Cattails are one of the most common wild foods. But it never occurred to me to actually eat them until I saw the young, pale, green-and-white, leek-shaped shoots at the Thursday Market in the South Perry District.

I was curious – and skeptical.

A little research explained the common cattail, or typha latifolia, is a generous plant and forager’s favorite. The highly recognizable, torch-like, cigar-topped stalks are often compared to the “Walmart of the Wild” or “Supermarket of the Swamp” because they provide not only food but shelter and fuel for heat. Old, dry stalks can be used to build a fire. Plus, if you’re lost in North America and you find cattails, you’ve also likely come upon fresh water. They grow where it’s wet – near ponds, marshes, lakes, rivers.

I skipped the whole getting-lost-in-the-wilderness part and bought some stalks from CasaCano Farms, then went to work on a wild rice pilaf.

It’s the first recipe in a new feature, débuting in the next Spokesman-Review Food section. Just Picked is slated to run weekly through the end of October and spotlight interesting ingredients found in CSA boxes or at local farmers markets.