice and cornstarch, whisking well to remove any clumps. Cook for another couple minutes while the jam thickens, stirring constantly, then remove from the heat and set aside.
- Take the dough from the fridge, and divide into two even pieces. Place the piece you are not using first back in the fridge. Take the other half and roll it out on a lightly floured surface, until you have a rectangle that is roughly 9x12 inches. Cut it into 9 equally sized rectangles (3x4 inches), and place them on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat. Place that baking sheet in the fridge, take out the second piece of pasty, and roll to the same size. Once the second piece is cut into 9 rectangles, remove the baking sheet from the fridge. To each of the rectangles on the baking sheet, add about ½ tbsp. of the strawberry knotweed filling into the center. Place a second piece of pastry on top. Use a fork around the edges to gently press down, sealing the filling inside. Once all the pastries are filled, place the baking sheet in the freezer to quickly chill them (you just want them cold, not frozen). Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C), and once the oven is at temperature, remove the pop-tarts from the freezer and place them directly in the oven.
- Bake for about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven, and wait a couple minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack. Once they are completely cooled, you can glaze them. Combine all the ingredients for the glaze, and whisk well. You can add a little more soymilk if needed- you want it to be a fairly thick, but pourable texture. If you want pink icing, add one drop of food coloring to the icing. Pour or spoon some icing onto the tops of the completely cooled pop-tarts. Let that icing cool for at least 10 minutes so that it hardens. Eat right away, or store in an airtight container. For warm pop-tarts, reheat in a toaster oven at 350 for 5-10 minutes.
Notes
In some of my pop-tarts I did a candied knotweed decoration. If you wish to do that, simply slice knotweed into very thin circles. Combine 1 part water to 1 part sugar in a saucepan, and warm to dissolve. Put all the knotweed in the sugar, swish it around, and then remove. Place on a lined baking sheet, and dry in a 200°F oven for at least 30 minutes. When you glaze your pop-tarts, add the candied knotweed before the glaze hardens.
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