A stew of meat and vegetables, so-called by loggers in north America.

A variety of fig with a purple-black skin and crimson flesh. Very sweet.

The black morel mushrooms is a highly prized wild fungus found in the spring, particularly in mountains. It has deep indentations on an elongated cap, giving it the appearance of a small brain or a black, crinkly honeycomb, on a white stem. (If gathering mushrooms you must be absolutely certain what you have before you eat them as many are very poisonous.)

Hair vegetable. Black moss is black algae which grows off the south coast of China in hair-like strands. It is treated as a vegetable and steamed or braised with bacon for Chinese New Year or used as a garnish or decoration.

A blackmouth is a catshark found from Iceland to the Mediterranean. It has bold blotches on its body. The blackmouth catshark is frequently caught in large numbers where bottom trawling and long-line fisheries take place, though most are thrown back, who knows in what condition. This is particularly the case in where there is trawling for deep water lobsters and prawns off Portugal and in the Mediterranean. Some are held back for human consumption, particularly following the decline in other deepwater shark species. This one is held to be at ‘least risk’ so is fair game. It may also be used for leather.

Blackmouth is a name for Chinook, also known as Quinnat salmon, which is the largest of the Pacific salmon, with the most intense flavour. The flesh has large flakes and high oil content. Coho is smaller and has paler flesh. Sockeye, also known as king salmon, has a four year life-cycle which contributes to the meatiness of its flesh, which is dense and velvety and turns deep red before spawning. It is considered good for tinning purposes. Pink is leaner and milder in flavour and is the favoured salmon in the United States.

The black mulberry is a native of north Persia and the Caucasus. It was brought at a very early period to Greece. Theophrastus was acquainted with it and called it “sukamnos”. It is only at a late period that this tree, brought by Lucius Vitellus from Syria to Rome, was successfully reared in Italy, after all earlier experiments, according to Pliny, had been conducted in vain. At the time of Palladius and even in that of Athaneus, the mulberry tree had multiplied but little. The introduction of silk culture under Justinian gave a new importance to this tree, and, from that time to the present, its propagation has taken place very rapidly. It was not till the 16th Century that this plant was superceded by the white variety for the feeding of silk worms. This species, according to Mueller, was planted in France in 1500. In the United States, it is scarcely hardy north of New York, but there and southward it is occasionally cultivated for its fruit. With thanks to David Lyne-Gordon.

Black mussels. Steve had black mussel soup in San Francisco, 06/2002, which he thought was spectacular.

Black mustard is a plant producing seeds with a spicy flavour.