The best harvest time for wild garlic
The wild garlic cannot be harvested fresh all year round, as it lets its leaves grow fresh from the ground every spring and retreats completely back into its root-like bulb in late summer. But it is not true that its leaves and flowers would become poisonous after flowering. The flowers only taste very intensely of garlic at this time, which is not for everyone. Leaves harvested late are more fibrous and of lower quality than fresh green leaves cut in March and April. After harvesting, you can keep the wild garlic fresh in the refrigerator for a few days. This short-term preservation works a little better with the following tricks:
- put the wild garlic bunch in a glass of water
- Wrap the wild garlic in damp kitchen paper
- Put the wild garlic in an inflated plastic bag and knot it
also read
- Put in wild garlic and make it durable
- Wild garlic for the kitchen: harvest time and interesting facts
- The fox tapeworm as a danger when consuming wild garlic
It is better to freeze leaves and flowers than dry them
If you want to keep the wild garlic longer than just a few days, you have to either dry it, freeze it or put it in. In contrast to other herbs, drying is only a secondary option for wild garlic, as wild garlic loses its aroma. It is better if you freeze the wild garlic whole or chopped. A clever approach is to freeze chopped wild garlic in a little water in an ice cube mold. Not only is the aroma retained, but it is also released less strongly to other foods stored in the freezer compartment. The wild garlic ice cubes can easily be used for the preparation of sauces, soups, dressings, wild garlic pesto and other dishes.
The pickling of wild garlic
When pickling wild garlic, make sure that the harvested leaves and flowers are processed as freshly as possible. Basically there are two different ways of soaking the wild garlic in vinegar or in oil. So-called wild garlic capers made from wild garlic buds that have not yet opened are particularly appealing. You have to find exactly the right time for their harvest in spring, when the wild garlic flowers have not yet opened. The harvested buds are then boiled with a little salt and herb vinegar and are ready for consumption after about 2 weeks of ripening.
Tips & Tricks
Since the parts of the wild garlic plant can be contaminated with invisibly small fox tapeworm eggs, you should always wash them thoroughly before eating them raw or storing them.
