If you collect wild garlic, you have to pay attention to a few things, because confusing wild garlic with other plants entails a risk of poisoning.
With these tips, the collection and preparation work.
Wild garlic can be used in many ways: from pasta to soup to butter, many delicious dishes can be prepared from wild garlic.
The forest herb smells intensely of garlic, is slightly spicy and tastes fresh at the same time.
Before the forest garlic ends up in the kitchen, it is best to look for the pointed leaves in the forest.
However, caution is advised, because wild garlic has poisonous doubles.
If you want to avoid this, there are a few tips to keep in mind.
Poisonous twin: differentiate between wild garlic and lily of the valley
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Wild garlic can be confused with lily of the valley.
© Rech/Imago
Wild garlic spreads relatively inconspicuously on the forest floor, but even untrained noses can smell garlic-like scents.
However, it is only when the flower is in bloom that you can clearly tell whether it really is wild garlic.
The plant looks very similar to many others - such as the poisonous lily of the valley and the highly poisonous autumn crocus.
Because they also bloom in spring, laypeople often find it difficult to distinguish between them.
If you are unsure, this is the best way to proceed: wild garlic leaves rubbed between your fingers smell of garlic.
Otherwise throw away the leaves immediately and wash your hands thoroughly, because lily of the valley and autumn crocus are poisonous.
You should also be careful when smelling it, because if you smell garlic on your fingertips, you may be misled by it with the next leaf.
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How the look of the doppelganger differs
Lily of the valley blooms at the same time as wild garlic and prefers similar locations in the forest.
Accidentally consuming them can cause diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and abnormal heart rhythms.
The autumn crocus, on the other hand, only shows its leaves in spring and only flowers purple in autumn, and it also grows in meadows.
Eating their leaves - even when cooked - is fatal.
Anyone who has accidentally eaten them should report this to a doctor or poison control center as soon as possible.
Optical characteristics also distinguish the plants.
Wild garlic has one or two individual, elliptical leaves with a stalk, smells strongly of garlic and later flowers in umbels.
Lily of the valley, on the other hand, has two to three elliptical leaves that grow from a pseudostem, do not smell and the later flowers hang bell-like from the stem.
Autumn crocuses have three to four lance-shaped, tulip-like leaves and no stalk and only flower in autumn.
Preserve wild garlic
Wild garlic is in season from around the end of March to mid-May.
Because it doesn't stay fresh for long, it can be preserved longer - for example in the form of pesto, oil or butter.
Wild garlic pesto in particular is a great basis for many recipes.
Ingredients for a basic recipe for about five jars: approx. 1 kg wild garlic leaves, 0.5 l vegetable oil (olive oil or sunflower oil), 150 g cashew nuts, 150 g feta cheese, 30 g coarse-grained sea salt
Here's how it works: It's important to wash the wild garlic leaves thoroughly: Then cut off the stalks and dry the leaves well in the salad spinner.
Chop the cashews in a food processor and set aside.
Then gradually chop the wild garlic leaves in the machine, add oil, salt, feta cheese and chopped cashew nuts in portions and process to a smooth mass.
Pour the pesto into the jars, cover with plenty of oil and close tightly.
(ncz/elm/spot)
List of rubrics: © Rech/Imago