Hippocastanaceae Aesculus californica (Spach) Nutt.

California Buckeye

Pomo, Kashaya - Food, Unspecified

Use documented by:
Goodrich, Jennie and Claudia Lawson, 1980, Kashaya Pomo Plants, Los Angeles. American Indian Studies Center, University of California, Los Angeles, page 27

View all documented uses for Aesculus californica (Spach) Nutt.

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Scientific name: Aesculus californica (Spach) Nutt.
USDA symbol: AECA (View details at USDA PLANTS site)
Common names: California Buckeye
Family: Hippocastanaceae
Family (APG): Sapindaceae
Native American Tribe: Pomo, Kashaya
Use category: Food
Use sub-category: Unspecified
Notes: Boiled nuts eaten with baked kelp, meat and seafood. Nuts were put into boiling water to loosen the husk. After the husk was removed, the nut meat was returned to boiling water and cooked until it was soft like cooked potatoes. The nut meat was then mashed with a mortar stone. The grounds could be strained at this stage or strained after soaking. The grounds would be soaked and leached a long time to remove the poisonous tannin. An older method was to peel the nuts and roast them in ashes until they were soft. They were then crushed and the meal was put in a sandy leaching basin beside a stream. For about five hours, the meal was leached with water from the stream. When the bitterness disappeared it was ready to eat without further cooking.

RECRD: 773 id: 1619

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