Wild Garlic; an Ancient Woodland Herb Perfect for Foraging in Spring

An exploration of wild garlic, the ancient woodland indicator that has everyone out foraging for its bright green garlicky leaves at this time of year with history, folklore and recipes.

Spring is finally arriving in the UK (after a few false spring starts which seems to trick us every year) which means peak foraging season is upon us. One of the most popular and in demand foraged produce has to be wild garlic, and for good reason it is one of my favourites too! Nothing compares to that pungent garlic kick that you get from these greens. Wild garlic has so many incredible uses from pestos, soups, oils, butters, on pizza, in pastas, scones and the list goes on. Foraging can be so much fun (when done responsibly and safely of course) so get out and find some wild garlic (it can also be found at markets and local grocers if foraging isn’t your thing).

Wild garlic spends most of the year hiding underground in ancient woodlands and makes it’s anticipated appearance from late March through to May, flowering around mid-April. Wild garlic is native to Europe and parts of Asia and grows in abundance in the UK, Italy and France. There is also a species of wild garlic found in the USA and Canada, where it is often known as ‘ramps’ or ‘ramson’. Wild garlic was eaten by humans as early as the Ancient Greeks and Egyptians and it was also eaten in Britain as early as the Middle Ages, explaining the word ‘ramson’ as it comes from the Old English ‘hramsa’, which translates to garlic!

Wild garlic has long been used for medicinal reasons and it even features in Capitulare de Villis, which was essentially an instruction manual on how to manage the royal estates, written by Holy Roman Emperor at the time, Charlemagne. Written in c.800 AD this set of instructions included a list of herbs and plants that should be grown on royal grounds for medicinal purposes, and sure enough wild garlic was on that list. There is also an old Welsh rhyme suggesting wild garlic was known as a nutritional or medicinal plant;

‘Eat leeks in March and wild garlic in May, and all the year after physicians may play’.

Wild garlic is known to be the favourite post-hibernation snack of brown bears that live on mainland Europe, perhaps because wild garlic is full of antioxidants and has antimicrobial properties, or because the bears know how delicious this spring green is. The scientific name for wild garlic is allium ursinum which translates to ‘bears leek’ or ‘bears garlic’ for this very reason. Wild garlic is also a beloved plant by cows who enjoy grazing on it as a tasty snack and used to be encouraged by English farmers to keep their cows healthy due to its medicinal properties. However, today farmers try and avoid allowing their livestock from grazing on wild garlic because it has been proven to flavour the subsequent milk and cheese with the flavour of garlic, which is probably not what they are going for. Wild garlic is so beneficial for the local ecosystems in which it grows and has also become a food source for squirrels and badgers, as well as being a really important plant for pollinators. When learning about how beneficial foraged foods can be for the ecosystems it really exemplifies why sustainable and responsible foraging is essential.

If you find an abundance of wild garlic on a walk through the woods it is a good chance you are in an ancient woodland because wild garlic, along with other plants such as bluebells, primrose or lily of the valley, are a ‘ancient woodland indicators’. The woodland trust define an ancient woodland as ‘areas that have remained untouched woodlands since 1600 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and 1750 in Scotland’. This makes them such unique spaces with tree cover hundreds of years old, unique ecosystems, and home to many myths and legends.

Wild garlic is therefore steeped in folklore tales, which is fitting for an ancient wild plant, one such tale in European folklore is that, like it’s relative regular garlic, it can ward off evil spirits and protect against the evil eye. In Ireland wild garlic was used not only to ward off illness but the bulbs were woven into the roofs of thatched cottages for good luck and to keep the fairies (and possibly cats) out. It was such a commodity in Ireland that someone caught stealing wild garlic from private land would be required to pay a pretty hefty fine of ‘two and a half milch cows’. However, if the person was taking wild garlic to heal an ailment their penalty would be waived. A great reminder to us all to ensure we are on public land when picking wild garlic. If you are going out to forage this wonderful spring green then there are a few things to note, and a couple of poisonous look a likes to be aware of so I have linked a really informative guide here.

I have included some of my favourite wild garlic recipes and ways to preserve the wild garlic to use later in the year. I love to make wild garlic oil and butter and have included some suggestions on how to use them later on; from ajo blanco, to wild garlic scones and homemade pici pasta.

Wild Garlic Oil:

A great way to preserve any herbs, including wild garlic, is to make beautiful green herb oils. This recipe is great because you can also freeze the oil and use it later in the year. Some recipes for herb oils will blanch the herbs first, but here I have kept them raw for that punchy garlic flavour and instead the heat from the high speed blender will break down the wild garlic just as well. Ajo blanco is a gorgeous garlicky Spanish cold soup, thought to be the earlier inspiration for gazpacho. It is nutty from the almonds, with a little sherry vinegar hit and lots of garlic - which makes it a great pairing with the wild garlic oil, and the white and green combo looks really pretty!

Ingredients:

Wild garlic oil:

30g wild garlic

150g extra virgin olive oil

Method:

1. Wash your wild garlic thoroughly. Place into a blender or food processor and blend as fine as you can get it.

2. Add the extra virgin olive oil and blend the wild garlic in completely. Keep blending for at least five minutes (in one minute intervals).

3. Place a sieve lined with kitchen roll or muslin cloth over a bowl and place the wild garlic and oil mix into the centre. Let the oil drip through in the fridge overnight.

4. The next morning it should all have dripped through. You can gently stir anything left to press the rest out. But don’t press too hard as you want to keep the clarity in the olive oil. It will keep for a few days, or freeze to keep for longer. Serve and enjoy!

TIP: If you want to freeze your wild garlic oil for use at a later date, freeze in a small ice cube tray, that way you can use a little at a time without having to defrost it all!

Ajo Blanco (serves 4 starters):

100g crusty white bread

100ml ice cold water

100g blanched almonds

1 inch cucumber

4 medium garlic cloves

2tbsp sherry vinegar

50g olive oil

Salt and pepper

To serve:

Melon

Green grapes

Cucumber (no skin)

Method:

1. For the ajo blanco cut the crusts off the bread (keep them to use for other things e.g breadcrumbs). Soak the bread in ice cold water for a minute.

2. Cut the skin off of the cucumber. De-germ the garlic by cutting each clove in half and removing the germ with a small pairing knife.

3. Add the bread, water, almonds, cucumber, garlic, sherry vinegar, olive oil and blend together until smooth.

4. Season with salt and pepper. Add the salt a little at a time to taste.

5. Strain the ajo blanco through a sieve a couple of times.

6. Chill in the fridge for a couple of hours.

7. Dice your melon, green grapes or cucumber (or any combo for the topping) as small as you can.

8. Place in the bottom of the bowl in the centre. Pour over the ajo blanco. Decorate with more grapes and extra virgin olive oil. Even better try dressing with wild garlic oil (recipe above). Serve and enjoy!

Wild Garlic Butter and Pici Pasta:

Wild garlic butter is one of my all time favourite things to make with wild garlic, you can keep it in the fridge or freeze it to use later in the year. Pici pasta is a lovely and really simple homemade semolina pasta shape, that makes a thick noodle style pasta, and goes great with a wild garlic butter sauce with some fresh wild garlic running through it for that punchy garlic flavour. I also love adding lemon and vegetarian Parmesan for a bit of freshness and depth.

Ingredients:

Wild Garlic Butter:

200g unsalted butter

30g wild garlic

Method:

1. Tear up the wild garlic into a food processor with a good pinch of salt. Blend until it is as broken down as possible, this might take a couple of minutes (scrape down the sides as you go).

2. Bring the butter to room temperature. Add to the food processor and blend until whipped and the wild garlic has been completely incorporated.

3. Place in a kind of loose log shape in the centre of a piece of baking paper. Lengthways roll the baking paper around the butter as tightly as possible (but without it spilling from the sides of the paper).

4. Twist each of the ends of baking paper and place in the fridge overnight (or for a few hours) - serve and enjoy!

TIP: Freeze your wild garlic butter to use later in the year. You can freeze it in slices so you don’t have to defrost it all at once!

Wild Garlic and Lemon Pici Pasta:

Ingredients:

Pici Pasta:

200g fine semolina flour

100g lukewarm water

1tbsp olive oil

For the sauce:

30g of your wild garlic butter

1/2 lemon juice and zest

80g pasta water

30g vegetarian Parmesan

30g wild garlic

Salt and pepper

Method:

1. To make the pasta place the semolina flour onto a surface and make a well in the centre.

2. Pour the lukewarm water and olive oil into the centre of the well (you can do this gradually if easier).

3. With a fork stir the water and oil into the flour bit by bit until it is completely incorporated.

4. Knead the pasta dough gently for about 10mins until very smooth and it bounces back when pressed. Wrap in cling film and let it rest for at least 10 mins.

5. Roll out the dough into a log and cut into about 2-3cm wide pieces. With each piece roll into a thick noodle, pasta shape with the palm of your hands along the work surface. You can sprinkle them with semolina once rolled so they don’t stick when cooking.

6. Bring a pan of water to the boil and salt generously. Cook the pici for about 5 minutes or until they are fully cooked through.

7. For the sauce melt the wild garlic butter on a medium heat and add the lemon juice and zest and about half the pasta water.

8. Next add the vegetarian Parmesan and whisk in allowing it to melt into the sauce. Add in the pici pasta and give it a good stir to coat. Add a little more pasta water and the wild garlic, it will cook down pretty quickly in a matter of a minute or two. Season with salt and pepper. The pici will absorb the sauce well so you can add all the pasta water if needed. Once you have a thick but smooth sauce serve and enjoy!

Wild Garlic Scones (makes 6):

Scones are such a classic sweet treat, but they are also really delicious when made savoury. I often make cheddar scones and when wild garlic is around I am always adding it to the mix. That subtle garlicky flavour comes through really nicely and pairs great with a cheesy scone. Just add a little butter and enjoy!

Ingredients:

225g self raising flour

1tsp baking powder

50g cold butter

80g cheddar

50g wild garlic

100ml milk

Salt

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200’C (180 fan oven) and place a baking tray inside to heat up.

2. Blanch your wild garlic for 30 seconds in boiling water and place it straight into a bowl of ice cold water. Once the wild garlic has cooled completely remove and drain as much water out as you possibly can, using kitchen paper or muslin cloth.

3. Chop the wild garlic up into small pieces, you can use scissors for this to make it easier.

4. Sift the self raising flour and baking powder into a bowl along with a pinch of salt. Cut the cold butter into cubes and rub it into the flour until you get a breadcrumb like texture.

5. Grate the cheddar and add into the bowl along with the wild garlic. Mix together well so you get the cheese and wild garlic in every bite.

6. Add in the milk little by little to form a dough and bring together with your hands but don’t mix too vigourously. (If the dough becomes too sticky stop adding in the milk).

7. Sprinkle a little flour onto your surface and roll out the dough with a rolling pin until its about 3cm thick. Cut out the scones with a cutter - the trick here is not to twist the cutter at all. Ensure that you simply press the cutter down until it reaches the work surface, and then lift it straight back up without twisting. You can get to the scone by removing the dough from around it. This ensures they rise properly and won’t fall to one side when baking.

8. Once your scones are cut out remove the baking tray from the oven and carefully line with baking paper (or a silicone mat is great here) and add your scones to the tray. Brush on some milk (or you could do an egg wash diluted a bit with water) and pop the tray back in the oven for 20 mins.

9. Remove from the oven when they have risen and are golden on top - serve and enjoy!

If you read this piece or make one of the recipes - thank you! Right now I am just trying to write about a few things that I find interesting. I am both a restaurant and private chef so I am always coming up with and developing recipies and wanted to share them somewhere. I would love to get into food writing some more, so why not start here!

Further Reading:

The Seed Detective by Adam Alexander, Chelsea Green Publishing, 2022

Olive Food and Drink Podcast, ‘Barney Desmazery on Wild Garlic Deep Dive Episode’, Fri 28th March 2025

https://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/grow-plants/how-to-use-wild-garlic/#