- Hey, I'm Les Stroud.

Welcome to another "Wild Harvest".

When you get involved with local foraging, you wanna do it safely and responsibly, you can do that by reading books.

You can do that by going online and researching.

But the best thing you can do is to tie in with a local forager.

A local expert who can teach you the ways of sustainably and safely harvesting from the wild so that you can then enjoy your own wild harvest.

(gentle tranquil music) When you think about wild edible plants, you often consider only one way to eat them.

Pull berries off of a bush.

Maybe you boil up a critter.

But when there is a single species of plant or small creature, or even an algae, that you can process and eat in all kinds of different ways, well then you really open yourself up to a variety of opportunities for enjoying a wild harvest.

(gentle tranquil music) (lively upbeat music) ("Arctic Mistress") ♪ I wanted to feel her wind blow across my face ♪ ♪ I wanted to see - [Les] On our third excursion into Alaska via the ship the Queen Elizabeth, Chef Paul and I were happy to get right back to our usual philosophy of diving a little deeper into one plant at a time.

Who knew it was actually going to be an algae, held as a super food and becoming extremely popular around the world.

Now is the time for Paul and I to disembark under the port of Juno, Alaska and meet up with Lia Heifetz who owns and operates the kelp harvesting company, Barnacle Foods.

♪ Ooh-ooh, breathe the arctic air ♪ (water lapping) - [Lia] Their she is.

- Wow.

All right, so what are we looking at here?

What determines a healthy specimen versus a non-healthy specimen?

Young versus old?

- Yeah, so we're looking at some Bull Kelp, Nereocystis Luetkeana.

It tends to grow in these areas where there's a lot of current, lots of nutrient flow.

So the amazing thing about this is that it grows and dies every year.

So it's made up of the fronds, this leafy blade part here, and the stipe, which is fairly unique to this species.

It's really hearty, crunchy and grows down.

It's attached to the bottom.

I'm just gonna cut it off so we can take a closer look and you can eat it straight out of the water, but we like to cook with it.

- When you say you can eat it straight out of the water, can I pull one at top?

- [Lia] Um-hm.

- Basically, have a bite and have a taste.

- Yep.

The flavor varies throughout the season.

- It's mild and buttery.

Interesting.

- The stipe is amazing in that it's actually a hollow tube.

- Yeah.

- So you can see the cross section there and it's filled with air and gas.

Actually, it's filled with some carbon monoxide.

(chuckles) It's been released now.

But if you're underwater looking for some oxygen, don't go to the bull kelp.

- This ain't it.

- And the stipe, if you wanna take bite.

- Yeah.

- Take a little one.

(kelp crunches) - [Les] Um.

What'd you think?

- [Lia] Yeah, that's a good one.

- You know I don't really like celery all that much.

I'd much rather have this in place of celery.

This is, wow, this is really good.

- [Lia] So not only does kelp provide us food, but it provides really important habitat for all sorts of animals that depend on it.

- Are there any poisonous lookalikes?

- Not that I know of.

- Okay.

- [Lia] It's considered a brown algae.

- Brown algae.

- And most are edible.

- [Les] Most are edible, at least in this part of the world?

- Yes.

- All right, so then how do we determine this kelp, it's kind of obvious 'cause this is a pretty, you know beautiful big example.

But still, how do we determine that this is bull kelp versus another kind of kelp?

Is there anything that even looks like it at all?

- Not up here, but what is really unique about it is it has this hollow stipe.

They can be the size of big softballs.

- Really?

- Yeah.

- [Les] Wow.

Wow-wow-wow.

- And then it has the leafy fronds that come off.

The fronds can be harvested and it'll continue to grow.

This is where it grows from.

However, if you cut the stipe, it won't continue to grow.

- It's done.

- Yep.

- [Les] Oh, so you could actually just pull off an individual frond?

- Yep.

- That's interesting.

So that if you were doing a lunch or a dinner and you really only needed two fronds for what you were doing- - Yep.

- [Les] You could go pull off a piece of frond and then this will just keep growing?

- Yep.

- Well, that's cool.

That makes a big difference too, because the texture and the consistency of the stipe and is the whole thing called a stipe?

- The whole thing is called the stipe.

Yep, the stipe or the stem.

- [Les] So much different than the frond.

- Yep.

- Vastly different.

- That is really what makes bull kelp unique.

- Okay.

- And its flavor and its texture.

- They're like two different plants in a way.

I mean if you had this on a plate and that on a plate, you've got two different ingredients.

- Exactly.

- That's really interesting.

Nereocystis, which is Greek for mermaid's bladder, the bull kelp can be found along the Pacific Coast of North America from Southern California to the Aleutian Islands in Alaska.

(gentle upbeat music) - This is a pretty epic spot you found for us to make lunch.

I'm literally jaw dropped.

I'm blown away.

This is absolute magic.

So I was thinking of making like a submarine sandwich.

Like a kelp sandwich.

I've never made a sandwich on the show.

- That sounds great.

You know there's two pieces to the bull kelp that we'll be working with.

Can I show you?

- Yeah, please.

- So the bull kelp we just harvested.

The fronds, this leafy part, similar to what you'd eat in a seaweed salad.

Can taste it.

- It's really nice on its own.

- Totally.

You don't even need to cook it.

- No, it's really good.

- And then the stipe, this hollow tube- - Okay.

- Really crunchy, hardy, hollow.

- Do you ever use it as straw?

- You can use it as piping.

I built a hot tub and used it as a pipe to fill the hot tub on the beach.

- (laughs) Seriously?

- Yes.

(laughs) - I'm impressed.

Here, let's put it on cutting board.

(gentle upbeat music) - [Lia] Very satisfying to cut.

- [Paul] Oh it really is.

Here.

- [Lia] Perfect rings.

- And you can see through it.

- [Lia] Yeah.

- It looks like a cross section of a really big olive.

- Yes.

Yep.

- Almost.

(gentle upbeat music) - It doesn't taste like an olive.

- No.

- So that's saltier.

- Um-hm.

- That has definitely more of a brine- - Yep, yep.

- [Paul] Sort of flavor to it.

Oh, that's really good.

- [Lia] Um-hm.

(gentle upbeat music) (gentle lively music) - [Paul] This stuff is so easy to catch.

- [Lia] Isn't that nice?

It's very satisfying.

- [Paul] It is.

I like how you can see the light through it as well.

- [Lia] Isn't that beautiful?

- Yeah, that's fun.

- Golden.

(upbeat music) - [Paul] I think that's a decent amount.

- [Lia] Um-hm.

- It'll make one nice sub.

(lively music) Oh, I love the smell of sesame oil.

It's one of those things, though, you can overdo it.

You don't really wanna go too heavy on it.

- And I'll bring out a couple of options for spice and give the kelp chili crisp.

- Ooh.

Ooh.

- [Lia] So it's made with the fronds, which we dry and then we sizzle up with various chilies, oil, garlic, very flavorful.

- Oh man, do you know what?

Even just smelling it, just kind of do the the one-two.

- Oh my gosh.

Yeah, that's it.

- Doesn't it seem like they're already friends?

- Yep.

- Ooh, it's got kick.

I love it.

- Um, so good.

- Okay, try that.

Just with your fingers.

I'll do the same.

Wow, I'm really happy.

That's great.

So you were talking about blanching.

- [Lia] So blanching obviously changes the flavor a bit and also just some other qualities.

(liquid bubbling) - [Paul] Whoa.

- [Lia] So it turned bright green.

But isn't that amazing, that color?

- It's vivid.

- Yep.

- [Paul] It really is.

Like, holy cow.

- So what happens there is chlorophyll, which is green, has a higher melting point than any of the other compounds that contribute to the color.

- Melting point?

- Yes, so the chlorophyll remains and everything else melts away and the chlorophyll is green.

- That's amazing.

That was a magic trick.

- Yeah.

(gentle upbeat music) - It's got more flavor, though.

- Yeah.

Really nice.

- Yeah.

Man, this is really fun.

(lively music) - [Lia] This.

(lively music) - Look at the color change on that.

That looks like candy.

(lively music) Little too hot.

You wanna try one?

(kelp sizzling) That one's got a little bit of a char to it.

- I like that.

- Okay.

So fun.

- (gasps) Whale.

- Oh, right there.

A huge one.

(whale blowing) Wow.

(lively music) Hey, Les.

- Yeah.

- We're ready for you if you're hungry.

- I'm trying to watch some whales.

- [Paul] Oh, my gosh.

(lively music) (whale blowing) Whoa.

(lively music) - I'd like to show you something interesting here.

Paul, I'm gonna try to just sear one of these on the grill.

- Oh, I love that idea.

- We may or may not use it, but see what happens.

(chuckles) We might lose some of that color.

Oh, (laughs).

We're not gonna eat that.

- Ah, a little bit of ash never hurt anybody.

It's good for the digestive.

- (chuckles) Oh, they're starting to crisp up.

- [Les] Kelp bacon.

- Okay, for me, I think we just simply do this.

- [Les] That's interesting.

(Lia chuckles) - [Paul] Right.

There we go.

- I'll hold that.

Good.

(gentle upbeat music) (upbeat music increases) - Ah.

- Your kelp sandwich.

- [Les] Ah.

(Lia chuckles) I won't lie, I can see this sandwich is probably that, ooh.

- For you.

- I'm not sure we've ever done a sandwich on "Wild Harvest", Paul.

- We have not.

- All right, well we will let the lady of the day tell me what I'm looking at here.

- Think twice.

To start with, we have some bread that was perfectly toasted on the fire.

And then we have kelp, four different ways?

- Kelp four ways.

- Four ways, in addition, kelp salad, the seared kelp rings and the blanched and then grilled kelp.

(gentle calm music) - Wow, that's got some serious excellent texture to it.

- [Lia] Wow.

- Um-hm.

- Sandwich cheers.

(Lia chuckles) - [Les] So when I look at it, it looks like you're about to eat a pickle sandwich, right?

It's got that, oh, and I'm not actually a big fan of pickles.

Not at all.

But that is not what I'm tasting in my mouth.

Oh, the spicing is great.

What's the spicing blend we've got going on here, because my mouth is very happy right now?

- We made a salad out of the fronds and flavored it some with some of Lia's chili oil and some sesame.

So we definitely brought an Asian vibe to the flavor profile of this.

There's lots of umami.

That's what I'm getting out of this.

There's just so much lingering, palette coating, happy flavors going on at one time.

- I am pleasantly surprised.

This is really, really good.

I wasn't sure.

I know all the elements tasted great on their own, but this is really good.

- All I really wanna say this time is I'm having one heck of a delicious and spicy sandwich.

Not spicy in a bad way.

Not spicy in a I'm gonna be in trouble later way.

Just a full mouth experience and a wonderful textural experience.

So that's really all I've got to say, Paul, 'cause this is pretty killer.

- They came for the kelp.

- Wow.

We'll let the humpbacks have the last word here.

I gotta say it's pretty hard to pull yourself away from a perfect beach and a delicious meal with breaching and breathing whales as your entertainment.

But it's time to get back on board the Queen Elizabeth and join up with Sous Chef Karin Dicks to see how much further she and Chef Paul Rogalski can take the bull kelp.

(lively upbeat music) - [Paul] Stipe, fronds, a little bit of tamari, a bit of water to help lubricate it and I'm gonna start there for my duck marinade.

(upbeat music) - So I will be starting now the peri peri sauce for Paul.

(upbeat music) - Oh, that smells so good.

(blender whirring) (upbeat music) Whoa, that is something I've never smelled before.

Getting all these crazy notes of herbaceousness and savory all in one.

(upbeat music) - I'm just going to rough chop my seaweed for my salad.

(upbeat music) - Time to try out these noodles.

(upbeat music) Yeah, there we go.

That's kind of what I'm looking for.

Something long like that.

Karin, have you ever blanched kelp frond before?

I gotta show you this.

And I'm not adding salt.

I don't think I need to.

We're gonna do a small batch, though.

Okay, there's the color.

- Ooh, wow.

- Transformation and in there.

So very cool.

(upbeat music) - [Les] Every so often I get a wonderful opportunity to take a wild harvested ingredient and make a drink.

Whether a tea or a broth or, in this case, a cocktail.

The Queen Elizabeth bartender, Teo Rivera, said he'd be happy to contribute his skill and knowledge of mixology to come up with something awesome and so he did.

(gentle upbeat music) (ice clinks) (gentle upbeat music) Good afternoon, Teo.

- Good afternoon, sir.

- All right, here we go.

This looks pretty awesome.

What did you have in mind here?

What's going on?

- What did actually come to my mind is creating a new version of a bloody Mary.

- [Les] Interesting.

- That's the savory flavor of tomato and the seaweeds actually.

- Yeah, okay.

I can see that, aesthetically, you're incorporating the look.

Replaces the celery, that's the bull kelp frond and this is the bull kelp stipe.

- The bull here.

- Okay.

- Look at this.

- Ah.

- That's awesome.

- That's nice.

All right, let's give it a try.

It's actually, looks really great.

(gentle upbeat music) That's a bloody Mary, all right.

Wow.

Now often people chew on the celery.

That works perfect.

- [Teo] It is actually.

- That's surprising.

- Thank you very much.

- I was not expecting that.

- Thank you.

- Wow.

Teo, that is yum.

I have the spiciness and as soon as I bit into the bull kelp, it just went, it smoothed it all out.

That's a great concoction and you were fast.

So I say I'm keeping this one.

And I say if you don't mind doing up four more for my friends that are gonna join us for today's Wild Harvest meal, we're gonna be down in the Queen's Grill.

This is great.

- [Teo] Thank you.

Cheers.

(gentle upbeat music) - Time to play with the stipe.

Essentially, I'm making a honey glaze.

It's very simple.

I'm gonna put some kelp in there as well, just to make sure it's got that natural salt.

(gentle upbeat music) I'm fascinated with the shape of these.

The way this stipe just simply cuts into these little rounds that are symmetrically perfect.

I wanna celebrate that.

I wanna try deep frying these little guys, somewhat having a batter on the outside of them.

I wanna see if that will work, 'cause my dish really does need texture.

All right, here we go.

Experiment time.

Oh yeah, that's cool.

My favorite moments in the kitchen, culinary exploration.

Okay, moment of truth.

There it is.

It's crispy.

I can tell through my tongs and I just gotta try it with the sauce.

See how that goes.

It's gonna hot.

(gentle upbeat music) I'm very happy right now.

Karin, it's very hot but I want you to try this.

(Paul laughs) - Um-hm.

- That'll do?

(gentle calm music) - [Les] Hello.

Hello.

- Hello.

- Karin, how are you?

- Hi, Karin.

- [Karin] Doing well.

Yourself?

Enjoy.

- Wow.

It looks great.

I tell you what, Paul, let me steal your show for just a moment before you get into the meal and tell you what you have sitting in front of you in the glasses there.

That's our Bull Kelp Bloody Mary.

So Teo up at the Midship Gin Bar, put this together for me.

And the idea here is to have a sip and then right after your sip, have a little bite off of the, what used to be a celery stick, with the kelp.

- Go ahead, Karin.

- Check that out.

It just blends together beautifully.

- Wow.

- [Les] I think he nailed it.

- That's a really nice surprise.

What we have is a tasting of bull kelp and- - Can we go for it?

- Please, yeah, go for it.

- [Les] And any particular way we should eat this?

- Not at all.

What I have is duck that's been marinated in both the stipe and the uh- - Fronds.

- Fronds.

And then on the right I have little noodles.

I'm thinking of a cold Japanese salad.

But instead of actually having noodles, we've got the frond.

And then I took the stipe and tempered it with a corn starch mix, so it's nice and crispy.

- Um-hm.

- Um.

- [Glenn] The rings are very good.

- Yeah.

- Very good.

- [Les] Wow.

- The flavors in this one are very good, eh?

The textures, the contrast, it's nice.

Nothing overpowers anything else.

Very tasty.

- Like you say, it's kind of a subtlety how it all blends together as well, which I really enjoyed.

And that duck was gorgeous.

Amazingly cooked.

So thank you.

That was a treat.

- Out of the starting gate, like the first bite for me was tremendous.

Like, wow.

Now, it's mellowing out.

It kind of has gone to this nice, even plain at this point.

I don't know if that's a plan when you make a dish like this, but.

- It's totally a plan.

So we've got those flavors, they're dissipating, cleansing.

Just wait till they have Karin's South African Kelp Feast.

- I will start with the chicken.

That is the South African dish, Chicken Peri Peri.

I didn't make it too spicy, but the tang is there.

(gentle calm music) - Oh, that's good.

Yeah, it's sweet.

- Um-hm.

- It is, yeah.

- You noticed that too?

- Yeah.

- [Les] Yep.

Ashley, what do you think in terms of the bull kelp?

- It's subtle in here, but it stands out at the same time, if that makes sense.

You have it on its own and you can really tell that there's something different to the rest of the vegetables and I like what it adds to the dish.

- Yeah, and Glenn, what about yourself?

- From here, to there, from the previous food with the duck, what an amazing vegetable.

Is it a vegetable?

Call it a vegetable?

- It's algae.

- Algae.

Amazing.

- Yeah.

- Cheers.

- Cheers.

- [Ashley] Cheers.

Thank you, chefs.

Thank you.

(glasses clinking) - Thank you.

- Amazing.

- [Les] And that's one of the most wonderful things about local foraging, you can have so much variety.

You begin from a place, maybe you're up on a mountain and you're harvesting something as small and as delicate as a spring beauty or you're picking snapdragon flowers to put on a plate as a garnish.

Or you're finding an algae such as bull kelp, prolific and productive and, usually, quite abundant.

This amount of variety, what we end up with on our plates, that to me is the pure magic of the wild harvest.

(gentle upbeat music) ("Arctic Mistress") ♪ Breathe the arctic air, ooh-ooh ♪ ♪ Breathe the arctic air - [Les] If you'd like to continue to wild harvest with me and Chef Paul Rogalski, then please check out our website at wildharvestfilms.com where we have recipes and foraging tips along with deleted scenes and outtakes from the making of "Les Stroud's Wild Harvest".

- [Announcer] Directly inspired by the series, Chef Paul and expert forager Les Stroud bring you the "Wild Harvest Recipe Book" highlighting all of Paul's dishes and complete with behind-the-scenes stories.

It is available for $29.99.

In addition, a DVD of this season is also available for $19.99.

To order, please go to wildharvestfilms.com, "Wild Harvest" TV show on Facebook or "Les Stroud's Wild Harvest" on YouTube.

(gentle tranquil music) (insects trilling) (gentle tranquil music) (birds chirping) (dramatic swooshing) (dramatic music)