Hi there!

It wouldn’t be spring without a wild garlic post! Probably one of the most abundant and easiest to identify plants in our wild larder. Seeing the carpets of wild garlic burst out of the ground in the woods near me is always exciting.

Whether cooking professionally or at home there are loads of uses for wild garlic, a couple of which are included in this post. A super quick and easy way is to steam a bunch and use them to garnish some of your favourite springtime dishes, such as roast spring lamb or one of my favourites, wood pigeon with skirlie and buttermilk!

Wild garlic

Wild garlic, also known as ramsons, is a herbaceous perennial plant that grows in woodlands and meadows across the UK, Europe and Asia. It is, as the name suggests, a wild relative of onion and garlic and a member of the Allium family.

In the UK, wild garlic has been used since the Middle Ages and has been credited with many medicinal qualities. It is often used for treating cardiovascular, respiratory, and digestive problems, as well as for the sterilisation of wounds. Wild garlic is a mineral-rich vegetable and is sometimes called the “magnesium king” of plants because of the high levels of this mineral found in its leaves.

When harvesting, as always make sure you are 100% confident in what you are picking. In the UK never dig up wild garlic as it is protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act (1981), pick leaves that are fully matured and are easily identifiable by their smell and from a single leaf growing from a single stem. Leaves will store for a couple of days in a container in the fridge but it is best to use straight away for peak flavour and nutrition. A great way to store long-term is to blitz wild garlic leaves in a blender with a little oil then pour into ice cube trays and freeze or to make wild garlic butter! Check out my wild garlic butter recipe here.

Wild garlic pesto

While there are weights in this recipe, you should treat them more like guidelines. I love extra nuts in my pesto and you may like it with an extra cheesy or herby flavour! Traditionally, pine nuts would be used in pesto, but if like in our house someone has a pine nut allergy (or you just don’t have any to hand) you can use almost any nut to compliment your wild garlic. I also use standard olive oil as I prefer its more neutral taste. I find extra virgin olive oil, while amazingly healthy, affects the flavour, especially when cooking for any length of time.

Makes: 6+ servings

Cook time: 10 minutes

Equipment:

• Microplane grater

• Salad spinner

• Blender

• Mason jar

Ingredients:

• 1 large bunch of wild garlic, washed

• 125g cashew nuts

• 100g parmesan. finely grated

• 150g olive oil

• ½ lemon, juiced

• 1 tsp sea salt

Instructions:

Add all the ingredients to your blender and blend until fully incorporated. Transfer to a clean jar and store in the fridge for up to two weeks.

Download recipe here

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Happy cooking!

Stu