Foraging walks & workshops 2024
Join us for a foraging walk or forage & cook workshop in Sussex.
2024 dates are available to book now.
Discover the huge variety of delicious and nutritious wild food that is all around us on a guided forays with an experienced foraging guide.
Coastal Foraging, Seaford
- Sunday 5th May 2024
Join wild food guide and cook Mike Cutting on a spring stroll on the Sussex coast to discover some of the common edible and medicinal wild plants and seaweeds that grow here .
Learn to begin identifying useful wild plants, as well their poisonous or hazardous relatives that you should be aware of whilst enjoying a few hours in the great outdoors. On this coastal walk we will encounter common wild plants as well as seaside specialists, seaweeds and (possibly) some spring fungi.
Mike is a seasoned outdoor cook with years of experience using wild ingredients, and has a particular interest in preservation methods including pickling and fermentation. On this walk you will be given ideas and inspiration on how to begin incorporating tasty, nutritious wild food into your cooking at home.
Followiing a guided plant ID walk, you will have the opportunity to try some homemade seasonal wild food preparations, which can include pestos, salads, pickles & ferments, wild herb frittatas and homemade cheeses.
forage, cook & preserve. Brighton
- Saturday 11th may 2024
I'm often asked at my foraging walks how I go about making the pestos, pickles, ferments and other wild food preparations that I serve to my guests. On this full day workshop we will gather wild ingredients together before using them to create your own unique wild crafted ferments and pickles.
Lunch is included and you will have the chance to sample a variety of wild crafted preparations including fermented chilli sauces, sauerkauts & kimchi, wild pickles, flavoured salts, vinegars, alcohols and more besides.
We will also cover other relevant preservation techniques to preserve your wild harvests, including dehydration and freezing.
The day includes:
- Wild food foraging walk examining and collecting spring wild plants.
-Fermentation class where you will make your own wild crafted ferment to take home with you
-Pesto making demonstration. Always one of the most popular dishes on my walks. Learn how to make my wild infused version of classic pesto.
-Quick pickling - make a quick pickle with wild ingredients to take home with you
- Lunch of hearty wild soup & bread with additional wild treats and tasters.
This event takes place in the gorgeous surroundings of Stanmer Organics, Stanmer Park, Brighton.
Summer Foraging Walk, Brighton
Saturday 15th June 2024
Do you want to learn about foraging? Learn how to identify edible plants to use in your kitchen at home (and poisonous plants to avoid), increase your knowledge of your local landscape and add more variety and nutrition to your diet?
If so then join wild food guide and cook Mike Cutting on this guided walk in Brighton's Wild Park on the edge of the South Downs. On this walk we will examine many species of wild plants and get ideas on how to safely identify and use them, based on Mike's extensive experience in the field and in the kitchen.
Summer is the time for wild flowers, seeds and fruits which can make delicious additions to your diet as well as bringing medicinal and nutritional alue. This unique chalk grassland habitat is home to a huge variety of wild plants. On this walk you will meet wild parsnip, raspberry, mugwort, st John's wort, wild brassicas, and many more besides.
As part of the experience you will have the chance to try a selection of individually prepared wild treats containing a variety of fresh and preserved wild foods including pickles, ferments, wild herb pesto, freshly cooked fritters, wild green cakes and more besides.
Autumn mushroom walk, east sussex
- Saturday 28th September 2024
Learn to begin identifying wild fungi on this autumn half day experience in the Ashdown Forest with wild food guide and cook Mike Cutting
Fungi are fascinating to many of us, and for good reason. Mounting evidence suggests that they may be the most important kingdom of life on earth, playing an essential part in the functioning of ecosystems and most of the organisms within them.
On this walk you will be introduced to some of the main groups, or 'families' of fungi that can be found in the South of the UK in the Autumn time. Edible, medicinal and poisonous species will be examined, and tips given on safe identification, harvesting and processing. We will also consider the wider ecological role of fungi and why they are so important, concerns regarding over harvesting and foraging good practice.
Please note that we will not be gathering large amounts of fungi to eat on the day, although you will have the chance to try some fungi treats prepared by myself at the end of the walk.
Exact location details within Ashdown Forest will be provided closer to the time.