Immortal by Default: A brief history of humans and the ginkgo tree

Re:Immortal by Default: A brief history of humans and the gi... by dole on Monday October 24, 2022 @08:22PM (#33324535)

Every autumn my mother would drive us to the local cemetery to pick up the gross fallen ginkgo seeds into a bag to take them home, wash the smelly seedcoats off, drop them onto a baking pan into the oven to roast them.

They taste and smell nothing like the vomit seedcoats, they’re kinda like pistachios but a bit rubbery and chewy. I’m still surprised they’re not more popular and that more people don’t know, but perhaps it’s because most municipalities avoid the smelly males. I didn’t realize the toxicity until checking wiki, either.

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Re:Immortal by Default: A brief history of humans and the gi... by dmm10 on Monday October 24, 2022 @08:46PM (#33324723)

Female ginkgo trees are the ones that bear fruit and hence produce the offensive odor. But branches of a male ginko tree can (rarely) change sex and bare fruit.

I've never tried Ginko kernels roasted to the point they were crunchy. But I find the ones roasted (some times on a skewer) to the consistency of firm cooked lima beans have a flavor similar to lima beans. Preparing lima beans is much easier though they produce very different medicinal effects.

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