Wild Watercress Salad with Vinegar

Watercress grew in every cold, clear mountain spring and stream, and mountain families harvested it in early spring when it was most tender and peppery. Unlike cultivated watercress, wild mountain watercress has a sharper, more assertive bite. Simply dressed with vinegar and salt, occasionally with hard-boiled egg slices, it was one of the first fresh greens of spring.

Ingredients

• 4 cups fresh watercress, large stems removed
• 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp water
• 1 tsp sugar
• ½ tsp salt

Black pepper

• 2 hard-boiled eggs, sliced (optional)
• 3 strips crispy bacon, crumbled (optional)

Directions

1. Harvest watercress from clean, cold running water — always harvest upstream from any livestock activity.
2. Wash thoroughly in multiple changes of cold water. Spin or shake dry.
3. Mix vinegar, water, sugar, salt, and pepper in a small jar to make a simple dressing. Shake to dissolve sugar.
4. Toss watercress with dressing. The cress will hold up to the vinegar better than delicate lettuce.
5. Top with sliced hard-boiled egg and crumbled bacon if using.
6. Pack in a mason jar — it travels better than a delicate salad.

Notes

Watercress grows in cool, clear springs and streams throughout Appalachia. The peppery bite comes from glucosinolates — the same compounds in mustard and horseradish. Mountain families considered watercress a spring tonic. Only harvest from clean, tested water sources well away from farmland or runoff.