Bastard Cabbage Wild Edible Food

Bastard Cabbage (Rapistrum rugosum) is an invasive annual that has invaded North America. This plant is originally from Eurasia and Parts of Africa. Bastard Cabbage is edible both raw and cooked. The young leaves, flower buds and young seed pods are all edible. The weed is found growing in ditches and fields and recently disturbed areas.

Bastard Cabbage is a brassica which means it is a member of the mustard family and prefers cool weather which helps us with gathering food when other plants might not be as readily available.

Bastard Cabbage is a weed that has yellow four petals on its flowers. The petals of the flower are symmetrical and arranged evenly in an X pattern. These petals surround six stamens, four long and two shorter.

The leaves at the plant's base are large, broad, deeply lobed, and form a rosette. As you progress up the plant the leaves become more elongated with progressively shallower lobes or no lobes at all. Bastard Cabbage grows from a large taproot which is of no use as food to my knowledge.

The flowers and green seedpods can be eaten raw. The flower buds are also eaten raw or cooked. Whereas, the younger leaves are cooked like collard greens. The younger stems can also be cooked and eaten this way.