Every spring my mother gathers huge quantities of wild garlic from the woods around our Sussex home, in the UK. Kilos of the young leaves are brought to the restaurant and blitzed into oil and frozen, which we have found is the best way to keep wild garlic. It affects neither the colour nor the taste, and from there it can easily be made into a chutney. Towards the middle of the season, the flowers of the plant are perfect for garnishes, with their hot, intense flavour, or they can be left to ferment for use later in the year.
Makes 1 kg (2 lb 3 oz).
Ingredients
- 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) fresh coriander (cilantro), stems and leaves
- 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) wild garlic leaves
- 4 green chillies
- a thumb-size piece of fresh ginger root
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled
- 200 mL (7 fl oz/scant 1 cup) vegetable oil
- 5 tablespoons lemon juice
- caster (superfine) sugar, to taste
- sea salt, to taste
Directions
- Put the coriander, wild garlic, green chillies, ginger and garlic in a blender, then, with the motor running, gradually pour in the oil until you reach a smooth consistency. Add the lemon juice and season to taste with sugar and salt. Store in the refrigerator for up to a week.
- If you need to keep it for longer, omit the lemon juice and add just before serving.
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Cover courtesy of Hardie Grant Books
Recipes excerpted with permission fromKricketby Will Bowlby, published by Hardie Grant Books August 2018, RRP $35.00.
