How to Make Zesty & Crunchy Pickled Garlic Scapes: The Ultimate Preserving Guide
Zesty, crunchy, and bursting with garlicky goodness! Preserving your garlic scape harvest through pickling is an exceptionally rewarding experience. These distinctive pickles transcend mere condiments; they become a captivating conversation starter on any charcuterie board, an exciting garnish for dinner plates, or a vibrant flavor enhancer for a multitude of culinary creations. Whether you prefer the convenience of quick refrigerator pickles (no complex canning required) or the extended shelf life offered by the simple oven canning method, this guide will walk you through creating these delightful treats. Embrace the peak season’s bounty and transform your garlic scapes into a pantry staple you’ll cherish all year long.
The garden, as nature intended, is in its full, glorious abundance right now. And yes, that also means the weeds are staging their own impressive takeover! Keeping up with the sheer volume of green growth has been a challenge this year. After an unusual early season, blessed with a record-breaking 10 inches (25cm) of rain within the first six weeks of planting, followed by a succession of intensely hot days, every plant, desirable or not, has simply exploded with life. Sometimes, I swear I can almost observe the vegetables (and their less-welcome counterparts, the weeds) visibly expanding before my very eyes! My morning ritual involves venturing outside for an hour or two, diligently working before the day’s heat truly sets in. Slowly but surely, I’m making progress, and the neat rows of my garden are finally starting to emerge from the verdant chaos. My compost pile grows ever higher with countless wheelbarrows full of weeds, and even the chickens, typically eager for scraps, are uttering weary clucks of “No more, bock, bock, bock!” as I toss another heap into their pen.
Our efforts have already yielded a delightful bounty. We’ve been enjoying fresh lettuce, aromatic herbs, sweet onions, tart rhubarb, and crisp broccoli. The strawberry season is nearing its end, while the first blush of raspberries and saskatoons signals their imminent readiness for picking. I can see the beets swelling, promising earthy sweetness, and the potato plants are blooming, which means tiny, tender new potatoes will soon grace our dinner table – a true taste of summer’s early harvest.
Discovering the Delight of Garlic Scapes
Amidst the thriving greenery and the battle against the weeds, I was thrilled to discover some of our precious garlic scapes valiantly rising from the somewhat neglected garlic patch. They curled delicately, a vibrant green and purple, a testament to nature’s resilience. For those unfamiliar, garlic scapes are the tender, flowering stems that emerge from hardneck garlic varieties. It’s crucial to snip these scapes off, not just for culinary purposes, but to redirect the plant’s energy towards developing larger, more robust garlic bulbs rather than producing flowers. This simple act of pruning ensures a more bountiful and high-quality garlic harvest.
But the real treat? These magnificent scapes we cut out are not just garden byproducts; they are absolutely delicious! With a flavor profile that is distinctively garlicky yet wonderfully herbaceous, they offer a milder, fresher take on garlic. If you’re not fortunate enough to have your own thriving garlic patch, fear not! Garlic scapes are typically available at farmers’ markets during this fleeting time of year, usually late spring to early summer, making them an exciting seasonal find. Beyond pickling, they are incredibly versatile, transforming into a unique and bright pesto or an absolutely delightful, fragrant risotto. Their culinary potential is truly vast.
This year, I was particularly lucky when a generous friend gifted me with a substantial bag full of garlic scapes harvested from her own flourishing garden. It was truly a moment of garlic scape heaven, presenting an exciting opportunity to explore new ways of preserving this seasonal delicacy!
Embracing the World of Pickled Garlic Scapes
With such a fantastic bounty at hand, this year I ventured into the wonderfully garlicky world of pickled garlic scapes. These wonderfully wacky, curly stems possess an inherent zippy, tangy garlic crunch that, when properly pickled, not only persists but truly shines. They remain appetizingly crispy, offering a delightful textural contrast. For this particular pickling project, I opted for the incredibly simple yet effective oven canning method. This method is suitable because the brine is sufficiently acidic to ensure food safety. The short heating time in the oven is just enough to create a reliable seal on the jars, crucial for long-term preservation, without overcooking the delicate garlic scapes, thus preserving their signature crunch. The inclusion of apple cider vinegar in the brine adds a lovely brightness and a subtle complexity, complementing the garlic flavor exceptionally well. These pickled scapes are perfect for pulling out any time you want to add a fun, funky, and incredibly flavorful dash of pickle to any dinner or snack. They are a true testament to the versatility and deliciousness of fresh produce preservation.
Pickled Garlic Scapes – A Fun & Delicious Project
Embarking on this pickling adventure begins with preparing your garlic scapes. First, you’ll need to trim them carefully. Start by cutting off the bud, which is the slightly bulbous top part. Following this, trim the stringy, thinner tip of the bud, ensuring you cut just after the thickest part. These buds are quite versatile; you can choose to include them in your pickling jars for an extra textural element, save a sufficient amount to pickle them separately (creating a different kind of pickled treat!), or simply reserve them in a bag in your fridge. They make a fantastic addition to various dishes, lending a fresh garlicky flavor to stir-fries, scrambled eggs, pasta sauces, and more.
Next, focus on the opposite end of the scape. Trim off the tough, straight part of the stem, cutting only to the point where it yields easily to a knife. The bottom few inches of a garlic scape can sometimes be a bit fibrous and woody, especially if they are older. These tougher bits don’t need to go to waste; they can be saved and added to soup stocks, infusing them with a delicate garlic essence. This ensures minimal food waste and maximum flavor utilization from your harvest.
To facilitate the elegant coiling of the scapes inside your jars, cut a few inches off the tender, straight part of each stem. This shorter length makes them more pliable and easier to arrange aesthetically. Don’t discard these tender straight trimmings; they will be perfectly utilized by stuffing them into the centers of your pickling jars, maximizing the amount of delicious garlic scape in each jar.
Packing the Jars with Flavor
Once your garlic scapes are meticulously trimmed, the fun begins as you start arranging them into the jars. Gently coil the longer, curly sections of the scapes around the inside perimeter of each jar. This not only creates an attractive presentation but also helps to hold them securely. Before adding the scapes, you’ll want to place a few key aromatics at the bottom of each jar: a bay leaf (which helps maintain the pickles’ satisfying crispiness), a thin slice of lemon, and a scattering of peppercorns and mustard seeds (these will infuse the brine with wonderful layers of flavor). This foundational layer ensures that every scape benefits from the pickling spices.
After coiling the scapes, take those straight pieces of tender stem you trimmed earlier and carefully stuff them into the hollow formed in the middle of the jars. This technique efficiently fills any empty spaces and ensures a dense pack. If you opted to keep the trimmed scape buds, you can tuck them in here as well, or as mentioned, pickle them in their own separate jar if you have a generous quantity. The goal is to fill the jars as completely as possible, leaving just enough headspace for the brine to do its magic.
Once the jars are packed with scapes and aromatics, it’s time for the hot pickling brine. Carefully pour the simmering brine over the garlic scapes, ensuring that all contents are fully submerged and filling each jar to within approximately half an inch (1 cm) from the top. This headspace is crucial for proper sealing and to prevent overflow during the canning process. Immediately after filling, securely seal the jars with lids. At this stage, if you have ample space in your refrigerator, these can be stored as delicious refrigerator pickles for up to a year. However, for longer, shelf-stable storage outside the fridge, you’ll proceed with the canning process.
Choosing Your Preservation Method: Refrigerator vs. Oven Canning
For those opting for extended preservation, the easy oven-canning method is a fantastic choice for these high-acid pickled garlic scapes. This technique involves placing the hot, sealed jars immediately into a preheated hot oven for a precise duration, typically around 10 minutes, to create a vacuum seal. The controlled heat ensures the lids seal effectively without subjecting the delicate scapes to prolonged high temperatures, thus maintaining their delightful crunch. After the jars have completely cooled and sealed (you’ll hear a satisfying pop as the lids seal), they can be stored at room temperature in a cool, dark place for two years or even longer. While this oven-canning method is remarkably convenient and effective for specific types of high-acid pickles like these garlic scapes or easy dill pickles, it’s vital to remember that for most other types of canning, processing jars in a boiling water bath is the recommended and safest method to ensure proper sterilization and long-term storage.
Regardless of your chosen preservation method, patience is a virtue when it comes to pickling. Allow the sealed jars to rest for at least a couple of weeks before yielding to temptation and tasting them. This crucial “aging” period allows the vibrant flavors to meld and fully develop, transforming the simple ingredients into a truly complex and irresistible pickled delicacy.
Serving Your Delicious Pickled Garlic Scapes
Once perfectly pickled and full of flavor, your unique pickled garlic scapes are ready to elevate a variety of dishes. They are an absolute showstopper when added to a charcuterie platter, their vibrant color and distinctive curl adding visual appeal, and their zesty crunch providing a delightful contrast to cheeses and cured meats. Beyond the board, get creative! Finely chop them up and mix them into sandwiches, salads, or even your favorite burger topping for an unexpected burst of flavor. They are also fantastic stirred into tuna, egg, or pasta salads, lending a fresh, garlicky kick that will surprise and delight. Or, for a simpler pleasure, simply serve them as wonderfully weird and delicious pickles, adding an instant pizzazz and sophisticated tang to almost any meal. Their versatility makes them a true culinary gem, ready to enhance your everyday cooking or impress your guests.
Guten Appetit!
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Pickled Garlic Scapes
Margaret Bose Johnson
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Ingredients
For each pint (500ml) jar:
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 slice of lemon
- ½ teaspoon peppercorns
- ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
- garlic scapes to fill 2 pints about 2 bundles
For the brine:
- 1 cup (240ml) apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup (240ml) water
- 1 tablespoon (15gms) pickling salt
- ½ tablespoon sugar
Instructions
- Carefully trim the bud off each garlic scape. These buds can be tucked into the center of each jar for pickling, saved to pickle separately, or reserved for other culinary uses such as adding a fresh garlic flavor to stir-fries or scrambled eggs. Next, trim off and discard the tough, fibrous portion from the straight end of each garlic scape. Finally, cut off any remaining tender straight parts of the scapes and set them aside; these will be used to fill the centers of each jar.
- Thoroughly sterilize the appropriate number of pint (500ml) jars you intend to use. Proper sterilization is key to safe and successful pickling. Detailed instructions on how to sterilize canning jars can be found here.
- Into each sterilized jar, place one bay leaf, one slice of lemon, and half a teaspoon each of peppercorns and mustard seeds. For a visually appealing effect, position the bay leaf and lemon slice against the side of the jar. Begin coiling the trimmed, curly garlic scapes around the inside wall of the jar, fitting them snugly and efficiently. Once the outer ring of scapes is in place, fill the middle of the jar with the straight bits of garlic scape you reserved. Pack in as many scapes as possible, ensuring the jars are filled to within approximately an inch (2.5cm) of the top rim.
- In a small saucepan, bring the pickling brine mixture to a rolling boil. It should be piping hot when poured over the scapes.
- Carefully pour the hot brine over the packed garlic scapes in each jar, filling them to within a half-inch (1 cm) of the top. This headspace is important. If you find yourself short on brine, quickly prepare a small additional batch by heating equal amounts of vinegar and water to boiling, and use this to top up any jars as needed.
For refrigerator pickles:
- Immediately seal the jars with lids and allow them to cool completely at room temperature. Once cooled, transfer them to the refrigerator, where they will keep well for up to 6 months. These offer a quick and easy way to enjoy pickled scapes without formal canning.
If you choose to can the jars, follow this procedure:
- Preheat your oven to precisely 310° F (155° C). Please note, this temperature is very specific and not a typographical error; it’s crucial for this particular oven-canning method to ensure safety and effectiveness.
- While the oven preheats, heat the required number of metal snap lids in a small saucepan filled with simmering (not boiling) water. This softens the sealing compound, allowing for a better seal.
- Carefully wipe the rims and tops of the filled jars with a clean, damp cloth to remove any brine or food particles, which could interfere with the seal. Place a hot metal snap lid on each jar, then screw on the metal ring lid until it is just “finger-tight” – as tight as you can get it using only your thumb and index finger, without over-tightening.
- Immediately place the filled and sealed jars into a baking dish (to catch any potential spills) and transfer them to the preheated oven. Heat for exactly 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, carefully remove the jars from the oven using pot holders and set them onto a clean tea towel spread on your counter. It is critical not to disturb the jars at all until they have completely cooled, which can take up to 24 hours.
- Once cooled, check the seals. A properly sealed jar will have a lid that is concave (sucked down) and does not move up or down when pressed in the center. If any jars have not sealed (the lid moves), cool them completely and store them in the refrigerator for up to 6 months, treating them as refrigerator pickles. Properly sealed jars, stored in a cool, dark pantry, will last for 2 years or even longer.
Notes
Kosher salt, if it explicitly states it contains no additives, can be a suitable substitute for pickling salt. However, it’s important to be aware that different brands of kosher salt can have varying weights per volume due to differences in crystal size and density. For precise results and to ensure the safety of your pickling brine, it is always best to weigh kosher salt rather than measuring by volume if substituting for pickling salt.
Investing in a bag of pickling salt is a wise choice for any home preserver. It keeps well for years and will be a handy staple to have on hand for all your future pickling, brining, and preserving projects, ensuring consistent and safe results every time.
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