Salicorne

I guess "samphire" is the English word for it, or "sea asparagus".

It looks like samphire. where do you live? In England I have only ever seen it in fishmongers' shops, not greengrocers'. When blanched in water it has the texture of very thin asparagus and tastes of seawater.

samphire's coming back as a 'trendy' ingredient. It's not easy to harvest (grows on the sides of cliffs, not sure if it can be cultivated?) and so is only really found at farmers markets, and some fishmongers.

I've never had it myself, but hugh fearnley-wittingstall featured it in his river cottage series, so there might be something about it on his web-site somewhere. If I remember correctly he had a go at pickling it.

having done a bit more research there are two types of samphire:

Samphire (from www.waitrose.com)

Samphire comes in two forms, marsh and rock. Marsh samphire, otherwise known as glasswort (Salicornia europaea), grows wild on the salt marshes while rock samphire (Crithmum maritimum) is a completely different plant and is found on rocks and cliffs. Marsh samphire can be bought in fishmongers, organic shops and Tescos (?), whereas rock samphire has to be picked from the wild. Avoid any marsh samphire that looks slimy and always wash before trimming any tough stalks. It can be eaten raw or cooked, its succulent green stems adding a deliciously salty element to salads and sauces. To cook, add to a pan of unsalted boiling water, return to the boil and drain. Often used to accompany fish, it is also good with lamb.

So I guess salicorne is marsh samphire

I've seen it a few times in jars at the Auchan, always meant to pick up a jar but never have.

I read about salicorne from reading about the salt farms of Brittany, in Guérande. Anyway I live in Portland, Ore., which is far from Brittany.

I had some today! I think. It was called "sea beans" and it was available at the fancy food store for like $10/lb. I said "sheesh!" and just ate a little bit in the store. So good! Salty deliciousness. Maybe I should actually shell out for some... Just a little to make a salad with... sigh.

And it was from California.