There are many edible wild foods that even an urban hobo can enjoy, if they are willing to gather and prepare. Acorns are a very nutritious food loaded with carbs, and other essential minerals. One needs only to recognize the difference between fresh and rotted nuts. Often these nuts are subject to infestation by a variety of insect pests, most of which are completely harmless even if swallowed. Acorns can be processed very easily with natural methods that are both cheap and easy.
All that is needed is a source of clean water, a small pen knife, a container, and something to reduce or pulverize the acorn nuts. Acorns can be found in suburban and urban areas and in great numbers if weather conditions permit. Most parks and even back yards have oak trees capable of producing acorns, a tree at least ten years old as rule of thumb. It is generally known that the White Oak produces the least bitter acorns. Acorns are known to have high concentrations of Tannic acid. Tannic acid is found to have certain health benefits, if applied properly. Tannic acid for instance is believed to be helpful to heal sunburn and can have soothing properties, if properly used.
The acid does have a bitter and repulsive taste and can seem to make acorns unpalatable. Fortunately, there is a holistic way to process these nuts. First a person needs to collect the acorns. Distinguishing the different varieties is helpful, but not essential. Almost all, perhaps all acorns are edible.
The White Oak acorn is found to be the most mild and palatable of all, and requires the least amount of preparation. When foraging for acorns, look at the leaves of the tree beneath which you are searching. If the leaves have rounded edges with deep spaces between each of the tips it is a White Oak. If the leaves have pointed tips and deep spaces between points it is another variety, in the northern U.S. most likely Red Oak, in southern climates there are several other types of Oak that it could be, pin and Saw tooth most likely. Chestnut and Live Oak have rounded tipped leaves with short or very small definition between the outward points of the leaves.
To process the acorn nuts they first need to be de-hulled.
- Using a small knife, score the nuts from top to tip on at least two sides
- Strip the hulls, and inspect each nut for defects (rotten spots or parasites)
- Soak whole nuts in clean water, preferably not treated municipal water at least overnight.
- Drain water, and grind, crush or finely chop acorns.
- Place chopped nuts in new water.
- Sift chopped nuts through fingers submerged in water at least twice a day and drain and replace water after thoroughly sifting, allowing several hours of soaking between water changes.
- Repeat this process for four or five days, the acorn meal may become discolored, this is normal.
- Taste the meal and it should taste kind of bland, maybe slightly bitter.
- Add honey, molasses or chocolate to the meal with some shortening and crude pancakes or protein bars can be made in an oven or open fire. Sometimes it can help to use a conventional flour to add cohesiveness.
- Native Americans used acorns as a staple food source long before white men came from Europe to settle in America.
This is a very substantial food source, it is just very labor intensive to be viable. Other varieties besides White Oak are edible, they just require more soaking to remove the tannins for palatability.