Ferns

Non-flowering plants, some used as food. People in a number of countries eat the young shoots (fiddleheads) plus rootstocks from wild and cultivated species. They must be correctly identified and cooked, since some ferns contain toxic compounds and eating the wrong species can cause food poisoning. Ostrich fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris) fiddleheads are the commercially harvested species, while bracken (Pteridium) contains the carcinogen ptaquiloside and must never be eaten. Even safe fiddleheads require thorough cooking — boiling then sautéing — as raw consumption has caused food-poisoning outbreaks with nausea and vomiting.