Most people know that bamboo grows like a weed in hot climates like the ones found in Texas, so there’s no need for fertilizers or pesticides to get it to grow (containing it might be another issue). What many people don’t know however, is that bamboo is an excellent and delicious food source.While we can’t eat bamboo straight-up like pandas do, billions of people around the world (mostly outside of the United States) find boiled, freshly sprouted bamboo shoots to be delicious (see the recipe at the end of this post).
Bamboo is an invasive species in America that displaces native plants here – mainly because it thrives in hot climates, like the ones found in Texas and Atlanta (where my parents live). Most in America view bamboo as a nuisance, but my parents, who love to eat bamboo shoots, saw the bamboo growing in their backyard as a culinary opportunity instead of a problem.
Only new bamboo shoots are edible (the stalks are far too tough) and you must harvest the new growth immediately after they “shoot” out of the ground (which is usually at the crack of dawn). If you let the shoots grow out for even two days, the tender insides will become too hard and inedible.
The harvest season starts around March, and lasts a month or two. My parents said they know it’s bamboo time when rabbits and deer suddenly appear in the backyard, because they love fresh bamboo as well. You may think that this isn’t really a viable food source, but last year my parents collected about 100 pounds of bamboo during the season, making them very popular among their Asian friends.
Bamboo shoot removal is best done using a shovel. The shoots should be cut then boiled quickly to stop the hardening process. After that, the shoots can be cut into chunks and frozen – they will keep for many months.
