Picking & Cooking Wild Garlic
Last summer we’ve walked in quite a few places in England and Wales, from the Exmoor Park to the Lake District, through the Forest of Dean and the Cotswolds. Each time we discover wonderful British landscapes, which are very different from where we come from. I think walking is one of the best way to discover a country and we’re not going to stop there!
As days are getting sunnier and warmer, we feel like going out for a nice bowl of fresh air again. So yesterday we went for a walk in Gloucestershire, starting from a small town called Painswick. But it was different this time as we decided to join a walking group called Brunel. They are a friendly club for walkers in their 20s and 30s. They organise walks of different levels and difficulties every week and yesterday was our first one.
The walk was great but what was even better is that we didn’t come back empty-handed. On our way, we picked wild garlic. It was everywhere and I had never seen some before - there isn’t any in the south of France. I knew what it was but had never cooked it so this was the occasion to do something about it.
Wild garlic, or ramsons or allium ursinum, is a wild relative of chives. They grow in deciduous woodlands with moist soils. Leaves grow in February-March and flower from April to June, before deciduous trees leaf. The leaves look like those of the Lily of the valley and can be mistaken for it.
The leaves are edible, unlike those of the Lily of the valley which are poisonous. They can be used in salads, as a spice, cooked as a vegetable or made into a pesto. The flowers are also very tasty.
There is evidence that it was used as a medicine by Celt and Germanic people. Today wild garlic is popular for its high content in vitamin C and its slimming properties.
Recipe ideas
- Penne with wild garlic pesto
- Wild garlic soup
- Salad with tomatoes, cucumber and wild garlic
Have you ever tried it? What is your best recipe with wild garlic?
You can see other pictures of our walk on my Flickr photostream.
(c) photo by Bienenwabe, photog10 Brian, net_efekt
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