skip to main content

Garlic scapes

9 years ago

ok, here's another one that I just must not do correctly. I've tried sauteing garlic scapes and they either dry out or get tough. Am I supposed to steam or boil them first? :)

Speaking of garlic scapes, what would you make for dinner if you had some nice garlic scapes, baby bella mushrooms, and roasted red peppers? lol!

Comments (4)

sleevendog (5a NY 6aNYC NL CA)
9 years ago
Are you buying them or harvesting from your crop?

I just picked a healthy harvest yesterday. I picked at the first curl. Last year mine were hard and woody because i picked too late. Wow did they come up fast this year...just over the past week...if i waited it may have been too late.

I was hoping to have them for a 4th of July party but may not happen. If harvesting from the garden, just pick one and taste for tenderness. Mine are perfect now.

Like asparagus, you may find a tough woody lower section that will not be edible that can be cut or snapped off. If tender when fresh, will be tender sauteed. I just quickly saute with a bit of garlic and maybe a shallot first...medium heat...and a handful of fresh herbs like thyme and chives and serve as i would asparagus...with chicken, fish, or pork or any veggie meal...i like them whole with their curl and still firm, just laying on top of the plate...
(top of the serving protein)....pretty and yummy.
trudy_gw
9 years ago
Chopped one into small pieces for my salad at lunch...oh love the taste. Mulch milder than chomping into a garlic bulb.
Grilled a few last week which were rubbed with garlic oil.

Collect early or they will be tough.
Related Discussions
Garlic scapes
Q
Comments (5)
I am concerned aboout the botulisim scare. And is there any way to know for sure that the garlic bulbs and/or scapes are free from botulism. Are there any bloggers that know a lot about this subject? It is important to keep botulism in perspective rather than to let it scare you. First understand the c. botulinum spores are all around us all the time in the air and especially common in soil. You live with them all the time. But the spores pose no threat to you. The threat is from the toxins they produce if food contaminated with them is stored in an anaerobic environment and you then ingest that food. So in this case your fears are totally unfounded. Is there anyway to know if your garlic is free from spores? The odds are high that they are not, that they do have spores on them as well as other soil-borne bacteria since they were grown in the ground. But those spores won't hurt you anyway so there is no need to worry about it. Before you would eat the garlic anyway you would wash and peel it and likely cook it in some way. That eliminates the problem. Not sure why you would want to read a blog about it. Blogging is just one person's personal opinion, not facts. If you want to learn more about it go to a legit info source on botulism like the CDC website or NCHFP. Dave
...See More
Elephant Garlic scape....what do I do?
Q
Comments (10)
In 25 years of growing elephant garlic, I have never seen the flowers produce seeds, so I say ignore that comment - just won't happen. Although I cut and eat most of the scapes from my elephant garlic, I always leave a number of them because I like seeing the tall flowers around my garden. You definitely need to dig it up once leaves are yellowing (I usually let about half the plant yellow), and definitely dig from under the garlic to recover all the corms (hard cloves growing around the outside of each bulb) that you can for replanting. That is a really good way to significantly increase your stock of garlic, though it takes a couple of years before they make nice heads. I always store the garlic in a cool place (essentially in the house with AC) once it is dry and cured a bit, and I wait until the fall, mid-October here in Z7, to replant. The great thing about elephant garlic is that it lasts through the winter very well.
...See More
Pickled Garlic Scapes
Q
Comments (2)
Mmm, those look good, malna! Have you eaten scapes before? I tried garlic scapes this year for the first time, lactofermented with some dill. Wow! I was surprised at the HUGE garlic flavor. When DH eats some of these, I do too...as a form of self-defense.
...See More
softneck garlic scaping
Q
Comments (3)
Small cloves produce better greens than what are generally tiny bulbils. Better to always cut off the scapes pretty much regardless of whether the variety is hardneck or softneck. Always better bulb size when you do that, - well - almost always anyway. Softnecks (two types - Artichokes and silverskins) may bolt, but they are called softnecks because they very seldom ever do. But that doesn't mean they won't, although there is probably no forecasting just when it will happen. Hardnecks (8 types all seemingly more primitive that the softnecks and do not keep as well) will almost always bolt, although there is an intermediate group that they now put with the regular hardnecks called weakly bolting hardnecks (Turbans and Asiatics) which may or may not. The semi-woody flower stem produces the "hardneck" making them completely unsuitable for braiding. No bolt - no "hardneck", even if the variety is officially a hardneck, and that reverse happens sometimes, too. In the US generally hardnecks do better in the North and softnecks in the South. Exceptions to this vary from grower to grower, and are quite common. Generally Creoles are one of the exceptions doing generally much better in the South, even when they regularly or commonly bolt.
...See More
skeip
9 years ago
Toss with Olive Oil, Salt and Pepper and do them on the grill until a little charred. YUM!!

Steve
party_music50
Original Author
9 years ago
yes, they're mine -- picked fresh and tender at the proper time before they've uncurled... I've grown garlic for MANY years... snapped off with my fingers to be sure they're not woody, just like I'd do when harvesting asparagus. I suspect I just blast them at too high heat for too long then. Thanks for the replies!

Sign Up to Comment

Related Stories

COOL-SEASON CROPS Cool-Season Vegetables: How to Grow Garlic

By Marianne Lipanovich

Beloved in a wide range of dishes the world over, garlic thrives in a fall garden and is easy to grow

COTTAGE STYLE My Houzz: Creativity Flows in a New Hampshire Cottage

By Rikki Snyder

Simplicity and natural surroundings provide inspiration for an artist’s work and for her home’s peaceful, pretty interiors

LANDSCAPE DESIGN How to Create an Unforgettable Garden

By Jay Sifford Garden Design

Make an impression that will linger long after visitors have left by looking for the possibilities and meaning in your landscape

FALL GARDENING 7 Delightfully Different Bulbs for Your Spring Garden

By Matt Kilburn

Fall planting: Stray from the standards for a more exotic spring garden that draws applause

Sponsored

Remodel Repair Construction

9 Reviews

Industry Leading General Contractors in Westerville

More Discussions

Olive oil prices - what oils do you cook with…

31

Tips on Enchiladas please

16

Does coriander actually add anything?

8

Premade Frozen Crab Cakes

14

Thank-you for the apple peeler!

3