Chicken Librarian Makes: Pickled Ramps
Pickled Ramps
recipe from thespruceeats.com
Ingredients:
1 pound ramps (Allium tricoccum)
1 cup water
1 1/4 cups apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon salt
crushed red pepper (to taste)
2 to 4 whole allspice berries
1/2 teaspoon whole mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon whole coriander seeds
1/4 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
6 to 8 whole black peppercorns
Instructions:
1. Gather the ingredients.
2. Slice off the string roots at the bottom of the ramps and then a little bit above the point where the white part ends and the green leaves separate out. Wash the ramps well. You're only going to pickle the white parts with a bit of the green attached, but don't throw out the leaves; see tips & tricks for more info.
3. Prepare the brine by putting the water, vinegar, honey, and salt in a small saucepan and stir to combine.
4. Add the crushed red pepper, allspice, mustard, coriander, cumin, and black pepper.
5. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes.
6. Place a clean 1/2 pint canning jar on its side. If canning the ramps, please follow all safe canning instructions. Lay the ramps in with the white part toward the bottom of the jar. Laying them with the jar on its side makes it easier to keep the ramps straight so that they will all line up vertically when you set the jar upright.
7. Pack the ramps in so tightly that you cannot squeeze in a single ramp more. This will ensure that the ramps stay immersed in the brine rather than floating up out of it. Be sure to leave 1/2-inch headspace between the top of the ramps and the rim of the jar (trim the ramps if they are too tall).
8. Pour the hot brine over the ramps, covering them completely but still leaving 1/4- to 1/2-inch headspace; you can refrigerate leftover brine and use it for future batches of pickles. Screw on canning lids.
9. Process the pickled ramps in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Wait at least a week for the flavors to develop before sampling (they will be even better after a month).
Tips and tricks:
1. Pickled ramps will keep, unopened, at room temperature for at least 1 year (they are still safe to eat after that but the quality will decline). Once opened, store in the refrigerator.
2. Don't want to can them? They store just fine in the refrigerator for up to 3 months. As if they'd last that long anyway!
3. Remember crushed red pepper will get hotter as it sits. Don't want any heat? Don't add the pepper. I only add about 1/4 teaspoon to mine.
4. For more information on ramps and foraging for them sustainably, see this post.
5. Save your ramp leaves. You can blanch them and freeze them then add them to dishes throughout the year. Want to use them fresh? See this post, this post, and this post.
That's it!
'til next time
-k
xoxo