Ramps are wild onions.
They grow in wooded and damp areas in West Virginia, Ohio, and
probably most states in the Midwest.
The flavor is rather mild when you consider the reputation- and , in
my opinion, they aren’t any worse on the breath than any other
onion.
Luke, Jordan and I bought some at Mustard Seed Market for
$5.99 a pound, so they certainly aren’t cheap. (Although a lady
walking by as we picked ours out said we could go to Furnace Run,
in Richfield and pick them for free- except it is against the law to
pick things in the MetroParks. So I don’t think I’ll be doing that.)
You could probably plant some and let then multiply in a quiet corner
of your garden- but they DO multiply- and then you pull up every
second plant.
Cut off the root section, like you would a scallion, and any part of the
green that is discolored or damaged,
layer them with some fresh asparagus, drizzle with olive oil, lemon
juice,sea salt and pepper and roast in the oven for about 25 minutes.
The result is slightly crunchy and sour and salty.
YUM!
my mom always talks about these- I have Virginia/ west Virginia roots…. The lady talking about the metroparks always reminds me of my grandparents- more than once they dug up baby trees (2-3 feet tall!) from the metroparks and took them home… Regardless of how many times we told them that’s NOT allowed. Sigh…
Yum!
Ooh I love their pinky stems. I don’t think we have those here, but if they spread like the wild garlic does, and I suspect they do, you’d have to be very careful planting them in a domestic garden. I think they look just beautiful Heidi!
Hannah- it is a generational thing, I believe, this penchant for foraging on public lands. My mother always thought it was perfectly fine to dig up bushes, etc. from the side of the roads and in parklands.
Luke- you said it! And made it so yummy! Thanks!
Joanna- I have a wooded corner in the back of my yard that would be perfect- not an actual garden- more like – well- a wooded corner! 🙂
They looked great when Luke was fixing them. The smell was delicious. Some day I will have to try them.
Ramps of course! I have seen them once before in one of the market stalls selling wild mushrooms and ostrich ferns. You are right about them being so pricey. Right now, I would have to settle for scallions until I find them in the wild. Cheers!
I have been a forager in my time, Arthur, and it is wonderful to find them in the wild.
I have also planted many ostrich ferns so that I can make the curled frond salad- but it is REALLY hard to pick them- because then the ferns are gone in a moment- rather than after a season.
I’ve never seen ramps, but they look amazing! Like a mixture of ramson and spring onion. 😀
Love your combo with green asparagus! I’m sure it tasted devine!
Hi Kath!
I just went to your blog – and actually left a very long comment on your latest post. 🙂
The ramps are delicious- and anything is great with asparagus. My niece spent a couple of months in Germany and her host family had a healthy bed of Spargle (is that how it is spelled in German?) – she hates asparagus and thought the food was terrible! As she described the ” horrible food” she had to eat my mouth was watering- Spargle soup, spargle ommelettes , roasted spargle with spaetzle…honestly I’ve been making up those foods ever since!
I love all things onioney, so I’m sure I’d love these. I wonder if you could use the tops as you would leeks?
We ate them roasted. They have a slighter onion flavor- but add to the fiber content and are very yummy!