


What Do Maple Seeds Taste Like?
Maple seeds taste like many green legumes: edamame, split peas, or lentils. Theyโre vegetal and nutty, and have a pronounced woody flavor. They often carry a somewhat tannic bitterness, but it is easily tempered through boiling or toasting. If youโre like me, when you taste a maple seed, youโll clamp your eyes shut and try to find some evidence of maple sweetness. Itโs not not there, but I think itโs time to admit that itโs not really there.
Some sources say that smaller seeds are sweeter, but I havenโt found that pattern to be consistent (and the larger ones are easier to harvest). What you taste in a maple seed is dependent on the species of maple, the timing of your harvest, and even the particular tree you harvest from. All that to say: you may need to taste from a few different trees to find the ones that suit your palate. If youโre new to foraging and have a trusted forager friend, they may be able to point you toward some trees with the nuttiest or sweetest seeds.
Thereโs a pretty limited selection of published recipes for maple seeds - mostly just notes about how to toast and salt them. In lieu of my usual curation of recipes from other creators, hereโs a little timeline of my experiments over the past few years, which I hope will inspire some of your own explorations:
2021
I roasted and salted dried maple seeds to sprinkle over a crabapple tarte tatin. The seeds themselves were reminiscent of those toasty unpopped popcorn kernels at the bottom of the popcorn bag, but with a lighter, more crispy bite. Quite nutty. The texture and flavor were great over the tarte tatin, but would have been more at home in a seedy granola or savory cookie.
2022
I created a video for Foraged Market where I boiled and tossed the seeds in a Daybreak togarashi and maple sugar mixture. I ate them like an edamame appetizer, then packed some into rice like onigiri. It wasnโt a bad idea, but the woody and bitter flavors were not easily tempered by the dried seasoning or added sauces.
2023
I realized that the particular maple seeds in my neighborhood more closely resembled lentils than edamame or another legume. I marinated the cooked maple seeds with lentils and paired them with crispy shallots, crรฉme fraรฎche, and a fresh baguette. In this dish, the subtle bitterness of the maple seeds was a welcome addition to the rich flavors of the other ingredients.
2024
This season I felt inspired by olives, capers, and the delightful world of marinated legumes. I gently boiled the maple seeds, then soaked them in a salt brine solution for a few days. Iโll be exploring their versatility all week, but I started with a simple tomato and cucumber salad with feta and thyme. This weekโs โrecipeโ is more of a technique, so thereโs no paywall - Iโd love to see what you all do with these Salt-Brined Maple Seeds!
Find the Flavor
Find Maple Seeds
โ Forage for yourself all over North America
โ Ask a forager friend or neighbor (donโt be shy!)
I have yet to see these available for purchase as a food product - does someone want to start a CPG brand of brined maple seeds with me?
Find Other Maple Products
โ Maple syrup, silly!
Maple Seed References & Resources
Curious by Nature Maple Seed Article
Northern Woodlands Maple Seed Article
Chicago Gardener Maple Seed YouTube Video
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