LICHENS & MOSS:
To store Lichens, soak them overnight, boil well and allow to dry. Grind to a powder the boil again to form thick syrup, which can be kept in a sealed container & used to give body to other foods or added to stews.
LICHEN OR ROCK TRIPE:
Perhaps one of the most widely known Arctic food is the Lichen or Rock Tripe whose growth reaches into the Southern States.
Rock Tripes resembles a leathery dark lettuce leaf, up to about 3 inches wide, attached at its centre to a rocky surface.
Unless the day is wet, it is apt to be rather dry. It CAN BE EATEN Raw but better if eaten boiled to thicken soup or stews.
REINDEER MOSS:
Which extends range into the USA is another EDIBLE Lichen. It resembles moss however being a low greyish-green plant with a quantity of many branches stems instead of leaves.
ICELAND MOSS:
Another EDIBLE Lichen & not a Moss is found as far south as the USA. It is comparable to Reindeer Moss being a brownish-green plant whose numerous flat branches turn in to create a tube effect.
A bitter Lichen such as Iceland Moss is first boiled or soaked to remove this acid taste. After being dried, it is powdered by rubbing between the palms. The resulting flour is used to stretch ordinary flour & often used to make bread stuffs.
The flour is often re-soaked & finally re-boiled to gruel-like and jelly-like consistencies which by themselves are short on taste but surprisingly long in nourishment.
LICHENS = EDIBLE!:
NONE ARE POISONOUS!
Are low, variously shaped, grey, brown or black plants found throughout Northern Canada & Arctic & ARE EDIBLE states the R.C.M.P sources.
These lichens grow on both rocks & soil & are best collected when moist after the rain.
NONE ARE POISONOUS, but most contains an acid that is bitter & sometimes nauseous & may cause severe internal irritation if not first extracted by boiling or soaking in water.
ALL SEAWEED EDIBLE = YES:
Yes, all GOOD! TO EAT. You munch them Raw, or Boiled, simmer them in fresh water to make soup. Boil them with meat & other vegetables & even dry them for many future uses.
Algas of which seaweed's are one type are in fact regarded by scientist as potentially valuable sources of the gigantic amounts of protein rich food of the future. One particular one used in space is SPIRULINA.