Poke Salad with Bacon and Eggs
- We Took Cooking by Cut to the Meatgistics Podcast - September 22, 2026
- LIVE! Cooking by Cut: The Wild Game Butchery and Cookbook We Wanted to Write - September 1, 2026
- World Sauces for Wild Game: Puerto Rican Pique - August 19, 2026
I cut the leaves off the poke stem in my kitchen, and the earthy smell of the plant hit my nose, transporting me back to my grandmother’s kitchen in Oklahoma, where I enjoyed this dish as a child. I stood there watching my grandmother’s hands working over the leaves, preparing them for boiling and then cooking. I watched her smooth movements, and she explained the significance of the plant to me while cautioning me about its toxicity. A message I would later ignore in my youth while trying to paint with the berries, getting stained purple hands, and a scolding from my grandfather. Even 30 years later, in my kitchen, the first bite of this dish brought me back home, a place I have recently missed more than usual. Maybe that feeling led me to prepare this dish today.
You might wonder why I’m cooking and eating a toxic plant. The poke plant (Phytolacca americana) holds deep historical significance in North America, particularly among Indigenous peoples (including my own Choctaw people), African Americans, and rural communities, where its young shoots were foraged as a spring ingredient despite its toxicity. If appropriately prepared, the plant loses its toxicity and is edible.
To properly prepare the plant, you must first understand the levels of toxicity in the plant. The roots are the most toxic. Avoid them at all costs. The stalks are less harmful than the leaves. Both the leaves and the stalks can be cooked and eaten. They must first be parboiled. Sam Thayer and Alan Bergo recommend boiling for over ten minutes in two or three water changes. For this recipe, I boiled my leaves twice for six minutes each.
Alan’s recipe uses the stalks. I do not use the stalks for cooking, which follows the traditional way I was taught to prepare the meal. I also refrain from harvesting the leaves once the berries appear and the stalk turns purple. I was taught that the plant becomes more toxic at this point. I am unsure of this validity, but I trust the traditional methods. Additionally, leaving the plant with the berries is beneficial to wild animals, which use the berries as a food source.
Please do not prepare this meal and serve it to anyone without tasting it first, waiting for some time, and ensuring that the parboiling was accurately executed. Sam Thayer notes in his book Incredible Wild Edibles, “If poke is prepared improperly, a burning sensation in the mouth and throat is the first warning. This means your parboiling is inadequate or your poke is too old.” Taste the food, wait a couple of hours, and then, if you’re good, serve it to others. There have been deaths associated with consuming raw poke plant. Undercooked poke plant can cause stomach pain, nausea, and vomiting.
Still want to eat it? Try this recipe:
Recipe Name: Poke Salad with Bacon and Eggs
Serves: 1-2
Equipment: 2 Pots, 1 Skillet, colander
Time to Cook: 30 mins
Listen to our Podcast
Apple Podcasts, Google, Spotify, Amazon Music
Get a Copy of our New Book!
Poke Salad with Bacon and Eggs
2
servings12
minutes15
minutesKeep the screen of your device on
Ingredients
1 gallon bag picked poke leaves, washed
water for boiling
3 slices bacon, cut into 1-inch strips
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 eggs, whisked
Hot sauce (optional, and after the first taste)
Preparation
- Bring two pots of water to boil with enough water to submerge the leaves.
- Once boiling, add the leaves to the first pot. Cover and let boil for 6 minutes. I punch the leaves down periodically to ensure maximum submersion.
- After 6 minutes, drain the water and rinse the leaves in the colander. The water will be green.
- Add the leaves to the second pot of boiling water. Cover and let boil for six minutes. You will see that the leaves are more delicate in this boil.
- After six more minutes, drain the water and rinse the leaves in the colander. The water will be lighter green.
- Squeeze as much of the water out of the leaves before the next step.
- In a skillet, cook the bacon until it reaches a light brown color.
- Stir in the greens and season with salt and black pepper.
- Allow to cook for 1-2 minutes, then stir in the eggs.
- Cook the eggs to your liking.
- Taste. ***See note above***
- Top with hot sauce if desired.
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @harvestingnature on Instagram and hashtag it with #harvestingnature
Like this recipe?
Follow @harvestingnature on Pinterest
Join our Facebook Group!
Join Harvesting Nature’s Facebook group Harvesting Nature – The Group
Don’t forget about our One Plant a Week Project! Our One Plant a Week project is a journey through the edible and medicinal plants that grow around us, one week at a time. Each week, we focus on a single plant, learning its history, cultural significance, foraging tips, preparation methods, and safe use. It’s an invitation to slow down, reconnect with the land, and build seasonal knowledge rooted in both tradition and science. Whether you’re a seasoned forager or just starting, this project encourages mindful exploration and a deeper appreciation of the plants that sustain us.
