It’s wild garlic season
What is wild garlic?
Wild garlic, also known as ramps in the US, is a wild plant that grows abundantly in the UK. A firm favourite of foragers and chefs alike, it’s used in recipes for its strong garlic-like flavor and pungent aroma. Wild garlic can be found in woodlands, hedgerows, and along riverbanks from March to May. Due to it’s availability and relative ease to identify it’s a perfect first step into foraging and wild food, but as with all seasonal goodness you have to make the most of it whilst it’s around!
Finding & IDENTIFYING Wild Garlic
Finding wild garlic is relatively easy, especially during its growing season. It thrives in damp, shady areas with nutrient-rich soil, making woodlands, hedgerows, and riverbanks the ideal places to search for it. When looking for wild garlic, it is essential to be careful not to mistake it for lily of the valley or autumn crocus, which are poisonous. Wild garlic leaves are long and narrow, similar in shape to lily of the valley leaves. However, the easiest way to tell whether you’re in the right patch is the telltale smell of.. garlic! Give a leaf a good rub and sniff to double check.
If you’ve lost your sense of smell (perhaps due to a pesky worldwide viral pandemic?) then another way to differentiate is Lily of the valley has two leaves per stem, wild garlic only has one.
Wild garlic leaves are typically bright green in color and grow up to 25cm in height. Wild garlic also produces small white flowers in late spring, which are also edible and have a milder flavor than the leaves. The small white flowers are a tell-tale sign you’re in the right place.
Try to pick in areas away from footpaths, and make sure to follow good foraging practices by only taking a tiny amount from each patch, and only taking enough for what you need.
Preparing Wild Garlic
Before using wild garlic, it is essential to clean it thoroughly to remove any dirt or bugs. To clean wild garlic, rinse it under cold running water and pat it dry with a clean cloth. Once cleaned, you can use wild garlic leaves raw or cooked, depending on your preference.
Raw wild garlic leaves are perfect as a garnish or in salads, sandwiches, or in a pesto. Be mindful that the flavour of wild garlic is strong, so if you are looking for a subtle garlic hum, avoid using too much.
Cooked wild garlic is ideal for soups, stews, risottos, and pasta dishes. To cook wild garlic, sauté it in olive oil or butter until it wilts, then add it to your dish. You can also blanch wild garlic in boiling water for 30 seconds, then transfer it to ice water to stop the cooking process. This will help to preserve its bright green colour.
RECIPE: Wild Garlic & Field Blends 001 Pesto
Ingredients:
80g wild garlic leaves
50g lightly toasted pine nuts
50g parmesan cheese (can be substituted with nutritional yeast)
150ml good quality extra virgin olive oil
Field Blends 001 to taste (around a tsp is a good place to start)
Instructions:
Wash the wild garlic leaves and pat them dry.
Toast the pine nuts in a dry pan until lightly browned.
In a food processor, combine the wild garlic leaves, toasted pine nuts, and parmesan cheese. Pulse until roughly chopped.
While the food processor is running, slowly pour in the olive oil until the mixture forms a smooth paste. Blend to desired consistency - if being used on pasta, smoother is better (in our opinion).
Hit it with a healthy helping of Field Blends 001 to punch up all of those key flavours.
Use in a pasta, emulsified with butter and pasta water, and top with more parmesan. Or use on top of fish, or as you would any other delicious pesto!