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Wild Garlic in the Woods

© 2022 | http://angiesrecipes.blogspot.com

© 2022 | http://angiesrecipes.blogspot.com

Wild garlic, aka ramsons, or ramps, or bear?s garlic (Bärlauch), is expensive to buy (100 g=2 Euro) but free to forage. Just make sure you?re picking the right thing: the leaves of wild garlic are easily mistaken for lily of the valley (Maiglöckchen), and also autumn crocuses (Herbstzeitlose). They are both poisonous and neither of these two smell or taste like garlic or chives. The best way to identify wild garlic is by smell. Crush a leaf in your hand and the aroma should smell strongly of garlic.

Wild garlic is used traditionally throughout Europe as a spring tonic due to its blood-purifying properties, similarly to bulb garlic, it is also thought to lower cholesterol and blood-pressure, which in turn helps to reduce the risk of diseases such as heart attack or stroke.
Picked wild garlic leaves will keep for 3-4 days in dark and cook place (a plastic bag in the salad draw of your fridge is ideal), but the flowers are best used on the day they are picked. The whole plant of this punchy springtime herb is edible and can be used in pestos, garlic butter, soups, tarts, marinades and more. This wild garlic flavoured butter is extremely versatile ? use to spread onto a sourdough bread, to make garlic pull-apart bread or gnocchi, to toss with pasta or melted over a griddled steak ...